Going Rate for Wheel Tracking/Alignment

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eggerb

Registered User
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Does anybody know what the going rate is for wheel tracking/alignment? I am getting four new tyres fitted and the guy in Fast Fit said to me €80 and then in the same breath he said, I'll do it for €50 if it needs to be done.

I suppose it is a trust thing but how do I know he's not just going to tell me it needed to be done and in fact it didn't really need to be done? The wear on the four tyres was very consistent and even if that's an indication of anything!
 
Fast fit just called and said it needed to be done. I said, go ahead. Not much point paying €420 for 4 new tyres and skimping on the tracking ...
 
I'd suggest based on your post that you leave well enough alone but ensure they fit the same make & spec of tyres as the ones they take off, balance front and rear, as well as refitting the wheels to the same corners of the car they came off.

Check your tyre pressures before you leave the fitting place and go for a quick spin to ensure the wheels are in fact balanced correctly. If the car has steel wheels they will use clip-on weights on the rim; for alloys they should use secret weights glued to the inside of the wheel only.

Just saw your 2nd post - big mistake IMHO.
 
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Last time I had wheels tracked/balanced (no tyre changes) it cost me €58.
 

Thanks Mathepac. Didn't know what to do for the better tbh. Probably would have told them to leave it if you reckoned best left as is. They gave me some print-out detailing diagnosis and adjustment. I hope they haven't knackered something up now. It's a five year old car. I don't think it ever had it's tracking done. Why do you reckon it was a mistake? Cheers.
 
If the overall tyre wear is even and consistent, side-to-side on the same axle and front-to-back, it indicates the tyre pressures have been maintained pretty well and that the steering, suspension, wheel hubs and brakes are in good nick i.e.

  • they haven't worn excessively
  • they haven't been damaged by potholes or kerbing
  • there's no binding or "wobbles".
In other words, if there's nothing broke, there's nothing to fix. To keep it that way, I suggested putting everything back as close as possible to the way it was before changing to the new tyres.

I've posted before about my lack of faith in these "computerised laser-alignment" gizmos, mainly relating to poor or no operator training, lack of machine calibration and out of date vehicle data in the data-base. On my last visit to one of these places I was told that the camber and caster on my car could not be adjusted, which was utter nonsense.
 
Cheers Mathepac. I don't think I'd have the balls to go back and ask them to put it back the way it was. I suppose the best I can do is to keep an eye on the tyre wear. I'm a bit disgusted I bothered.

mathepac said:
... I've posted before about my lack of faith in these "computerised laser-alignment" gizmos, mainly relating to poor or no operator training, lack of machine calibration and out of date vehicle data in the data-base....
Click to expand...

I'm driving an A4. I noticed on the print out, they input the car type as an A6 so I pointed this out and the manager guy said that it didn't make a difference as the technician had key-in the values.

Bit more annoyed with myself now :mad:
 
That sounds like a pile of poo as there are more A4s on the road than A6s.

You should have the basic data in your Audi user book - I can't remember if its the maintenance schedule booklet or the user manual. Compare the "after" print-out they gave you with the data in the Audi book, they should correspond.

In relation to the car, as you said watch out for unusual tyre wear, vibrations at speed (possibly wheels not balanced), drifting to one-side or the other on motorways / straights or pulling to one side under braking. If any of these are new, it probably relates to the work the tyre-fitter did. (If they were there before changing the tyres and are now gone, well that's just me talking rubbish again. )

I fairness to Audi they use good stuff in their cars and the rubber / polyurethane suspension and steering components that wear in "lesser" cars tend to last well. "Vorsprung durch Technik" as they say in Kilnascully.
 
Cheers Mathepac. (Glad I'm the direct recipient of your sound advice this time!)
I'll dig out the books and have a look. I'm never comfortable with this alignment stuff and if the truth be known, I'll start to imagine things now in the car! Hopefully it'll be Vorsprung in a straight line durch Technik
 
eggerb said:
Cheers Mathepac. I don't think I'd have the balls to go back and ask them to put it back the way it was. I suppose the best I can do is to keep an eye on the tyre wear. I'm a bit disgusted I bothered.
Click to expand...

You should have left it. But whats done is done. You have to keep an eye on tyre wear anyway.

eggerb said:
I'm driving an A4. I noticed on the print out, they input the car type as an A6 so I pointed this out and the manager guy said that it didn't make a difference as the technician had key-in the values.

Bit more annoyed with myself now :mad:
Click to expand...

In theory it could be is they have software that out of date, and they correct it manually and they use the same default for everything.

But considering they made the mistake of tracking a car that didn't need tracking I'd tend to think they don't know what they are doing with the computer either.
 
eggerb said:
I'll dig out the books and have a look.
Click to expand...


Coundn't find it in the manual. But found [broken link removed] and it seems to have what I'm looking for. It is 1BA for the model I have. Comparing it to the summary sheet they gave me is another story....
 
4 wheel laser tracking costs 55 euros at advance pitstop
 
eggerb said:
... Comparing it to the summary sheet they gave me is another story....
Click to expand...
They probably didn't give as many parameters on the print-out as the web-site has. Do you want to chance scanning the print-out and posting a link to it? Some of us might be able to give a hand interpreting it.
peelaaa said:
4 wheel laser tracking costs 55 euros at advance pitstop
Click to expand...
and unfortunately IME they do the job every bit as good as the crowd OP used.
 
mathepac said:
Do you want to chance scanning the print-out and posting a link to it? Some of us might be able to give a hand interpreting it. ..
Click to expand...

Cheers again matepac. Below is a scan of the print-out they gave me. Driving on the M1 today, I let go on a straight and thought I felt the car pulling to the left. Think I am going to go back to them at Fast Fit. Any help in interpreting what I have so far vis a vis what it should be would be much appreciated...





 
Link above to specs seems to be broken. . Should have mentioned, clocking up about 3,000km soon on a continental drive - wasn't bargaining for a headache like this....
Cheers.
 
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the garage type place on St. Margerets Road opposite Aldi in Finglas do 4 wheel alignment for €50.

can never remember the name of it but its one of those kwik/fast fit type places
 

A lot of cars pull to the left slightly due to the camber in the road.Does the car pull a lot?
If it is slight then it could be normal, large width tyres can make it worse too.
 
Victory Tyres in Limerick tracked and balanced and changed wheels around on Tuesday and charged €35 for a Peugeot 206 (and put tie wraps on the wheel trims) I thought this was good value and good service.

I have always been happy with tyre work from this guy, no affiliation, don't even know his name.... white hair and moustache...
 
my main gripe is that most of these places can align the wheels but fail to clamp the steering wheel in the correct position before doing the job, hence the alignemnt is good but 9 times out of 10 the steering wheel is off centre
 
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