4 Wheel Alignment

rebel.ranter

Hi, question for you technophiles.
I recently had a 4 wheel alignment done by a BMW main dealer (no one else seemed confident enough to do it which I thought strange). I had renewed a lot of suspension components & a new set of tyres so thought it prudent to get the alignment checked.
The car went into the NCT 1 week later & the rear side slip was -12m/km. I would have expected it to be closer to 0m/km. What do you reckon?

Car: 1996 BMW e36 Convertible

JHMEG

I reckon your rear alignment is way off.

Lex Luthor

most if not all BMW dealers will recommend Dave McCann in Blanchardstown for wheel alignment. He is the only one in teh country afaik that can do BMW's properly.

batman2000

The guys in Blakes Cross Lusk charge €68 for Wheel Alignment. Does anyone have any suggestions for that may be cheaper or is this the going rate...?

Cheers

rebel.ranter

Shoudl I go back to them do you reckon or coudl it be that there are components on the car so worn that it could not be aligned properly? Surely they shoudl have mentioned it if that were the case?

TBH if I thought bringin it to Dublin (Blanch) woudl get it right I would, I stupidly assumed that BMW (their agents) would employ people that could use the KDS system they recommend.

Lex Luthor

McCann normally charges about €50 for 4 wheel alignment, but it can go up by 10-20 depending on how much time is needed if it is out by much.

He has all the weights for the BMW's and I would only go there if you want it done right

bonham23

now i find out:( Had my wheels aligned at Fast fit in Balnch (beside Dave Mccanns) before my NCT and the guy in The NCT told me it barely passed and that i should bring it back to them. I brought it back and they re-did it but i'm still not convined its right. I think i need a trip to this guy. BTW no dealer in Dublin does any of this work themselves.

quarryman

Lex Luthor wrote: »

most if not all BMW dealers will recommend Dave McCann in Blanchardstown for wheel alignment. He is the only one in teh country afaik that can do BMW's properly.

+1

meathstevie

Dave MCCann might be good but I think if wheights come into it you're talking balancing. Blake's Cross in Lusk and M1 Firststop in Drogheda have state of the art equipment as well ( top notch 4wheel laser + software with correct settings for nearly all current cars ) and good staff.

rebel.ranter

meathstevie wrote: »

Dave MCCann might be good but I think if wheights come into it you're talking balancing. Blake's Cross in Lusk and M1 Firststop in Drogheda have state of the art equipment as well ( top notch 4wheel laser + software with correct settings for nearly all current cars ) and good staff.

It's one thing having state of the art equipment but if there are monkeys operating it they might as wel have wooden clubs as lasers!

Lex Luthor

meathstevie wrote: »

Dave MCCann might be good but I think if wheights come into it you're talking balancing. Blake's Cross in Lusk and M1 Firststop in Drogheda have state of the art equipment as well ( top notch 4wheel laser + software with correct settings for nearly all current cars ) and good staff.

The weights are used to mimic driver & passengers weight and any loads put in the boot

VeVeX

Lex Luthor wrote: »

most if not all BMW dealers will recommend Dave McCann in Blanchardstown for wheel alignment. He is the only one in teh country afaik that can do BMW's properly.

Do they use the BMW factory zero runout clamps which align the heads to the hub/rotor (rather than the wheel/tire)? I wouldn't imagine so.

BMW have specific holes in their rims for the pins on these clamps to pass through the wheel and bear against the hub. I think you'll find the theres no one doing it properly so to say.

What you will have is various tyre centers having invested heavily in machines that are universal. At the end of the day its the operator thats key after the technology. Its all well and good having the alignment data its the interpretation of this data that I have found to be lacking sometimes.

Btw Some machines need weights to mimic the driver, passenger and luggage some dont as it can be compensated for through software.

batman2000

Blakes Cross in Lusk are good. Alignment €68, balancing €15 per alloy wheel, €10 for steel

Stevie Dakota

€15 for balancing a wheel! Time to call Dave McCann I think....

batman2000

Yep..Advance Pitstop (Swords) do alignment 3D, for €50....But if the car isn't vibrating at mid-high speeds then there is no need to balance the wheel.

Hendy7715

Guys
After getting new tyres and having gone to two separate places for alignment, it still wasn't right. Thinking back now it is years since the car has been totally judder free on the motor way.
I had heard of the KDS system but the dealer was going to charge me €300 to send the car there!!
I read this site and saw that Dave McCann was recommended and searched him on the internet. Saw then that the BMW Cars Club also recommends him. Called up, booked in and got looked after.
When I saw the weights going inside the car and the lasers flashing down the side (this is the 3D part) I knew that this was a totally different system than my car had seen before. Even better, it worked!!
It really is like driving a different car.
The rear wheels were out of alignment and the camber was off. Got the balancing re-done just to be sure and this was off too. On the way back home on the M50 I got up to speed and realised that the judder that I had become accustomed to wasn't there - it's a 01 Reg 5 Series and I just thought it was beginning to show its age but suddenly now I remember why I bought it in the first place.
Going to Donegal tomorrow for Easter and really looking forward to the long drive now.
When you see it done properly, you realise that most of the guys out there (even the four wheel places) either don't know what they are doing or just don't care about doing a good job.
Whole job €105!! - Jesus wept!!