Why You Should Get An Alignment Done NOW...

[Amaru]

Have you been hesitant to get an alignment performed on your car? Perhaps you think it won't be worth the money, especially if your car runs straight and rides well? Perhaps this will provide a bit of motivation for you to finally go and have an alignment done...





I installed an H&R Sport Cup Kit about 18 months ago, and intended on having new control arms and bushings installed shortly thereafter... and thus I figured I'd wait until all the new suspension parts were installed before I had an alignment done. Well, it took a bit longer than expected, but I finally had the control arms and bushings installed today... and this is what the inside lip my front tires looks like.

The indy shop actually had me sign a waiver before allowing me to drive my car home because they didn't want to be liable in the event the tires blew up or came off the rim. I drove the car home from the shop, but needless to say I am not going to be driving my car again until these tires are replaced and I've had an alignment performed. (Hopefully tomorrow, assuming a local tire shop has a decent set of properly-sized tires in stock).

Moral of the story: don't be a retard like Amaru... get an alignment done as soon as you have any suspension work completed.

[cdizzle_996]

Toe much?

[alex.w *//]

too much toe out

[!Yaminashi]

Damn how much mileage was on the tires before you found this?
Good thing they spotted this

[shenmecar]

how old are the tires?

[mb_]

at least you didn't try to blame it on anyone else!

[Eff-1]

No alignment for 18 months after suspension install??

No kidding.

[SpuGen]

So you knowingly put on aftermarket suspension, and waited 18 months to get an alignment. Yet you failed to check the inside tread at any point during this period of 18 months?

Laziness at it's worst.

I thought that I was lazy with maintenance on my cars, but even I know what type of damage that a shitty alignment/ tires will cause.

Moral of the story:
ALWAYS Check your tires. The inside, too.
I constantly checked the tread of my tires and checked for any rubbing even after I got my alignment done by PDM on my SC4.

Tire Pressure + tread. Great ways to not have a tire blow out on you and spin out into a tree or little kids.

[freakshow]

The title of this thread is so misleading. It should be 'Always get an alignment immediately after changing your suspension'

[ericthehalfbee]

That's not wear from excessive toe-out - it's the result of too much camber and most of the weight being carried by the inside edge of the tire.

Toe wear has feathering, which is not evident in your pics.

[Amaru]

Originally Posted by Coach Hines

Damn how much mileage was on the tires before you found this?
Good thing they spotted this

Originally Posted by shenmecar

how old are the tires?

The previous owner installed these tires; they came with the car. I don't know exactly how many km's are on them - at least 40,000km since I've owned it. I had an alignment done when I first got the car, but installed the new suspension a few months after that. In total, it's been 18 months and about 30,000km since the new suspension was installed.

Originally Posted by SpuGen

So you knowingly put on aftermarket suspension, and waited 18 months to get an alignment. Yet you failed to check the inside tread at any point during this period of 18 months?

Laziness at it's worst.

I thought that I was lazy with maintenance on my cars, but even I know what type of damage that a shitty alignment/ tires will cause.

Not laziness man... ignorance. I don't need a lecture, I'm readily admitting that I'm a retard for not getting an alignment sooner. Just posting to help others avoid this mistake.

For the most part, I'm really anal about maintenance, and laziness is not a trait of mine. I do all the specified preventative maintenance for my car ahead of schedule and do visual inspections before going on any longer trips.

I always check the tire pressure, too, and it has been at 36psi for months. On top of that, the car runs dead straight, feels good, and has no noticeable issues. To see this type of tire wear, you need to have the wheels fully cranked to one side or the other. Even the mechanics at my past two services/oil changes neglected to mention the crazy tire wear.

Originally Posted by SpuGen

Tire Pressure + tread. Great ways to not have a tire blow out on you and spin out into a tree or little kids.

Yeah, and as you said, check the inside of the tire too. Just putting a quarter in the outside thread isn't sufficient to get a full picture of the tire's remaining tread life.

[dinamix]

what car? how low were you?

do you need a camber kit or can you get away with just an alignment

[Amaru]

Originally Posted by dinamix

what car? how low were you?

do you need a camber kit or can you get away with just an alignment

2002 BMW 330ci, riding on an H&R Sport Cup Kit (shocks/springs). Minimal ride height lowering, at least compared to most aftermarket suspension setups: the kit drops it 0.75" in the front and 0.25" in the rear.

Pretty sure an alignment will address most of the issues, although I'll know more tomorrow when I talk to the dudes at the tire shop. Based on my previous experiences at various tire shops, I'm probably in for some abuse and lectures from the guys when they see these tires. Yippee. At least it'll be somewhat deserved abuse at this point.

Not that low...

[Shun Izaki]

it's called being lazy. People who don't check their oil, tire press...everything you should do BEFORE you start thinking about modding

[BEEB]

now, time to sell those style 68 and get some 19's !

[Amaru]

Originally Posted by Shun Izaki

it's called being lazy. People who don't check their oil, tire press...everything you should do BEFORE you start thinking about modding

Jesus, I didn't know I was going to take so much flak for a post where I readily admit to my own idiocy.

Try reading the thread before you call me lazy. As I mentioned in an earlier post... it's not laziness, it's ignorance. Is a person who doesn't floss their teeth "lazy" if they've never heard of dental floss before? No, they're just ignorant. Similarly, I had no idea my alignment was so fucked, and I had no idea my tires were so damaged. Had I known it was so crucial to get an alignment done, I would have done so far earlier and saved myself a lot of trouble.

Furthermore, as much as this tire issue is my own fault, it's not like I was grossly negligent. I conduct regular preventative maintenance on my car and do visual inspections, check tire pressure, oil level, coolant level, tread wear, etc. I just neglected to turn the wheel far enough to see the inner tire damage, as doing so requires the wheel to be turned 100% to the left. In my defense, I've had two oil changes in the past year and the mechanics didn't mention anything about this issue either, and they were actually under the car.

Anyway, I'm simply posting my experience so that others may learn from it. My mistake, I know to check the inner tire wear from now on. (And I know the importance of an alignment after having suspension work completed). 'Nuff said.

[Synapz]

Misleading title, at least you learned your lesson now.

[LiquidTurbo]

Originally Posted by Amaru

Thanks, I didn't need you to circle it for me!

[Mugen EvOlutioN]

^
in case some ppl cant read



dude wat the fuck is wrong with u


u drive a fucking bmw, and yet u are too cheap or too ignorant (either one u pick) to pay fucking $100 to do a simple alignment. Yet u rather risk everyone on the road including urself not having full traction at all times. Driving like that for 18 months, all i can say is u dont deserve the H&R cup kit nor the 330ci


man...ppl these days....i dont get u guys



BTW if u know the importance of an alignment, u wouldnt fucking wait after 30,000km. like seriously dude

[taylor192]

That doesn't look like an alignment issue to me - it looks like rubbing on a spring perch after lowering and the wheels not offset enough.

From the pics it doesn't look like you have much camber, my rear tires might have more camber than that and still don't wear like this.

[taylor192]

Originally Posted by Mugen EvOlutioN

u drive a fucking bmw, and yet u are too cheap or too ignorant (either one u pick) to pay fucking $100 to do a simple alignment. Yet u rather risk everyone on the road including urself not having full traction at all times. Driving like that for 18 months, all i can say is u dont deserve the H&R cup kit nor the 330ci

We live in a city where many stretch themselves in overpriced condos and luxury cars while living paycheque to paycheque - this type of stuff does not surprise me.

That said, a $100 alignment is useless to fix camber unless the BMW has a camber adjustment mechanism. My MB requires camber correction bolts for the front, which only the dealer stocks, and a custom camber kit for the rear which would have to be ordered ahead of time.

Thus my $100 alignment cost $300 in parts, and 1 hr additional labour for a total of $500.

Besides, the last gen 330is are a dime a dozen now, 2003s can be picked up for < $15K with 100K kms, so stop the snobby "you don't deserve a BMW" crap, almost anyone can afford a used one.

[ericthehalfbee]

Originally Posted by taylor192

That doesn't look like an alignment issue to me - it looks like rubbing on a spring perch after lowering and the wheels not offset enough.

BMW uses struts in the front. A change in ride height from springs has no effect on the tire getting closer or further from the spring perch.

[Mugen EvOlutioN]

Originally Posted by taylor192

We live in a city where many stretch themselves in overpriced condos and luxury cars while living paycheque to paycheque - this type of stuff does not surprise me.

That said, a $100 alignment is useless to fix camber unless the BMW has a camber adjustment mechanism. My MB requires camber correction bolts for the front, which only the dealer stocks, and a custom camber kit for the rear which would have to be ordered ahead of time.

Thus my $100 alignment cost $300 in parts, and 1 hr additional labour for a total of $500.

Besides, the last gen 330is are a dime a dozen now, 2003s can be picked up for < $15K with 100K kms, so stop the snobby "you don't deserve a BMW" crap, almost anyone can afford a used one.

able to afford yes, able to maintain is another.
premium badge comes with a premium fee, after all gotta pay to play
ppl who pick up used euros should really rethink before jumping the boat from a tercel to a bimmer


camber dont kill tires, toe setting does

[TEF3]

lol

[LiquidTurbo]

2003s are <15k now? Wow, talk about serious depreciation.