As some of you know, I was recently able to get the Wheel Alignment done on My Minion. (She's needed it since I bought her back in April of 2012) What a Difference! I mean I new it was Bad, I mean the Steering wheel sat 1/8th turn to the left to drive straight! But she would drive straight an true on a smooth flat surface. (Which are few and far between in NJ)
The difference is in my Gas Mileage. I was getting about 250 to 270 from a tank of gas. Now, after the wheel alignment, I'm getting 360 or so from the first tank at least. It's going to take at least 5 tanks to get a real gas mileage average. So i will see. But it looks Very Promising!!!

 

That will sure help on that trip you are getting ready to make!!!

 

LoL JC I havnt had an alignment done on my Monte since I bought it 12 years ago. Even when I get new tires installed I don't op for the alignment. As long as my steering wheel is straight and If I let go of the steering wheel on the highway and it stays straight it's aligned enough for me.

 

Barb: my thoughts exactly!
Habbibie: my alignment was causing uneven and lumpy tire ware. And when you look at the tires down the drivers side, you could see that the front tire wasn't sitting quite right. Now I need to replace 3 tires, but even with the sale at Pep Boys I am only going to be able to get 2. Still a 15% automatic discount on those. I have to get 2 for the Altima too. Plus the other preventive stuff I am having done. We are dropping the Altima off at the Trans shop for a check up tonight. No real problems with it. But it just turned over 100k Miles.

 

what should be changed before an allignemnt is done? and do you do mostly city or highway driving?

 

Hay George, I'm thinking you've done most if not all that goes along with a good alignment. Struts, Hubs, Ball Joints, Tie Rods, Control Arms. Sway Bar an d it's Bushings. Good tires and wheels balanced would be nice but not absolutely necessary! But your wheels do have to be the same. No Donuts or metal spare rims. The Strut bearing on my right Front strut is shot. The Strut and spring are good. So they were able to do the alignment.
As I said, I think you have done all this on your car recently. But you would know better than I!

 

Glad to hear making an alignment made a difference. I know in my Monte it helps when I get one done for sure. In the past mine has been pretty bad as well.

 

Glad to hear you had such a positive experience JC

 

When I purchased new tires I got the wheel alignment and man it felt great.

Jumped on the highway and smooth, less vibration was noticed.

 

With a shade over 3Million miles on the road, I drove truck and was a sales rep for along time. The alignment was the cheapest thing I did to keep the car running smooth.
So a few years back I met this lady who owned an Impala 09. She bought because it was Red and she liked the one I owned.
She had good tires on it and then put new ones on when she had a wheel come loose and almost lost the Car. I believe her X did the work during the night.
Anyway she was having an attitude when I was giving her some tips on what she should do to keep the thing running at it's peak performance.
As if I didn't know anything. She gets the new tires and they look good, it's a Red SS. In just over a year she calls and tells me her new tires are worn and she has to replace them. The tire dealer said she should have had an alignment. Her question to me? " Did you Know that if you get new tires you should get an all wheel alignment? " I said: yes Maam! She said why didn't you tell me? Well you seemed upset with my wanting to suggest you needed to do routine preventative maintenance and I was a know it all?!?!
Total silence? on her end of the phone. I may have saved her some cash but she thought she was just a bit smarter.
Now the thing I wondered about is why didn't her Tire Dealer tell her the first time??
The moral here is to listen to the suggestions and then do some research and make your own best decision.
Your alignment is a great move, it is amazing how it will drive now, If you let go of the wheel it shouldn't drift or pull to the side.
When I purchase a car that is something I insist they include.
You might want to look at Sams club for tires, they sell the top brands and service all over USA with free balance and stems every 5K.
Good Luck!