Wheel alignment

[Blue94t]

Hey guys,
Had a wheel alignment done on my car last night by Craig at Trackside tyres in Bayswater, Victoria. The existing alignment was way out and it has transformed the car.
All this is in preparation for competing in the 07/08 Vic MX5 club championship.
The service out there was excellent and Craig is very helpful with advice on tyre choices and car setup. He was even happy to start the alignment at 5pm after I finished work and we rolled it off the hoist about 6:30pm.
I highly recomend Trackside for any tyre/alignment requirements for your MX5.
http://www.tracksidetyres.com.au/
Jake
btw, I am in no way affiliated/sponsored by Trackside, just wanted to share my good experience with a workshop. If this is innappropriate I am happy to remove the post.

[Uncle Arthur]

No need to remove the post I'd think - why should you even have to??

Isn't half the reason we have the forum to share good and bad experiences of service providers etc, as a publci service to our fellow forum dwellers???????

[Col]

Good news Jake. I should have mine checked/adjusted too. I've put it off for 2 main reasons: 1) The car seems to handle how it should.
2) I'm very careful who I trust to work on my car.
I haven't played about with different alignment settings like others have and I'm starting to feel that although I'm basically satisfied with the cars handling, that maybe it could be further improved with a good alignment.
I think I should just do it.

Thanks,
Col

[khchu]

How much does it cost?

[Garry]

Anywhere from around $60 to $120. Depending where you take it.

Col,

Definitely recommend getting a GOOD alignment. It can transform your car, the same way as a bad alignment can really stuff it up. Take it to someone that knows what they are doing, preferable with a bit of MX5 experience. Generally try to avoid your Bob Janes etc.

[RDM]

[quote="Garry"]Anywhere from around $60 to $120. Depending where you take it.

Col,

Definitely recommend getting a GOOD alignment. It can transform your car, the same way as a bad alignment can really stuff it up. Take it to someone that knows what they are doing, preferable with a bit of MX5 experience. Generally try to avoid your Bob Janes etc.[/quote]

So does anyone recommend the service at AMR in Petersham? I had my first alignment done by them to stock specs about a year ago now... didn't seem too bad afterwards but it did take a while for them to do it.

Was also now considering getting a racier spec alignment done before the next EC Mania trackday so if no one has any other suggestions on local alignment places, I might just go back to AMR seeing as it's still under warranty with them... will go for -2.1 front -2.2 rear camber, zero toe and max castor... that about right for R888 in 205/40R17?:?:

RDM

[Fatty]

just to confirm what garry said about avoiding yr loca bob jane etc...

when i got my new tyres / wheels fitted at the local bob jane they did an alignment for me. nowhere near as good as it used to be, when it was set up by someone familiar with mx-5's ( previously it was done via mx5 factory in ringwood, felt much better)

so yeah i will get it re-done again soon. the bob jane guys just set it up for minimal tyre wear as far as i can tell. performance / handlng is not a priority.

[Garry]

RDM,

AMR!!! *shudder*, *runs away screaming*

For the last few years I've been taking my car to Spinning Wheel. Stu has a fairly large MX5 customer base now so he's done a few MX5's before. Tell him what you think is wrong with the way your car steers and he will work his magic and fix it up for you. The good thing about them is that if you're not happy with the way Stu has set up your car you can take it back within a few days and he'll have another play with it. They charge $88 for a 4 wheel alignment.

[Blue94t]

khchu,
It cost me $80.

Col,
I too am very fussy who I will let work on my car. Craig does a great job and was happy to let me watch as he did the work.
Jake

[green_comet]

Sounds great Jake,

Ill take mine down to him when i get the new wheels on in the next couple weeks.. What were your final settings, if you dont mind me asking??

[Col]

I'll be seeing Craig at Trackside soon. Thanks Jake.

[drifter]

Is it possible to get a proper alignments on tyres that are a couple of years old with 60-70% tread with some possible uneven tire wear?

I mean, would the old tyres offset the benefits of a good alignments?

[Boags]

I mean, would the old tyres offset the benefits of a good alignments?

No. Why have crap tyres and a crap allignment?

[muzza2]

im getting mine done at action tyres (tyre tech - stafford) at 8am today...
wish me luck!

$55 for all 4 paws...

fulcrum were booked out and my schedule didnt meet for like 2 months!

[RDM]

[quote="Garry"]
AMR!!! *shudder*, *runs away screaming*
quote]

Hehe... I'm beginning to see the error of my ways...

The only reason I use them is that the car is still under factory warranty and has an extended dealer warranty with them so long as it's serviced there. Though with each visit, I keep telling myself it'll be the last time cos I've had quite a few dramas with them (lots of stories that I'll keep off forum).

In any case, I've just got the car back after an oil/filter change and a wheel alignment. The wheel alignment machine printer has apparently broken so they couldn't give me a printout of the measurements pre/post alignment. But they did type it up in the service report

Front Camber: L 1.11 R1.12 (max possible from OEM suspension)
Front Castor: L 5.32 R 5.23 (max possible from OEM suspension)
Front Toe: L 1.9mm R 1.9mm (don't know if that's out or in but I did ask for toe-out)

Rear Camber: L 1.40 R 1.41 (max possible from OEM suspension)
Rear Toe: L 1.8mm R 1.9mm (again don't know if that's in or out but I asked for toe-in)

After the drive in to work this morning, I noticed the steering feel was 'muted' (heavier, less feedback and less twitchy than I was used to from the OEM spec). I pushed quite hard in a few of my favourite turns and noticed the rear end was much easier to catch once a slide was provoked, but I can't say I like the front... it just feels very 'slow' (maybe it's my degrading reflexes )

I'll take the car to Spinning Wheel to get another alignment done after tomorrow's Mania Track Day... will be interesting to see how it behaves with the 205/40R17 R888s... been waiting to use them in anger for quite a few months now!

RDM