Alignment settings not matching!
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Alignment settings not matching!
Just had the outer tie rods replaced on my 2009 Crew cab. The dealer changed them out for no charge because of an issue. They also reset the toe as part of the service. After this service was complete, I took the truck to my friends Tire shop so he could double check their alignment work. The tie rods were great, but the toe was off....or is it?
Apparantly a company called "Hunter" provides the alignment specs for most Tire shops. These specs call for a total toe of .36, or .18 each side. So this is what my friend set my truck at. I was dissappointed that the dealership did not have this right so I called them on it.
The dealership explained that the TSB memo said to set the total toe at .10 or .05 each side once the tie rods are replaced. They also saw in their latest "Hunter" specs that this was indeed different but could not explain why the change was not reflected as this is the "industry standard" specs.
I'm wondering if this descrepancy is enough to cause mechanical problems or is it a moot point? 2009 truck owners getting an alignment will most likely be set up using these "Hunter" specs as the different specs on the 2009 TSB has not been handed down to the Hunter database. I also think unless the Dealer has this TSB in front of them they too would have used the Hunter specs..... Not sure if I should take it back to the dealer to reset or not? Thoughts?
Apparantly a company called "Hunter" provides the alignment specs for most Tire shops. These specs call for a total toe of .36, or .18 each side. So this is what my friend set my truck at. I was dissappointed that the dealership did not have this right so I called them on it.
The dealership explained that the TSB memo said to set the total toe at .10 or .05 each side once the tie rods are replaced. They also saw in their latest "Hunter" specs that this was indeed different but could not explain why the change was not reflected as this is the "industry standard" specs.
I'm wondering if this descrepancy is enough to cause mechanical problems or is it a moot point? 2009 truck owners getting an alignment will most likely be set up using these "Hunter" specs as the different specs on the 2009 TSB has not been handed down to the Hunter database. I also think unless the Dealer has this TSB in front of them they too would have used the Hunter specs..... Not sure if I should take it back to the dealer to reset or not? Thoughts?
Last edited by coolatc; Nov 14, 2011 at 05:36 PM.
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I had my 2009 Ram 1500 in for the Tie Rod recall today. After dropping the truck off I was browsing this forum and came across this post. When I went to pick the truck up I asked for a copy of the alignment report which they photocopied for me.
A quick look at the alignment report showed that they set the Toe-In to 0.18 degrees per side (0.36 degrees total). So I mentioned that I read that the Recall showed to set it to 0.10 degree total. He quickly replied that no, the guy doing the alignment has been doing it for years so he will know the proper values.
I than reiterated that I heard the recall notice said 0.10 degrees so I watched him look up both Canada and US recall notices and sure enough they both clearly say 0.10 degrees total Toe-In.
It was the end of the day because of course it took them 9 hours to do a 1 hour job.... So he would not realign it stating that the new values have not been passed down to them. He mumbled something about getting Dodge to pay for the realignment but I don't think he plans on actually doing anything about it. I left there with the 0.36 total Toe with him saying not to worry about it, it's fine the way it is.
It seems obvious to me that the Dodge Engineers decided to change the Toe for a reason and for him to tell me they were never informed (Even though its in the Recall Instructions the tech should be reading) is not very good. I'm no suspension expert so I don't know what if any difference the change would make. I doubt the dealership will pay to realign it so I guess I'll probably leave it the way it is.
I guess people should be telling the service guys to read the instructions if they want their Toe-In to be set at 0.10 Degrees Total....
A quick look at the alignment report showed that they set the Toe-In to 0.18 degrees per side (0.36 degrees total). So I mentioned that I read that the Recall showed to set it to 0.10 degree total. He quickly replied that no, the guy doing the alignment has been doing it for years so he will know the proper values.
I than reiterated that I heard the recall notice said 0.10 degrees so I watched him look up both Canada and US recall notices and sure enough they both clearly say 0.10 degrees total Toe-In.
It was the end of the day because of course it took them 9 hours to do a 1 hour job.... So he would not realign it stating that the new values have not been passed down to them. He mumbled something about getting Dodge to pay for the realignment but I don't think he plans on actually doing anything about it. I left there with the 0.36 total Toe with him saying not to worry about it, it's fine the way it is.
It seems obvious to me that the Dodge Engineers decided to change the Toe for a reason and for him to tell me they were never informed (Even though its in the Recall Instructions the tech should be reading) is not very good. I'm no suspension expert so I don't know what if any difference the change would make. I doubt the dealership will pay to realign it so I guess I'll probably leave it the way it is.
I guess people should be telling the service guys to read the instructions if they want their Toe-In to be set at 0.10 Degrees Total....
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I had my 2009 Ram 1500 in for the Tie Rod recall today. After dropping the truck off I was browsing this forum and came across this post. When I went to pick the truck up I asked for a copy of the alignment report which they photocopied for me.
A quick look at the alignment report showed that they set the Toe-In to 0.18 degrees per side (0.36 degrees total). So I mentioned that I read that the Recall showed to set it to 0.10 degree total. He quickly replied that no, the guy doing the alignment has been doing it for years so he will know the proper values.
I than reiterated that I heard the recall notice said 0.10 degrees so I watched him look up both Canada and US recall notices and sure enough they both clearly say 0.10 degrees total Toe-In.
It was the end of the day because of course it took them 9 hours to do a 1 hour job.... So he would not realign it stating that the new values have not been passed down to them. He mumbled something about getting Dodge to pay for the realignment but I don't think he plans on actually doing anything about it. I left there with the 0.36 total Toe with him saying not to worry about it, it's fine the way it is.
It seems obvious to me that the Dodge Engineers decided to change the Toe for a reason and for him to tell me they were never informed (Even though its in the Recall Instructions the tech should be reading) is not very good. I'm no suspension expert so I don't know what if any difference the change would make. I doubt the dealership will pay to realign it so I guess I'll probably leave it the way it is.
I guess people should be telling the service guys to read the instructions if they want their Toe-In to be set at 0.10 Degrees Total....
A quick look at the alignment report showed that they set the Toe-In to 0.18 degrees per side (0.36 degrees total). So I mentioned that I read that the Recall showed to set it to 0.10 degree total. He quickly replied that no, the guy doing the alignment has been doing it for years so he will know the proper values.
I than reiterated that I heard the recall notice said 0.10 degrees so I watched him look up both Canada and US recall notices and sure enough they both clearly say 0.10 degrees total Toe-In.
It was the end of the day because of course it took them 9 hours to do a 1 hour job.... So he would not realign it stating that the new values have not been passed down to them. He mumbled something about getting Dodge to pay for the realignment but I don't think he plans on actually doing anything about it. I left there with the 0.36 total Toe with him saying not to worry about it, it's fine the way it is.
It seems obvious to me that the Dodge Engineers decided to change the Toe for a reason and for him to tell me they were never informed (Even though its in the Recall Instructions the tech should be reading) is not very good. I'm no suspension expert so I don't know what if any difference the change would make. I doubt the dealership will pay to realign it so I guess I'll probably leave it the way it is.
I guess people should be telling the service guys to read the instructions if they want their Toe-In to be set at 0.10 Degrees Total....
If you dont get any response after that, call chrysler and fax them a copy of the printout that they gave you to show them what your dealer did as well as said to you. This just isnt right, and i would be a pain in their azz`s until its done per recall instructions WITH a new printout showing that its correct per the recall. If you leave it out of spec, say good by to your tires really quickly...!
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Jcase, I was in the same situation as you except my dealer actually DID set it to .10 total and then I took it to my tire guy and he thought it was wrong and reset it to the .36. I called to fuss at the dealer and that's when they explained that the recall takes precedence over normal specs. They even realighned it for no charge after my friend's shop set it back to .36. I really got lucky.
My friend at the tire shop said there is a big difference between .36 & .10. he told me that was about 2-3 turns on the tierod shafts. Once my dealer put it back to .10, I had them print a copy of the recall so in the future I can show it to the tire shop and tell them this is the specs I want on my truck. Let me know if you need a copy. I can scan my copy and e-mail it to you. My dealer even highlighted the specs for me.
Sounds like your mechanic is one of those old school guys with the attitude "That's the way I've always done it so no change needed". Guess he's smarter than the engineers...yeah right. It would worry me that they are fighting you on this. They could take it back in and actually not do anything to it and give it back to you and just "say" it's fixed. $49 alignment vs $750 tires..... Might be worth doing yourself atan independent shop...
Lu has a good suggestion as well....
My friend at the tire shop said there is a big difference between .36 & .10. he told me that was about 2-3 turns on the tierod shafts. Once my dealer put it back to .10, I had them print a copy of the recall so in the future I can show it to the tire shop and tell them this is the specs I want on my truck. Let me know if you need a copy. I can scan my copy and e-mail it to you. My dealer even highlighted the specs for me.
Sounds like your mechanic is one of those old school guys with the attitude "That's the way I've always done it so no change needed". Guess he's smarter than the engineers...yeah right. It would worry me that they are fighting you on this. They could take it back in and actually not do anything to it and give it back to you and just "say" it's fixed. $49 alignment vs $750 tires..... Might be worth doing yourself atan independent shop...
Lu has a good suggestion as well....
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Joined: Aug 2007
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From: Pasadena, TX
I've been thinking Dodge set the toe-in as close to 0 as possible. This would cause less drag from the front tires and squeak out a couple mpg. The only down side is that the truck tends to wander down the road and even more so in high winds. My truck is very sensitive to steering wheel input. Barely touch the wheel and it's drifting.