snipped-for-privacy@snyder.on.ca wrote on Thu, 08 Dec 2016 00:46:06 -0500:
Fair enough assessment.
Harbor Freight has everything you need, for under $200 overall. Out here, that's about 10 tires to break even on the tools. But the best thing is that you get the job done right when you do it yourself, because I have NEVER seen a tire-changing job done correctly yet at the tire shops. Not once.
Depends on the vehicle, but my sedan only has adjustments for rear camber and front-and-back toe, so, for me, that's all I'd need to measure.
I'm not so sure of that, because any good pothole can knock something off alignment but I can't argue the issue becuase I don't really know. I just know that I've seen it recommended to get the suspension aligned with each new set of tires (which is about every two years).
As you stated, if you have owned the car, then you know pretty much only have to deal with alignment drifting out of whack over time so a check of only toe and camber will do for cars, such as mine, that have no other adjustments anyway.
However, if you're buying a car, then by all means, have the tracking, steering axis inclination, ride height, etc., all checked at an alighment shop who has the tools to measure anything and everything.
But at home, my hypothesis is that only camber and toe need to be measured for my car (and many others) since that's all you can adjust anyway.
Both can be measured with home tools to reasonable accuracy (is my hypothesis); but I haven't tried it myself yet.
Fair enough that you need a level garage (or you need to level the car by using linoleum tiles under the wheels). And you have to set the vehicle ride height (which, for my car, requires about 500 pounds of weight).
But all of that is doable in a home garage.
This is a good point. I have always done my toe to the centerpoint line scribed on both tires, especially when it's to the centerpoint of the underside of the vehicle - but - to your point - any reference measurement can be used.
To my point, it's just a measurement of distance, and it doesn't have to be to the ten thousandths of an inch - so it just has to be a decently good measurement, which is certainly doable in a home garage.
The problem I have run into most is that you can't get a straight string across the underside of the car becuase of protruding stuff but that's why a C-shaped jig would work for that.
I think aproximately zero cars are aligned correctly, based only on my experience with my car at "normal" alignement shops. So, again, if you want your car's alignment to be done right, you often have to do it yourself (or, in my case, you have to bring your own weights to the shop!).
Heh heh ... I'm the shop's worst nightmare. The reason is that I WATCH what they do.
I have NEVER in my entire life, for example, seen a tire installed corretly at a tire shop. Not once. I can give you a littany of errors that they make, and they have thrice given me the job for free because I had to complain to their management.
Never once have I seen a shop do my model of vehicle properly for alignment either.
In both cases (alignment and tires), if you want it done right, then you have to do it yourself. So, while I do very much respect your advice and judgement, the one thing I have to tell you is that I'm fussy as hell when I'm paying someone else to do THEIR job right (and no mechanic ever does).