Precision Alignment rant

[bonjoey]

i just bought a vehicle from a fellow beyonder and it looks like it needs an alignment 'cause the right front tire is balding outside and the steering wheel is a little sloppy.
i called this shop last weekend to see if they squeeze me in, and the guy said that just leave my vehicle there and they will try.

left the vehicle there and after few hours they called me and said that the vehicle was done, i asked if there are any suspension issue and the lady said they would check the suspension first before they do an alignment and it looks like everything is okay. fair enough. so i went to pick up the vehicle and they printed me this alignment sheet that shows that the left toe-in is out of alignment.

drove the vehicle home and i still notice the sloppy steering. i decided to jack the vehicle and crawl underneath. since the vehicle is used, there's grease all over the tirerods and from the looks of it, they didn't even touch the bolts/threads on the tirerods!? there's still grease on it. i remember that in order to adjust the toe-in/out, you need to adjust the tirerods, right?

so i called today, and the same thing the lady told me that they need to check the suspension first before they can align it. i told them the steering is still sloppy and looks like you guys didn't even touch anything.

now they want me to book an appointment and will check the suspension? i thought they cant align it w/o checking it!? they even said that they test drove it after the alignment and it drives like new.

i actually saw it here on beyond that they were a good shop. guess iam wrong.

end of rant.

[Sky]

Not going to defend anyone here but I had my custom alignments done here.

My experience when I took my Mazdaspeed Miata there was great! They took their time to make sure I got exactly what I need and it drove like new. toe, camber, caster...no problem

I told my friend to go with his RSX type-s with HKS coilovers and got it done perfect.

I recently took my Lexus LS400 there and again they got what I needed. Camber, toe, caster..no problem.

No shop is perfect but it has been for me at precision. Good luck getting your suspension fix up soon.:thumbsup: sorry to hear it didn't work out for your vehicle.

[bonjoey]

Originally posted by Sky
Not going to defend anyone here but I had my custom alignments done here.

My experience when I took my Mazdaspeed Miata there was great! They took their time to make sure I got exactly what I need and it drove like new. toe, camber, caster...no problem

I told my friend to go with his RSX type-s with HKS coilovers and got it done perfect.

I recently took my Lexus LS400 there and again they got what I needed. Camber, toe, caster..no problem.

No shop is perfect but it has been for me at precision. Good luck getting your suspension fix up soon.:thumbsup: sorry to hear it didn't work out for your vehicle.
thats what i heard that they are a good shop. i went back there today and they didnt even want to check my alignment. the mechanic test drove it and said that it might be the steering gear box. quoted me 900$ parts/labor.

iam going to get another alignment in a different shop. then we will see if they're telling the truth.

[DC2]

I have mixed opinions about that shop now.

If you were to ask me about them a month ago, it would have been thumbs up, but not its just so-so.

They basically charged me 80 bucks to tell me they dont know whats wrong with my car. Later that week, I found the problem and fixed it myself.

[Team_Mclaren]

did you get a printout for all the measurements??

[bonjoey]

Originally posted by Team_Mclaren
did you get a printout for all the measurements??
yes, and it shows that left toe in/out is way out of alignment. no change in steering before and after the alignment. i looked underneath and the tierods adjustment sleeve still have dirt/grease on it.

could they easily print out the measurements w/o actually aligning the vehicle? maybe they just made one? remember i have no proof of this so i will have to wait until i can get to a different alignment shop.

[bonjoey]

*UPDATE*

i went to a different shop to get it checked and aligned. and guess what, the mechanic said that the toe-in/out is way out of specs. their computer alignment couldn't even recognize the measurement so they have to adjust it a bit. i told them if they have a print out sheet so i can compare it to the one at precision. but they said that their printer on their machine is not working. test drove the vehicle and its like night and day difference. they dont even need to show me a piece of paper! by the way this is the petro certigard at northland mall who aligned it.

iam not going to try to get a refund at precision. some of you guys get awesome service from them, i guess i was not. and if you do go to precision, just a heads up, be sure to check everything they do or better yet, watch what they do.

ps. oh and after the alignment, i went to country tire which is btw besides precision and got 4 new tires! those guys are awesome and they do excellent job! :thumbsup: oh and i saw one of precision's mechanic and i even wave to him but he just ignored me. and he was probably thinking "why is this guy going to get new tires? we haven't replace the steering gear box on his vehicle" :rofl: