[dyc1077]

I just put in coilovers in my 95 6spd and i need to get an alignment done.

where do you guys bring your car?

I called custom alignment in mt. view but they want $240 for 4 wheel alignment since i have coilovers?!?!

does that sound way high to you guys?

let me know where you all get your alignments done.

David

 

[ISinCP]

That sounds very high unless they are going to corner weight your car as well. I just had mine done on my IS and I have coilovers. It was $75 here in Sac at Radial Tire Service. They came highly recommended from several people that I auto-x with. The guy was odd, but he did a great job. I am sure that you can find a much better price for an alignment.

 

[93 twintrbo]

I can do it for $69.95. Located in Windsor, let me know. Put at whatever specs you want.

lawrence

 

[[email protected]@n]

dont forget the corner balancing and lance's allignment specs?

 

[dyc1077]

any other recommendations? I dont want to go more than say 50 miles from san jose.

 

[carendt242]

don't go to custom alignment - their work is very suspect and they're way over-priced.

valaya racing is a corvette/viper shop, and they bring in a guy to do alignment, but they seemed like pretty cool guys when i went in. they have a scale do they can dial in your coilovers. (they're re-locating next to the HP pavilion..)

 

[supralover93]

hey at the dealership i work it we give a print out of before and after specs., do these places you guys mentioned do that? i would tell you to come to my dealership but our alighment rack sucks, we can't get lowered cars on there.

 

[dyc1077]

anyone been to this valaya racing place?

does corner balancing help for street driving too? or would my car look sort of funny being at different heights at each corner.

i m looking for occasional track usage in my alignment but tire wear is a definite concern.

 

[[email protected]@n]

why put coilovers on your car when you are not going to corner balance it? WHY? WHAT IS THE POINT? I DON'T UNDERSTAND!!!

 

[dyc1077]

my shocks were going out. got a good price. height adjustability. adjustable shocks. couldnt resist!

i m not a hardcore track guy but like to go occasionally. so if corner balancing doesnt detract from street driving, then i will go with corner balancing. but dont cars need to be set up differently depending on the track they are running on?

 

[carendt242]

valaya can corner-balance - no problem.

i can't vouch for their alignments but it can't be worse than custom alignment... smaller, more personable, you can stand there & watch them, so i imagine much better than ca.

 

[TZL]

i have used both Vayala and Custom Alignment

I think custom alignment does a better job with the alignment and corner balancing, but that is just my opinion

I have never had a problem with their work. Custom alignment provides before and after setting with their alignment and corner balancing.

I don't know why so many people out there cheap out on alignment and corner balancing when they get coilovers

You just spent $1000-$4000 on new suspension, so why does $100 make a huge difference in setup.

IMO there are two types of coilover buyers out there:

1) Real enthusiasts who appreciate new found balance and poise in their cars, who are willing to spend the money to get it aligned and balanced properly

2) posers who want coilovers to be able to drop their cars farther than springs, and don't mind 25 degress of camber

 

[carendt242]

my problem w/ custom alignment wasn't expense - it was professionalism.

i had my coilovers installed there and they slammed the car so low it rubbed everywhere. a simple test drive down the highway should have pointed this out. i noticed it within 15 minutes of driving.

then.....

i take off the tire to adjust the coilover myself and *both* upper control arms bolts were finger loose!!! these things should be torqued to 70lbs+.

that upset me more than their coilover installation - it's one thing to not check your work; it's another to endanger your customers.

when i called them the next day, and pointed out the various problems, they didn't really apologize and invited me to come back 2 weeks later to fix the problems... why 2 weeks? they were booked until then. well, sorry, that's just poor customer service.


the valaya guys are a smaller shop, and you're right there with them... they adjust, you take it for a ride, come back, re-adjust... more interactive, personable, and definitely better customer service.

 

[dyc1077]

it's not about cheaping out..it's about getting ripped off.

when you can go to a porsche dealership and get 4 wheel alignment with road test for ~150, I cant see the sense in paying $240.

the funny thing is, custom aligntment asked me if i had coilovers, and then jacked up the price when they found out i did. and i think cornerbalancing was extra.

on a different note, alignment using lasers or not?

 

[[email protected]@n]

carend,

I concurr, custom allignment has issues. Lack of professionalism, i thought writing shit down would be enuf for them but they can't read english. :dunno:

 

[SupraTuRD]

It's really sad to see that their workmanship has gone down the tubes... up until a few years ago, they had a very great reputation for doing work on high end performance/racing cars. I know the ownership had changed somewhere along the way though... I wonder if that had something to do with it.

sushi

 

[SCoupe 5sp]

What is Corner Balance?, why do it no matter what use...

does corner balancing help for street driving too? or would my car look sort of funny being at different heights at each corner.

i m looking for occasional track usage in my alignment but tire wear is a definite concern.

Street or Track, irrelevant: Imagine a car as a four legged chair. In order for the chair to stand steadily, all four legs should be of equal length and as a consequence applying equal pressure on the floor. If one leg is longer, or shorter than the others, the chair is unstable. The car, in effect, will "rock."

A car in this situation will have a very poor handling characteristic, and will handle differently when turned left and right. In contrast, a perfectly corner balanced car will handle the same when turning left and right, and will be maximizing tire contact area on all four corners, thus will have more grip all around.

(above quotes from nsxprime.com faq)

It makes no difference how you use your car. Hope this helps.

 

[TZL]

well the last time i had a car worked on there was Nov 2003, and they did a great job then, but probably they changed ownership since then.

oh well..........

It's really sad to see that their workmanship has gone down the tubes... up until a few years ago, they had a very great reputation for doing work on high end performance/racing cars. I know the ownership had changed somewhere along the way though... I wonder if that had something to do with it.

sushi

 

[VINZE]

i got to this place tomorow 6/15/05. i bring pearl drink to sit and read magazine while wait to get custom alignment for 75$.

http://www.autoinnovations.com/IndexA.html

 

[pboylan]

Did you live through this traumatic experience?

-Patrick