BMW alignment - how much does it cost?

Status
Not open for further replies.
C

CivicFan

Joined
Sep 4, 2006
Messages
5,153
Location
MW
From what I can tell, the wife's BMW Z4 has negative camber on the rear wheels - when you look at the rear of the car, the wheels are like /---\. The front wheels seem to be properly aligned and look like |----|

So I took the car to Car-X for an alignment check and they say that it requires special equipment that only the dealer has. Before I take it to the dealer, I want to do my due diligence.

Is the car supposed to have such pronounced alignment issue, and how much should I expect to shell out to have it checked and/or fixed?
 
Wouldn't tire wear patterns tell if there was a problem? I had an '88 Ranger and I swear there was pronounced neg camber (fronts of course) but the tires wore perfectly well.
 
The tires, surprisingly, look OK. I was expecting to see abnormal wear but that is not the case. But they are quite loud (225/45-17 size).
 
Originally Posted By: CivicFan
Is the car supposed to have such pronounced alignment issue,

It's not an issue. It is like that by design. BMWs typically have a 1-2 degree negative rear camber. This is supposed to improve cornering/handling, at least according to BMW. Unfortunately, this will cause uneven tire wear in the rear. And that is also why BMW advises against rotating tires front-to-back.

However, if you specifically request it, an alignment tech may bring this negative camber value closer to 0. If you don't push the car to the limits, you probably won't notice diminished handling capabilities.

Quote:

and how much should I expect to shell out to have it checked and/or fixed?

A good indy shop with the proper equipment (such as a modern Hunter machine) will charge you around $100. At least that's what I used to pay in Florida. If you go to a dealer, it'll cost you around $170. Sometimes it's worth just letting the dealer do it because a lot of indy shops won't follow/ensure proper measuring procedures such as car having a full tank of gas and proper weights placed in the car to stimulate typical operating conditions.
 
not sure what special equipment is necesary. A BMW alignment is done with the car weighted down.

For me the dealer costs the same (this has been my experience for BMW and MB) as at a good indy. ive had better luck with the dealer though, independents always seem to leave my steering wheel a bit off-center.
 
Originally Posted By: JHZR2
ive had better luck with the dealer though, independents always seem to leave my steering wheel a bit off-center.

Heh... I had just the opposite experience. The dealer left the steering wheel off center. I noticed it immediately and had them redo it. For the money they charge, they'd better get it right.
 
i have seen warnings on some BMWs that when doing alignments you are to replace hardware.

also to properly align a BMW you have to have weight added per their instructions.
 
Originally Posted By: bdcardinal
i have seen warnings on some BMWs that when doing alignments you are to replace hardware.

also to properly align a BMW you have to have weight added per their instructions.


what hardware?
 
Probably they're those bolts that require x ft-lbs + x° torque. Same on my Audi when getting alignment. Off the top of my head I can't recall which bolts they were, but I've come across them.
 
Originally Posted By: moribundman
Probably they're those bolts that require x ft-lbs + x° torque. Same on my Audi when getting alignment. Off the top of my head I can't recall which bolts they were, but I've come across them.


those are the ones. anything TTY shouldn't be reused.
 
Originally Posted By: moribundman
Probably they're those bolts that require x ft-lbs + x° torque. Same on my Audi when getting alignment. Off the top of my head I can't recall which bolts they were, but I've come across them.


My E30 has them for brake calipers, but not suspension. Interesting.

That said, the bolts for the brakes arent anything special, and myabe $6 from the dealer. Can't imagine it is that big of a deal for anyone else, maybe the alignment shops just don't want to have to deal with it...

I wouldnt put it past many shops (and owners) to reuse anyway...
 
Originally Posted By: CivicFan
From what I can tell, the wife's BMW Z4 has negative camber on the rear wheels - when you look at the rear of the car, the wheels are like /---\. The front wheels seem to be properly aligned and look like |----|

So I took the car to Car-X for an alignment check and they say that it requires special equipment that only the dealer has. Before I take it to the dealer, I want to do my due diligence.

Is the car supposed to have such pronounced alignment issue, and how much should I expect to shell out to have it checked and/or fixed?

The negative rear camber is to keep the car on the road when the driver lifts off midcorner and brakes. The rear camber helps when the car is turning hard and leaned over, the rear outside tire has better grip as it stays closer to perpendicular than the outside front tire promoting understeer, or atleast a balanced car.
If you are worried about tire wear you could align the back end with less camber and disconnect the rear sway bar. The car would probably safely understeer again. If you just take away the camber the car will want to oversteer more in sudden manuevers which I doubt is what your wife wants.

It would be a good experiment to go to a bmw shop and see what they say when you want to get rid of the rear camber. Their answer would tell alot about what they know about alignment in general...
 
It's a good question. My wild guess is that a fully loaded car presents a bigger challenge when it comes to handling/emergency maneuvers, so they want to set the specs for exactly those conditions. When the rear axle is off-loaded, that negative 2-3 degree camber may be closer to zero.

Now, if you were to set it at negative 2-3 degrees while the tank and trunk were empty, this would become even more negative once you put some weight over the rear axle.

Since the alignment specs are given for specific vehicle loading conditions, they want you to adhere to them. It is a bit strange, I admit. Haven't come across such conditions from any other makes. Trust zee germans to overthink everything...
55.gif
 
Originally Posted By: benjamming
Why is a tank full of gas specified? It would seem that a half-full (vs half-empty) tank would be more appropriate.


Teutonic anal-retentiveness.

A full tank is well defined, 1/2 full isn't because of gas gauge vagaries.
 
I looked around and the Bimmers I saw, most of them have negative camber, some much more than mine especially the M ones. So I think I will leave it alone. Coming from the tame world of Accords and Civics, I am still not used to BMW-s.

But one thing is sure, we should have bought one a long time ago.
 
Originally Posted By: XS650
Originally Posted By: benjamming
Why is a tank full of gas specified? It would seem that a half-full (vs half-empty) tank would be more appropriate.


Teutonic anal-retentiveness.

A full tank is well defined, 1/2 full isn't because of gas gauge vagaries.


You gotta have a fixed point of reference. With a full tank and 150 lbs on each seat, it's as close to standard conditions as possible. Otherwise, your variables are out of whack.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

Egg_Head
Discount Tire Now Does Alignments in Limited Areas
2
Replies
20
Views
2K
edyvw
S
Is oem tires different than same model at tire store?
Replies
15
Views
2K
CapriRacer
L
If you have ever wondered how much those Toyota, GM, Honda, etc. factory alloy wheels weigh.. you can find out here.
Replies
11
Views
1K
Ranger83
P
Humming noise from tires after transmission replacement
Replies
11
Views
2K
penz08
S
'14 Odyssey No Rear Alignment Adj. (pic)
Replies
11
Views
943
shurguywutt
Back
Top