Any alignment experts out there?
 

Hello, I recently purchased a 2006 G35 coupe and replaced some of the suspension parts-

Front and rear struts/shocks and mounts
Front Upper control arms
Front Outer tie rods
Front Lower ball joints
Front Wheel bearings

When I replaced the outer tie rods I counted approximately 14 turns to get it off on one side, but about 20(!) on the other. I put it back together the way it came off and now the steering wheel is just barely off centered. I must have not been accurate enough.

Anyway, I took the car to get an alignment today and explained my entire situation to the mechanic. About an hour later he was done but said he could not adjust the front right caster because I must have installed the strut assembly wrong, and the only way to fix this is by removing the assembly and reinstalling it. I followed the FSM when I replaced the struts so I can't understand how I could have installed it wrong.

Does anybody have the knowledge to tell me if this alignment is acceptable or not? (I hope the photo of the before/after is shown)

Should I worry about the front right caster?

Thanks in advance.


https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/g35driv...766a0bc027.jpg

I wouldn't worry too much about it, they did a real half-assed job getting your toe and especially camber to match on the left and right rears.

I went back the day after and had them straighten out the steering wheel position. I asked about the rear camber and he said the bolt kept spinning so he couldn't make any adjustments. He actually made it worse from the initial on the first report. Looks like I'll have to get another one done after I replace some parts. I should have gotten a lifetime alignment service from somewhere that offers it!

This is the second report I got.

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/g35driv...fa068d8c81.jpg

Your caster is only affected by how straight your suspension lines up to the frame of the car. In this case there are two possibilities:

1: your frame is bent and your car is basically totalled.

2: the one part that connects our suspension to the frame is bad: your compression rod bushings.

It's number two.

If that's the case I guess the mechanic was wrong about the struts. I inspected the compression rod bushings when I replaced the suspension parts and they looked undamaged and centered by eye. Since they're known for failure they are on my to do list now, before I get another alignment. Thanks Rock

Yeah, they can definitely look all peachy and still be bad. Definitely go with polyurethane tho!

Do yourself a favor for your alignment and get a lifetime one as you mentioned from a shop you trust. They're worth their weight in gold, I have them on all of our cars.

Don't get a firestone lifetime alignment these idiots have screwed up my alignment 3 times in a row. Now I have to go pay someone else to fix my wheel...

And that is why I purchase my tires at the dealer when they have a buy 3 and get the fourth tire free. The alignment and balance is always perfect.
Once you are established as a good customer you are much less likely to get ripped off like some posters that only visit a dealer when they are desperate. Then they wonder why some call it a "stealership". There are some undesirable customers the dealer would rather go to Firestone. (I'm not inferring you are but there are some posters that are)

Telcoman

Go to a different firestone I had one bad experience with them only

Just so you know, if yer in CA, businesses are no longer allowed to sell lifetime alignments (previous buyers can still own theirs), so most places do 3 and 5 yr alignments. Most of those places won't adjust your aftermarket camber parts tho, so I highly suggest learning to do it yourself if you're interested at all. It's quite easy.

Of course if you just learn how to do the camber part, you can set that yourself and then take it to your lifetime/multi year alignment place and let them set yer toe with their laser beams.

That's weird I just took 3 cars this year for lifetime alignment

Really? Maybe that dude was lying to me. Cuz I have a lifetime with Evans tires and last time I went in there I saw that they had 3 and 5 yr ones and are no longer allowed to sell lifetimes. Maybe it's a company policy, but I coulda swore he said it was a law.

Well, either way, those big chain ones usually won't touch your aftermarket parts. I've only gotten them to do it once.

I disagree with all of this. You're saying they treat some customers better than others, which shouldn't be the case. You walk in with a suit and tie on and they will b.s. all kinds of repairs. I've seen it happen in the waiting room. They bring out a cabin filter just to tell the customer how dirty it is. The customer thinks that's their filter and they agree to the service. You think they really take the time to take the filter out just to check the condition? "Once you're established as a good customer??" Wtf is that?! You mean once they rip you off a few times they'll be easy on you when you're stupid enough to keep coming back. It shouldn't matter if you go there once or ten times, they should treat everyone the same. And if it sounds like I've had a bad experience there, you're damn right. They certainly took advantage of a young guy that sounded like he knew nothing about their car at the time. I was a college student on a budget trying to get good history service on my vehicle, instead I got charged over 900 bucks for something that wasn't even needed. The part sat in my garage for 2 years. I was really on the fence about ditching infiniti all together and not buying another one, ever. I'll stick with my trusted garage mechanic for 35/hr labor

I actually just found this the other day looking through my emails. It's hilarious to me.