I would like to know what kind of alignment do I need to go for before replacing my tires.

There are the front wheel alignment and the four wheel aligment, which should I go for. I have heard that Maximas can only be aligned in the front and not back -- my back wheels have gone over curbs a few times and I would think it needs to be aligned too.

Any suggestions would help.

 

Yes i almost positive the max only requires the front wheel alignment because of the rear beam can't be aligned...

 

I am 100% positive the front is the only alignment you need. There is not adjustment on the rear axle. Furthermore if your rear end is out of alignment it means you need a new rear axle because it is bent. The dealerships offer a front wheel alignment for like 55 dollars and I suggest you go there.

 

Take it to a dealer for the alignment.
I took mine to Sears for an alignment and new tires, they messed up and I needed two front tires after 10,000 miles.

 

Checked with stealership and they are charging $119...

 

lol, go to an alignment shop or another dealer. most dealers charge about $70 or so for a 4 wheel alignment, which is the norm. the rears need to be checked anyway becuase the front wheels are getting aligned to the rear wheels. the only adjustment angle is toe anyway, so really its just setting the toe.

and a toe adjustment only pays .8hr anyway, which includes hanging the heads. thats a CP time.

 

Let me say this again since I must not have been clear enough. THE ALIGNMENT ON THE REAR END IS ONLY OFF WHEN YOUR BEARINGS ARE BLOWN OR YOUR AXLE IS BENT. The dealer is trying to rip you off. It should cost $70 maximum for a FRONT WHEEL ALIGNMENT. I have discussed this topic at length with a Nissan Master tech who has been working with these cars for 30 years.

 

interesting.

 

who exactly are you talking about?

 

you. You can put any tire on your car you want and it will not mess up the alignment. Have you ever personally used the machine? I have. The sensors rest on the wheels and not the tires therefore between tires it will not change. Also he doesn't need a 4 wheel alignment because he isn't aligning 4 wheels only 2. Any nissan tech worth his weight in gold will tell you that to check the rearwheel alignment on a recent maxima that has not been in a crash is a waste of money. If you feel like paying the extra money for nothing be my guest. I paid $54 at the dealer

 

Stealership here is charging $39.95 for two wheel alignment.

 

Correct you do a thrust angle alignment to make sure the front is aligned to the rear. I do alignments daily, Things get slightly tweaked but not enough to change the rear beam usually, So it is a good idea to take readings from all 4 corners.

Whoever said tires don't matter is almost right. If you have different size tires, one worn one new it changes ride height wich will change the alignment but hopefully you all drive on matching and fairly evenly worn tires.

 

the rear definetly needs to be checked. I couln't figure out what the prob was w/ my newly purchased 00 SE for a while until they checked the rear. I fully understand that the rear can't be adjusted but I would listen to BewstAdd1ct on this. I know because once checked it revealed that my rear toe is off by 2.5 degrees. I know, I know....HOLY SH*T! But now I know the car has been wrecked and I know I need to fix this prob to get my alignment straight. Trust me get all four checked by a chain like tires plus or tire kingdom, etc. Should check all four and align front two for between $20 & $30. I only paid $25 and they did all of that. The guy even brought me under the car and showed me what was bent and what I can do.

 

who said anything about tires?

regularly.

when i find my package of gold stars, ill mail you one

sensors? you mean the heads

hes only adjusting two wheels


it doesnt matter because you have to hang the rear heads anyway because youre aligning the FRONT WHEELS TO THE CENTERLINE OF THE CAR, which the machine needs to know based on where the rear wheels are. i though you said youve done this before...




extra money? my alignments are free, every time i do them.





and THATS why you check the rear alignment.

 

All this talk about alignment. After strut/shock install (not new springs) is an aligment required...Cause the dealer told me that aligment is required....but a buddy of mine told me i should get one....I am so confused....

 

I read some where the nissan maxima requires a 4 wheel thrust alignment !

 

theres no rear adjustment, however, the rear wheels need to be checked, and an indication will be give if there are damaged or worn parts, which need to be replaced.


i always align a car after strut replacement, its a quick adjustment.

 

trust me... BewstAdd1ct is right on this. Get the rear WHEELS checked and have them align the fronts. As long as the place isn't too shady and you show them that you know what's up, they should only charge you half price for a normal 4 wheel alignment.

 

If you are so sure that they messed up, why dont you take your car back to Sears?

 

You know what do whatever you want.BEWST do you even have any clue of what you are talking about? Seriously can you even name every suspension component that can throw off alignment? Do you even know what aligns the wheels? I will add a little more then I am done because there is so much ignorance here right now

#1 THE ONLY MOVING PART IN THE REAR END OF THE CAR IS THE HUB WHICH RESTS ON THE SPINDLE.
#2 REALISTICALLY SPEAKING THE CHANCES OF YOU NOT KNOWING YOUR BEARINGS ARE SHOT ENOUGH TO THROW OFF ALIGNMENT IS NOTHING.
#3 THE ONLY WAY I CAN SEE YOUR CAR NEEDING THE REAR END CHECKED IS IF IT HAS BEEN CRASHED.

I have personally replaced an entire rear end on a maxima and had the frame re-aligned.

 

Ok!
#1 Yes the only real moving part is the hub! But what about worn bushings, Springs starting to sag, or yea the bearing's....
#2 Realistically speaking The rear will practically never be out of alignment, But does it really hurt to check?
#3 He said he bounces of curbes all the time! This can deffinately make parts wear and bend slightly.

 

my training and experience certaily seems to think so.


sure, put a car up in the air and ill tell you all about it.

are you talking about the angles, or the actual components themselves. either way, the answer is yes.

you wont find any ignorance in my posts... if you do, fell free to point it out, WITH proof that it is indeed, 'ignorance'

but its not the only thing that wears out, and overlooking possible accident damage that isnt readily visible can cause safety issues, as well as accelerated wear.

the 'chances is nothing'? did anyone else catch that?

like i said, it doesnt matter anyway, because you have to hang the rear heads, compensate them (or do a rolling compensation if youve got a spiffy new hunter machine like mine) and as soon as you do that you get a rear reading anyway. after the tech does this, hes gonna look at all the readings, and if everything looks decent, hell likely adjust the toe and call it done. after a road test.


and this means what? again, when i find my pack of gold stars, ill send you one.

 

all that and you said absolutely nothing. You cannot disprove a thing I said. "Overlooking possible accident damage"?? Like you will not know if your rear end gets hit so hard it ruins your bearing and/or axle?

Let's both give it a rest. Get the 2 wheel alignment done. The fronts are automatically aligned with the rears and if the rears are that messed up after taking it for a test drive YOU WILL KNOW

 

said nothing? nah, i answered all your questions

and explained that to align anything you need to hang the rear heads... unless you have a bubble gauge. alignment should be a flat price, regardless. most dealers charge about $65-70. if they want to put it in labor, its .8 hrs.


anytime you get an alignment, request a printout.

 

Print then lock.

 

So what happens if you haven't driven the car every single mile that's on the odo. My car was wrecked before I purchased it. I wouldn't have know unless they checked the rears. What does it hurt to check anyways? Suck it up mdloops...he's gotcha!

 

Just for the hell of it: I got my car checked at all four corners when I bought it to make sure the rear end was straight and had the bearings checked to make sure I wasn't in for a surprise later. Why?

I test drove an '02 6speed for four days that had a slightly bent rear end and it was tough to keep in control on corners (which is how I wound up with an auto) .

The larger issue with this thread is that a difference of experience/opinion or maybe communication of a point has clouded the effectiveness of the information sought by most of us.

I don't come here to flame, but get information...there's a lot of information here under the mud slinging.

There is nothing to adjust in the rear end, but there is a LOT that can go wrong/wear to change the alignment of the rear end.

 

And read it while you're there and ask questions!

 

you definately need an alignment after changing out the suspension. go get one ASAP!!

 

Got the 4 wheel aligment done (writing from the report as is..)

Manufacturer does not specify camber and caster adjustments for fronts and manufacturer does not specify rear camber and toe adjustments.


Left front
----------
Actual Before Specified Range
--------------------------------------------------
0.0 0.0 -1.1 to 0.4 (Camber)
2.1 2.1 2.0 to 3.5 (Caster)
0.05 -0.07 0.00 to 0.10 (Toe)

Right front
------------
Actual Before Specified Range
--------------------------------------------------
-0.6 -0.6 -1.1 to 0.4 (Camber)
1.7 1.7 2.0 to 3.5 (Caster)
0.06 -0.16 0.00 to 0.10 (Toe)

Cross Camber and Cross Caster (Front)
-------------------------------------------
Actual Before Specified Range
--------------------------------------------------
0.6 0.6 -0.8 to 0.8 (Camber)
0.5 0.5 -0.8 to 0.8 (Caster)
0.11 -0.22 0.0 to 0.20 (Toe)

The car still has a pull in one direction (but very small compared to before the alignment) and the aligment rep told me that it is due to uneven worn out tires. Now, next step is to get good tires.

 

I have the same problem....took my car to the stealership to get the alignment done...they claimed they did it and everthing is now dead on...but they dont have paper to prove...needless to say...the car still pulls to the right.

 

why didnt you demand the paper? or make sure that they would be providing one beforehand?

 

I guess you still do not get it. THERE IS NEXT TO NOTHING THAT CAN AFFECT THE ALIGNMENT IN THE REAR END. I give up on here nobody listens anyways.

 

I did mine thro AAA certified private shop and not the stealership who quoted me $140. I got it done for $80 after the 10% AAA discount. This shop was also recommended highly by other folks in my workplace too. I think they have done what can be done to get it to drive straight, now it is upto me to get new tires and not go over curbs inadvertently.

Now if it does sway a little after getting new tires, I wouldn't bother....becoz going over a pothole could very well put the car out of alignment in no time!! Just live with it, drive hard and enjoy the baby.

 

They will try and tell you that you need rear wheel as well, especially if you are a woman.

 

no, not to you


oh look at that... he (she?) goes over curbs sometimes. next to nothing? there are quite a few things in the rear that can cause an issue. albeit few and far between, but not something im gonna overlook. especially if i see curb rash on the wheels.

but im glad you gave up... i dont expect a response from you

 

Yesterday I drove over a 6 inch long 4x4 piece of wood. It Broke my rf wheel and bent the rr. Checked my alignment at my shop and the camber is -2.7 on the right side. Bent my damn knuckle. I checked the rear at the same time and my RR Toe is at .34 degrees max is .22 for my car. Somethig is tweeked in the rear. I guess It was a good idea to check the rear

 

Like MDloops says there is no alignment to be done in the rear. If you guys pay for a rear alignment, it's because either you dont listen at the expert or your just a plain dumb a$$ who doesnt know what your talking about. Dont get me wrong many peoples get caught in paying for a 4 wheels alignement when only the front can be aligned. Sorry to be rude but it seem to be the only way some of you will understand. It is possible that the dealer charge you for checking the rear just to ensure you dont have damage suspension component that could throw your wheel off, capich ?

Cheers

AA

 

Yes there is no adjustments in the rear. And I do my alignments myself and still check the rear. If you read above my rear specs are out so by checking all four corners I know that I ****3d something up.

So does this mean that I'm a plain dumb a$$ or do you think I'd be better off not knowing that something is bent...

In conclusion NO you do not need to check the rear wheels when you get an alignment done. BUT if you have hit anything hard or not so hard, Or if you car is having a chronic problem that a regular alignment didn't fix then don't be a cheap A$$ and pay another $15.00 to assure everything on your baby is ok.

 

4 wheel and 2 wheel alignments cost the same at every dealer ive worked at.

again, they dont charge for checking. the front wheels have to be aligned to the rear wheels, the only proper way to do it is to hang all four heads, and after compensation, the readings are displayed anyway.

capiche?