What's the best way to align wheels? Shop? DIY?

[Fender0122]

So this is actually more about my beater Audi A4 I have, but I want this community's point of view since, let's face it, a lot of Audi owners don't do work themselves (therefore, I can't get any answers from them).

Last week I got new tires and definitely need an alignment after putting on new control arms in the front. I've never taken my car to a shop before (I've swapped motors, installed clutches, timing belts, etc), so I was reluctant to take my car to shop for an alignment, knowing darn well a bolt would break or they would run into some problem and turn an $89 alignment into a $500+ repair bill (the car does have 296,000mi on the clock, so anything can happen lol). Well, I had a buddy help me out at his Honda dealership and sure enough he broke the eccentric bolts. Since they're frozen in there, I just took the car back, no charge.

Well, aside from now needing to fix that, I've had a revelation that there must be affordable kits out there to do it yourself. I've done the string method, which worked okay, but I'd like to find a way to be able to measure toe somewhat accurately. We also tried the method of scoring the tires and measuring front and back, but that really didn't work. I know that eventually I'll have coilovers and adjustable control arms on my BRZ some day, so I wouldn't mind putting down some money now so that I can do it myself and be able to play with different settings at the track.

Any suggestions? Any good kits out there? Any good home-made kits? Or are these methods just good enough to get you close enough to be able to drive it to a professionals alignment rack?

Thanks in advance,
Connor

[7thgear]

shops with lasers n shit

in and out in an hour or so with perfect alignment

the price is generally fair

remembers that you align with the wheels on the ground, so if the car is not on a flat lift then you'll have a hard time nailing down the adjustments.

[CSG Mike]

laser alignment racks are only as good as the calibration. Double check yourself using yardsticks/tape measures, and levels, before you go back to that shop.

[Sccabrz192]

Originally Posted by CSG Mike

laser alignment racks are only as good as the calibration. Double check yourself using yardsticks/tape measures, and levels, before you go back to that shop.

I'll also add only as good as the tech who's willing to dink with it until it's exact... which is rare.

For instance there's a local (not chain) tire shop just up the road from me which is heavily involved in drag, circle, and dirt track... they are the only ones I'd trust to have a remotely calibrated alignment rack and willing to do a precise enough alignment per my spec. I had my MR2 aligned there when I was in ES and was very pleased. If you find a good place, my advice is it's best not to stray.

[xwd]

Yeah definitely ask on your local autox forums to find who does the best alignments. We have a couple decent shops around here. DIY works well but can definitely be a pain and time consuming for doing things like setting individual toe. But it's easy to check overall toe to double check the shop.

[fatoni]

west end alignment. you might be out of luck though

[Fender0122]

Originally Posted by Sccabrz192

I'll also add only as good as the tech who's willing to dink with it until it's exact... which is rare.

For instance there's a local (not chain) tire shop just up the road from me which is heavily involved in drag, circle, and dirt track... they are the only ones I'd trust to have a remotely calibrated alignment rack and willing to do a precise enough alignment per my spec. I had my MR2 aligned there when I was in ES and was very pleased. If you find a good place, my advice is it's best not to stray.

Yea, I at least had the front straightened up and it's not perfect. I kinda figured the best bet was to have a shop do it initially and then modify it from there with you're own measurements. Thanks for everyone's input!

BTW, I noticed you were in the Detroit/NWOR region. I used to go to school in Toledo and took my '91 MR2 N/A in Fostoria back on Oct 12th, 2008. The car looked like this:



Don't know if you were there, but this was definitely the coolest thing there!

[Sccabrz192]

Originally Posted by Fender0122

Yea, I at least had the front straightened up and it's not perfect. I kinda figured the best bet was to have a shop do it initially and then modify it from there with you're own measurements. Thanks for everyone's input!

BTW, I noticed you were in the Detroit/NWOR region. I used to go to school in Toledo and took my '91 MR2 N/A in Fostoria back on Oct 12th, 2008. The car looked like this:

Nice! I've actually never been to Fostoria, NWOR doesn't use it any more. I didn't drive much at all in the 08 season, I graduated from college that year. I had my MR2 in 05-06. Co-drove in STX in a WRX after that. Mostly was doing Detroit Region events at that time. Small world though! Loved my Hardtop 91 NA.

[itzmik3]

Originally Posted by fatoni

west end alignment. you might be out of luck though

i would definitely recommend the same, but this guy is all the way in Ohio lol

[Fender0122]

Originally Posted by Sccabrz192

Nice! I've actually never been to Fostoria, NWOR doesn't use it any more. I didn't drive much at all in the 08 season, I graduated from college that year. I had my MR2 in 05-06. Co-drive in STX in a WRX after that. Mostly was doing Detroit Region events at that time. Small world though! Loved my Hardtop 91 NA.

Yea I probably should have been studying versus going out racing haha. But yeah, I wouldn't suggest driving too low of a car at Fostoria because there's a concrete walkway splitting the asphalt which makes for a pretty wicked jump...

[Sccabrz192]

haha, nice use of Mark Sommers' car to illustrate

But as far as at home stuff... the alignment is only as good as the gauge and the person using it. String method can be EXTREMELY accurate, but you have to be willing to be very exact in the setup. Including leveling the car as most "flat" garage surfaces still have a grade to shed water, so some of the wheels may need to be shimmed. A local autocrosser set up his own alignment system and it's far more accurate than most shops get with their laser alignment racks, but he's been known to spend about 2 hours prepping and another 4 hours doing the alignment to get it exact. Most people just aren't willing to put the time and energy in to do that.

[Fender0122]

Yeah I noticed the string method did a pretty good job getting the front end back into shape. It did take forever, though. I think I'll try the string method again for the rear but you're right on the method. I definitely need to get line thats a little more taut like fishing line. Nylon braided string just didn't cut it because it would stretch. Probably wouldn't be bad to make a mount on the face of the wheel, too. Hmmm this is about to be a fun little spring project.




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