Wheel alignment when changing to winter tires?

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sir1900

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Went to my local tire shop to look for winter tires.

Got the quote and the guy added a wheel alignment charge of $100 to the cost of the tires + install. He says I will need one to guarantee even wear throughout the life of the tires.

In all my years of driving, I have never ever heard of having to do a wheel alignment when I change over to winter tires.

Should I spend the $100 to get the alignment? I'm thinking not.
 
Sounds like he's packing the deal. Don't know if you've got other options up there, but call other dealers if you do and check their prices. I doubt if they all require the alignment.
 
A wheel alignment is a good idea before using winter tires. In general they are made of softer rubber. Softer rubber will wear faster if stressed from improper alignment.

If I have any doubt about the alignment I get the vehicle aligned when I put on winter tires.

BTW, the price for an alignment from a very good shop that specializes in alignment is about $55 + tax here in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. How does $55 US translate into Canadian?
 
It's not a bad idea to check your alignment on a periodic basis based upon the amount of driving you do annually, the condition of the roads you normally travel, and the remaining service life on your tires. It's better to catch a problem early rather than pay later to correct it. Personally, I do it once a year primarily due to the fact that I auto-x my daily driver, and the prevalence of potholes in the local roads.

If the quoted price is competitive locally, and you haven't checked your alignment in over a year, I'd go for it. Of course, YMMV.
 
Originally Posted By: sir1900
Went to my local tire shop to look for winter tires.

Got the quote and the guy added a wheel alignment charge of $100 to the cost of the tires + install. He says I will need one to guarantee even wear throughout the life of the tires.

In all my years of driving, I have never ever heard of having to do a wheel alignment when I change over to winter tires.

Should I spend the $100 to get the alignment? I'm thinking not.


Sounds like the manager is trying to hose you big time!!..A 4 wheel alignment at the stearlership is around 65 bucks in my neck of the woods...This is the first time I ever heard of this when putting on winter tires.

When I lived in the north I never even heard of anyone even suggesting this....I never had a issue with winter tires because of not getting a alignment when I used them....Same goes for everyone else I knew up there.

I have no doubt the place you went to is ripping people off daily...This manager should be put in jail with the rest of the rip off tire managers for what they do the public in a daily basis...It is really ashame!
 
Originally Posted By: sir1900
Went to my local tire shop to look for winter tires.

Got the quote and the guy added a wheel alignment charge of $100 to the cost of the tires + install. He says I will need one to guarantee even wear throughout the life of the tires.

In all my years of driving, I have never ever heard of having to do a wheel alignment when I change over to winter tires.

Should I spend the $100 to get the alignment? I'm thinking not.

To me, it sounds like he's telling you to get an alignment before putting on new tires, which just happen to be winter tires in your case. It is typically a good idea to get an alignment done prior to mounting a a brand new set of tires, to ensure they wear evenly right from day 1.

When was the last time you had an alignment done? If it's been a while, it may be worth getting it done.
 
sounds high to me. (in ohio though)
lifetime alignment at firestone here is 99$
4wheel is usually 50-60$

I had no alignment problems changing from 215/40r17's to my winter 195/65r15's

I have never heard of a winter tire WITH a milage rating.. so I'm not sure what warrenty this guy is talking about?
 
If I were to get regular alignments it would be in spring after frost heave season.

Snow tires (and winter driving) are so miserable, I just drive as little as possible, which keeps wear down.
 
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
To me, it sounds like he's telling you to get an alignment before putting on new tires, which just happen to be winter tires in your case. It is typically a good idea to get an alignment done prior to mounting a a brand new set of tires, to ensure they wear evenly right from day 1.

When was the last time you had an alignment done? If it's been a while, it may be worth getting it done.

Exactly. I don't know why some of you guys are getting so wound up about it.
 
How do the tires you are taking off look? Do they have enough miles to show they are wearing evenly? If so, skip the alignment.
Also how much are your snow tires? If they are $80 each then they aren't really worth getting aligned for a potential wear problem.
 
Right now, I am running steel wheels with BF Goodrich Winter Slaloms. Currently, the tread depth is 4/32 for all four tires. It won't survive this upcoming winter as traction would be virtually non-existent. I barely survived last winter with these tires.

I didn't do the switchover to summer tires this year because I knew the winter tires I have now are pretty much done. I might as well have maximized its use.

Wear is even throughout and I got a good four winters out of these tires. Would I buy BFG winter tires again? No way!

I'm changing over either to Michelin X-Ice or Nokian Hakkapeliitta R. Still deciding.
 
Get the alignment done in the spring, after the car has jolted/slammed through the snow, slush, ice, and potholes all winter.
 
It's wise to get a four wheel alignment done on a periodic basis. If this is something you don't pay attention to, then it's a good time to do it when buying new tires.

It's also worth remembering that different cars have different numbers of adjustments. I bet a lot of cars out there have nothing adjustable except front toe. Others are fully adjustable with front camber/caster/toe and rear camber/toe. Cars with more adjustments will cost more. It's also worth remembering that not all alignment shops and alignment technicians are created equal. If you have any kind of "connection" with your car at all (as opposed to an appliance of conveyance from point A to B) it pays to get a properly executed alignment.

I usually get an alignment every 18 months or so because I can feel the car not tracking as well as it should. My car is front toe and rear camber/toe adjustable and it costs more than $100 (good work, competitive price).
 
Alignment sounds like a good idea....I know Tire Kingdom here sells an alignment with ANY tire/wheel/suspension sale.....which is a good idea I suppose, cause it keeps everything "in line" suspension wise....

I guess you could "decline" the alignment, but they may have some stipulation that would/could void "their" warranty......


Even my one car, drove FINE, no apparant "alignment" problem, the one day I took it in to get my wheels balanced and rotated (always got em rotated/balanced under warranty every 6000 miles) and they told me they couldn't do it, something about the tires wore down the "inside line" or something.....even though the car tracked fine (drove in a straight line fine, no vibrations, etc...) but apparantly something wasn't right, because the tires got worn out on the inside somehow.
 
Originally Posted By: sciphi
Get the alignment done in the spring, after the car has jolted/slammed through the snow, slush, ice, and potholes all winter.


+1. I am an alignment technician and this is the route I would go myself. If you switch tires out in the spring anyway, you would just have to do another alignment. You could almost buy a whole new row of tires after doing it twice.

-Techniker
 
I stick with a rule of thumb of 20,000 miles for my lowered vehicle or when I change out my bushings and suspension. then the process starts all over.

Of course this is nothing has happened in that 20k mile span.
smile.gif
 
Alignment is definitely good, but then the problem here is whether it's required. The fact of the matter is you will have to get it done, if and only if, the vehicle has run around 20k kilometers or if it has been more than a season that you haven't changed the tires. I presume the technician would know better if that is the place where you regularly give your car for service. When it comes to matter related to my car, I just leave the decision to the expert at Service Plus in Etobicoke because I've been getting my car serviced from the same place ever since I bought it. It would also help if you can consult another dealer, maybe they would have a different opinion.
 
I would only consider an alignment on a car after front end work or a tire wear issue. That said, I've had just one done many years ago.
 
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