I went to the dealership this week mainly because I needed both diesel fuel filters replaced so I went ahead and got them to balance and rotate the tires (which I do once a year) and a 4 wheel alignment. 2 questions for those of you that know service garages...

1) On balancing tires, have you EVER seen where the wheel weights didn't need to be moved/replaced on ANY of the 4 wheels? I have not and none of mine were moved or replaced so I'm thinking I paid $60 to have my tires rotated which I could have done myself.

2) Isn't it pretty much industry standard that when you get a 4 wheel alignment done that you get a print off showing how far off the alignment was etc.? I didn't so I'm wondering if they even did that since I don't think they balanced my tires but there really isn't a way to prove it that I can think of but I plan on asking for the printout assuming they keep it on file. For $90, I'd like to get the printout.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

 

1. Seems weird, can't imagine that all 4 tires wore exactly the same over xx miles. FWIW, I recommend road force balancing. Seems to be much more precise, offers a better ride and should extend the life of your tires. Not all dealerships have the machine (mine doesn't) so I go to a front end speciality shop.

2. Never had it done at the dealership, but the shop I mentioned above provides that info on the recept of work.

If you happen to be in the NJ shore area, I would recommend the Front End Shop in Howell.

 

I'd look underneath at the rod ends for tool marks. I find it hard to believe that all 4 tires were still in balance. If you dont see any marks I would contact the service manager.

 

#1- Why would you have someone balance tires that are not being replaced or giving you strange vibrations? With that said, if the mileage is fairly low and they're not torn up, then yes it's very possible to not need weights replaced/adjusted. Yes, tire rotation you could have done yourself and saved $60.00.
#2- I just had my tires replaced and a leveling kit installed, so they checked my alignment. No printout for me either. I know it was done though because they had to adjust the steering wheel position. There really isn't much they can do for alignment anyway. As long as toe-in is correct and the included angle works like it should, there is only a camber adjustment they can do. If your tires were wearing normally, that was probably all good too. Nothing to really show to you. If the alignment machine isn't digital you're S.O.L.
I hope this helps......

 

Before I get started on this I'll give some background.
I've been doing alignments since I retired from the service in 95. I also know a thing or two about balance.

Ok, You have to balance your tires about every 500 miles if you want them to last. It doesn't matter if you can feel it. Just a half ounce out of balance will wear out your tires prematurely.

If you don't see any weights on it that have been replaced then I can say with a good degree of certainty that you got ripped. Or they forgot to do it. I've ballanced a few thousand tires in my life and never done a whole car that didn't need at least one redone.
Next thing on balance. Dealers are not the place to get that done. They are not tire shops. They don't know a thing about tires or balance and I would be willing to bet they don't even have a good stock of new weights. Go to a good tire shop next time.

For the alignment. A dealer should be able to do it right. They should have the proper tools and experience. I've worked at 2 Ford dealers and 2 GM dealers and we knew how to do it. I will say though that the industry motto for alignments is
set the toe and let it go.
There are some things you should do when you get an alignment to keep the techs honest. And this is from my experience all over the country.

First, insist on a before and after printout before you hand the service writer the keys. You are screwed now. If you had told them up front then you have two legs to stand on and personally, I would not pay if they didn't give them to me.

Second. Watch! Stand outside the door and watch the guy. If they don't let you then go somewhere else. Watch for the tech leaning on your truck or pushing one of the alignment heads when he is doing the printout. That is an old trick for fudging the readings.
Also when you get the printout, don't settle for everything in the green. Insist on everything being dead on in the middle. Trust me on this.

When you test drive the car after make sure your steering wheel is on straight. That is part of setting the toe. It should be straight when you get it back. DO NOT let them take off the wheel to straighten it. It's set with the drag link or tie rod ends.

I hope this helps some of you. I quit working for other shops because I am tired of being told to stick it to people.

 

RRranch is dead on. My brother in law works at a tire dealership and he said it so close to RRranch theres no need to add anything except that where they balance, they always pull off the old weights first to keep from having to spin up the tire one more time. He said tires are never balanced when they come in and putting a tire on the balancer with weights on is a waste of time and effort. Start fresh. And also people think that once tires are balanced they dont need it again. Baloney. Tires wear going down the road many different ways other than spinning. Not balancing them regularly is asking for trouble.

 

Let's expand this a little farther then.
I do a 5 tire rotation on my 05 every 5,000 miles and the tires are wearing very good. Expect to get at least 50,000 out of them if not more. Based on the cost of rebalance every 5,000 miles I really think I would lose money paying for the rebalance every 5,000 miles. They are the original tires so there is no free rebalance at 5,000 mile intervals.

 

Probably so. Based on the cost of rebalances versus how the tires will wear, I see what youre saying. Usually if the tires feel smooth going down the road I'd say they were close. Tire balancing IS costly. Thats one of the reasons I wont buy tires without a lifetime balance and rotation. Its usually only $5 more a tire, but if you buy Michelins, dealers around here offer it for free. And since going to Michelins, Ill never go back. But I see your point.

 

I have the factory Pirelli Scorpions and live in S. Ca. No snow. They have been great for me, not to say that I would not compare prices with Michelins when needing replacement. I usually deal with America's Tire. Great supplier so far and no ?'s asked on warranty problems.