Quote:
Originally Posted by yoshiharadesign
the wheel and tire are extensions of the suspension parts and the actual contact patch connecting car to the road. any changes in offset and tire size will change the handling... If looking at wheels/tires/suspension together, the geometry is changed.. thus alignments are always recommended...
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BS. I totally agree with suspension changes, even if you just pulled it apart and put the stock parts back in, but to say you need an alignment because you're running wider tires or a different offset is false.
Out of curiosity, what alignment specs would you set my car to running 225/45/17's on 17x8 +45, and why would you deviate from the factory alignment?
I fully realize that the factory alignment specs aren't the fastest specs around a track, but that doesn't mean you need to adjust based on wheel offset. If you're that concerned about on track performance you need to factor in a lot more data than just width and offset, actual logged data like tire temps across the width of the tire, pressure, etc all come into play.
None of that matters for the average street driver though. The only other time I can see this mattering is if you're setting camber for fender clearance, then you would need the final wheels to get the clearance right.
To answer the OP's question, just get the alignment after the suspension install, changing wheels won't change the alignment at all. A good number of alignment racks require removing the wheels anyway.