Ion Front Alignment

Just had my tires rotated & a front end alignment & a balace on all 4 tires,on the way home.the steering STILL felt like it was drifting off to the drivers side,just as it was before.Should i worry about it?.Had the work done at a Firestone,really think I should call tomorrow & tell them.Or is that the way Saturns steer?.This shouldn'y be a problem.

Reply to
teem
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I severely mistrust wheel alignments. Just because they slap a gauge on the wheels and make an adjustment dosn't mean it is right. did you only have a 2 wheel alignment or a 4 wheel done? The 4 wheel is definitely recomended, especially for independant rear wheel suspensions.

There could be a suspension problem that won't show when the car is just sitting there. Best to jack up the car (both fronts or both rears off the ground), remove the wheels and take a pry bar between the hub and frame. Stress it in all directions and look for any play between bushings, joints and frame. I did this with my '01 lw300 and found that the rear trailing arm bushings to frame were very soggy.

Reply to
Oppie

Firestone is a red flag for me. The reason the better shops charge more is because it costs more to properly maintain equipment, and to have experienced technicians. It could be Firestone's equipment was out of calibration, the technician didn't set up correctly, the rear wheels are out of alignment, a left brake is dragging, left suspension sagging, or weight distribution (obese driver). If they did a front-to-rear tire rotation it could be a tire.

Reply to
Gyzmologist

You can have some of the best equipment but if the tech is careless or not properly trained, the result is bad.

Reply to
oppie

Thanks Gents,one would think most repair shops have decent equipment,I'm not saying Firestones the best,it was handy & the past work they;ve done was to my liking,that's interesting point on the tire wear/rotation-to give it the same pull after the work.I want to aviod Saturns flat rate jazz,I have no warrenty on that area of the Ion.

Reply to
teem

We had tires mounted on the wife's car at a local Firestone. They didn't put one of the valve stem inserts (the actual valve) all the way in. The air leaked out in several hours and her driving on a low tire killed the tire.

They covered the tire cost, hardly a bargin given the hours spent changing tires, getting out to wife's work, etc.

Are there any chains that are any good?

Reply to
somebody

I probably should have asked before, but did you bring the car back to Firestone and complain about the drifting? Some shops are just into doing whatever is on the work-order and not going past that at all - like inspecting struts and joints before starting the alignment. They figure that why spend the time, if there is another problem, the alignment should show it up or the customer will be back with a complaint... in which case, then they will take a closer look.

Reply to
Oppie

Snow chains are good if you live in a cold climate.

Reply to
Gyzmologist

We had a local neighborhood Firestone back when I was a kid. Everything I brought them they made worse and then tried to charge extra to correct. I wouldn't let Firestone change my underwear let alone a tire on my car.

Reply to
marx404

Check your owner's manual - it says that chains should not be used on an Ion

Reply to
bo peep

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