Alignment - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

ramo80 · 06-02-2009, 10:34 AM

It seems like some of my alignment setting are not within the recommended specs. Should i worry?

The shop said this is the best they can do.

cvhs18472 · 06-02-2009, 11:38 AM

Getting an alignment on a Porsche is not something that all tire shops are capable of. You might try and get some info from other Porsche owners in your area as to where they get theirs done and if they are satisfied. Ed

mikefocke · 06-02-2009, 11:56 AM

As they will know how to get "in spec" and what side of the spec does what for the car.

It really makes all the difference in the world who does the work. Racers know the tricks as they set up cars to save hundredths of a second per lap.

ChrisZang · 06-02-2009, 12:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikefocke

As they will know how to get "in spec" and what side of the spec does what for the car.

It really makes all the difference in the world who does the work. Racers know the tricks as they set up cars to save hundredths of a second per lap.

Amen to that

kabel · 06-02-2009, 04:32 PM

Those settings are ok, but in the right hands it could be so much better. The OCD in me would go crazy knowing that the left vs right side numbers are not not "matching"'.

The place I have been bringing it charges me $150, usually takes two or three trips on and off the rack and sometimes up to two hours. But they always get it to my satisfaction. Our local dealer has a guy that is brilliant with alignments and knows all the right moves, but it costs nearly twice as much.

ekam · 06-02-2009, 05:10 PM

Speaking of OCD, did they do the alignment with you sitting in the car? It's never going to be accurate without the driver's weight in the seat...

demick · 06-03-2009, 07:03 AM

Unless there are some type-o's, those are some wacky settings.

Of most concern is the rear toe. Since the spec on front and rear toe is listed as positive numbers, I have to assume that a positive number refers to toe-in on this sheet. The front is fine, but the rear is not in spec, and appears that they have given you toe-out on the rear. While toe-out might be desirable to some autocrossers, this can make the car unstable at speed. I would demand that they fix this as there is no reason they cannot bring this to within spec.

Everything else is OK, but not ideal. As Mike pointed out, the tech in this case was only trying to get a number that was within 'spec' (and he failed to even do that in some cases). A good alignment will target a certain number for each setting rather than anywhere in the spec range. A good alignment won't have positive camber on the left front and negative camber on the right front - despite both being within 'spec'. This kind of alignment is fine for your minivan, but not appropriate for a performance car.

ramo80 · 06-03-2009, 09:54 AM

Brutal!!! I paid that guy 200 dollars and he said he know what he was doing!!!! He specializes in german cars. Not porsches i guess. I don't race my car so its just for street use. Will I be seeing premature tire ware??? I just bought 4 new tires and i don't want to waste them! Should i just drop another 250 and get Porsche to do it.

Thanks for all your help!

ramo80 · 06-03-2009, 09:55 AM

and No i was NOT sitting in the car. I am very pissed off right now

ekam · 06-03-2009, 10:22 AM

Umm no. I suggest you take your car to a reputable shop like Mantis Racing in Oakville to have it done. They're heavily into racing so I presume have nice alignment machine at the shop.

I paid $150 to do mine at the east end of GTA (with Hunter alignment machine) that deals with a lot of P & F cars.

mdex · 06-04-2009, 10:45 AM

Hey I am in Milton too! Don't worry about not being in the car. It was a joke. Mantis is good but by far the best shop in the GTA is EU Autowerks. Pm me and I will hook you up.