Alignment question March 06, 2012, 05:59:37 pm Yahoo Message Number: 128976I got an alignment last fall on our '02 30' because it was obvious by the trashed (cupped in the center) front tires that one was needed. Had not had one for 25,000 miles. Turned out to be pretty far out of alignment. I just put on new tires and have driven not more than 500 miles on last fall's alignment. I'm getting ready to drive on a 3,000 mile trip. Should I get an alignment before I leave?Chris
Re: Alignment question Reply #1 – March 06, 2012, 06:12:36 pm Yahoo Message Number: 128977wrote: I just put on new tires and have driven not more than 500 miles on last fall's alignment. I'm getting ready to drive on a 3,000 mile trip. Should I get an alignment before I leave? --- Yes, Chris! Having an alignment done is a basic part of "long trip prep", IMO, and particularly after new tires are installed; always good to start off in a straight line! ;-)Safe travels!Joan
Re: Alignment question Reply #2 – March 07, 2012, 10:22:22 am Yahoo Message Number: 128980Chris, I hate to disagree with Joan, but personally I would not get an alignment as long as it is tracking OK and there is no obvious sign of tire wear. We had our 2001 RB aligned after driving it from the factory to Texas, and have not re-aligned it in the 88,000 miles since even when we changed tires. Since most of the RV tires are are changed because of age rather than wear, some mis-alignment wear can be tolerated in my opinion. We have driven about 2k miles up to New England and 2k back each year recently with no problems. Other people's opinions obviously differ.Barry
Re: Alignment question Reply #3 – March 07, 2012, 10:55:28 am Yahoo Message Number: 128981"Barry" wrote: I hate to disagree with Joan, but personally I would not get an alignment as long as it is tracking OK and there is no obvious sign of tire wear. --- Hey, Barry, no problem! Many people disagree with me on various issues on a very regular basis! ;-)Joan
Re: Alignment question Reply #4 – March 07, 2012, 10:11:45 pm Yahoo Message Number: 129012I second that approach. My SOB on a '97 Ford E350 cutway was aligned at 60,000 miles, and it's still running straight at 170,000 miles. Tires wear evenly.Eric Greenwell
Re: Alignment question Reply #5 – March 08, 2012, 11:01:00 am Yahoo Message Number: 129027I find a tire thread-depth gauge and my hands to be good indicators of alignment and proper tire pressure. When sliding your hand sideways, across the thread, it should feel smooth, without any bumps or ridges. The thread wear should be even across the tire. Too much wear in the center indicate over-inflation. Excessive wear on the edges of the tire indicates under-inflation.Larry
Re: Alignment question Reply #6 – March 08, 2012, 11:29:32 am Yahoo Message Number: 129029Indicators of an improper alignment: Larry, to add to your indicators I have found that "cupping", as they say in the tire business, is a real good sign of an alignment problem. This will cause the uneven wear you would feel rubbing your hand upon the tread. What you will also see is the uneven tread wear on an inner and outer portion of the tire. Two things can go wrong. Toe-in and/or toe-out. Commonly used words by the alignment guy. On the E450 chasis there are shims(knuckles) that sometimes have to be added depending on the size needed to make it perfect. Something to be aware of when an alignment is done. It can add another 45 bucks a side when completed. If the front tire is noticeably worn this is a good time to move it to another location and at that same time balance it again for an added measure. Take care, john leach, Larkspur, Co. 28 degrees and climbing.__ From: Larry lw5315us@...> To: lifewithalazydazerv@yahoogroups.com Sent: Thursday, March 8, 2012 10:00 AM Subject: Re: [LD] Alignment questionI find a tire thread-depth gauge and my hands to be good indicators of alignment and proper tire pressure. When sliding your hand sideways, across the thread, it should feel smooth, without any bumps or ridges. The thread wear should be even across the tire. Too much wear in the center indicate over-inflation. Excessive wear on the edges of the tire indicates under-inflation.Larry[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Re: Alignment question Reply #7 – March 08, 2012, 12:20:30 pm Yahoo Message Number: 129030Cupping is also often caused by defective tires and can be caused by shocks. My problem has been finding a decent alignment shop that really knows the vehicles. Rarely is just inside the specs a good alignment. A good shop will know haw to set the alignment to allow for the springs sagging over time and other known issues with that particular chassis. I had a new full size van that I had aligned 6 times and it never drove great or wore tires perfectly. The wife finally found an alignment shop here in Pa that spent 3 hours or so and we paid by the hour. However we never had to have it aligned again and it had 186,000 on it when it hit a deer. I had a tire die very early on a new F150 and took it to the same guy. He said it was way off from the factory and after he aligned I never had another alignment and it was over 220,000 when I got rid of it. If you get a computer alignment always ask for a copy of the print out and see where they left things. There is an interesting article on the web where someone determined that these Ford Class C's do a lot better at not wandering with the caster set near the end of the range of the spec.. Interesting reading whether you agree with it or not.. I'll try and find a link later as I am getting called to lunch. Garry
Re: Alignment question Reply #8 – March 08, 2012, 01:39:56 pm Yahoo Message Number: 129032QuoteLarry, to add to your indicators I have found that "cupping", as they say in the tire business, is a real good sign of an alignment problem. This will cause the uneven wear you would feel rubbing your hand upon the tread. What you will also see is the uneven tread wear on an inner and outer portion of the tire. Two things can go wrong. Toe-in and/or toe-out. Commonly used words by the alignment guy. On the E450 chasis there are shims(knuckles) I don't think shims are used much anymore. It seems to be camber adjusters. That is what they used on my 2003 MB and on a couple of Ford Explorers I previously owned. More expensive than shims but more precise. http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/partsearch/camber_kit.html?apwcid=X1093010841W41260599c6350&apwkwd=camber+kitJoe Hamm
Re: Alignment question - update Reply #9 – March 15, 2012, 02:26:35 pm Yahoo Message Number: 129166Quote I got an alignment last fall on our '02 30' because it was obvious by the trashed (cupped in the center) front tires that one was needed. Had not had one for 25,000 miles. Turned out to be pretty far out of alignment. I just put on new tires and have driven not more than 500 miles on last fall's alignment. I'm getting ready to drive on a 3,000 mile trip. Should I get an alignment before I leave?Chris Thanks to all who responded. Responses were pretty equally divided between get an alignment and don't get one. One correction on my original information above: The last alignment was last June and I had driven about 2500 miles on it and I was driving on pretty severely center-cupped front tires all that time. They were slappy and noisy. I felt because of the new tires and that I would be taking a long trip soon I would be more comfortable knowing everything was in order, so I had an alignment this morning. New Michelin LTX M/S tires have been on for a week. The before and after alignment #s for the most all changed slightly - nothing dramatic - mostly fine tuning. For me it was worth the $95.Chris Horst 2002 31'IB
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