Alignment?

[nc211]

As some of you know, I replaced all the front and back suspension parts. On the front, I did the outer tie rods. I matched marks on the front to keep alignment, but knew I blew it when i did the tie rods. The driver's side wheel turns out more than the left, ie, passenger side it straight, drivers side is angled to the left. Now, when i had the indi shop finish up the back's, they aligned the car. But, I've obiously got a bad alignment job by the tugging and vibrations I got going on. I noticed last night, the driver's side wheel still kicks out. I know I need a balance job as well, I pressure washed the inside of the rims and took off a ton of grim. I know grim doesn't weight that much, but enough to throw off the balance. My question is this:

When you get a 4 wheel alignment, do they adjust the tie rods? Or do they just torque out the control arm settings until the steering wheel is straight? The wheel is straight, but she sure ain't aligned like a LS400 needs to be. It doesn't pull very hard, but you can tell when the driver's side wheel finds a groove it likes in the pavement, it wants to follow it until the passenger side finds a groove it likes, and pulls it back. It's not a wandering feeling, it's a tug-of-war feeling.

[jadecuir]

My question is this:

When you get a 4 wheel alignment, do they adjust the tie rods? Or do they just torque out the control arm settings until the steering wheel is straight? The wheel is straight, but she sure ain't aligned like a LS400 needs to be. It doesn't pull very hard, but you can tell when the driver's side wheel finds a groove it likes in the pavement, it wants to follow it until the passenger side finds a groove it likes, and pulls it back. It's not a wandering feeling, it's a tug-of-war feeling.

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I replaced ball joints and bushings last month, front only. A tire shop with a great alignment machine checked all four wheels and adjusted the fronts for $45. Got a computer report with before and after measurements. Caster and camber was fine, toe-in was toe-out, and they adjusted the tie rods . It made all the difference in handling.

John

[mickg]

NC211:

This may be obvious, but are all 4 tires the same?

I put standard snows on the rear of my '94, and it tram-lined all winter. I didn't believe the tire boys when they suggested a full set of H rated snow tires.

I have been very pleased to put the everyday M&S tires back on. No more darting for the bushes. The thing was close to dangerous on dry highway at 65 mph.

I put it down to the different tread width, plus sidewall construction.

Mick

[nc211]

Good question Mickg, as I thought maybe one was newer than the other, or different. They're all the same Michelin xvxqyadayada energy4's, with same tread amount. I just think the shop that did the alignment has an old machine, not a hunter machine like these cars need. I'm gonna take to the dealer next week for an alignment and balance job. At 40mph it is the worst for wheel vibration. Hit 80, and it's smooth. So I don't think it's the propeller shaft, since I would expect that to get worse the faster it spun.