Truck pulls right... after proper alignment

YMMV.

I'll gladly be a sucker and get one annually.

 

Got the truck back this afternoon and its about where it was when I took it in. The alignment tech and I talked about it and it just so happens he is a Toyota guy. He suggested new UCA's like a Total Chaos product that were adjustable. He stated that they would improve the alignment and ride. Anybody have any knowledge in this area?

 

What's wrong with your OEM UCAs? I saw no mention of you being lifted.

 

Sorry guys, by stating that I replaced the entire front suspension I assumed you knew I meant lift or in actuality replaced old lift with new one. Or would have checked out my truck in my profile. Yes, it is lifted, 4" drop bracket to be specific. I replaced old components with new ones, except control arms. Height and everything is the same as before and it was aligned perfectly before...

 

^You don't have these ghey spindle extensions, right?



Make sure the tie rod bend is oriented correctly. Make sure the tie rod is attached to the bottom of the spindle pickup, not to the top:

 

I DID have those beer can spacer's in the first pic on there and I replaced with the tuff country knuckles that are in the 2nd pic. Tie rods are on correctly. Do you/anyone have any knowledge about the long travel UCA's? I've looked into them (Camburg and Total Chaos) and at $400 per side I'd hate to spend that kind of money and not fix anything.

 

^The stock suspension has some anti-dive geometry built in, so it loses caster as the UCA moves down. The aftermarket UCAs are meant to restore caster for strut lifts. Since you have a DB lift with longer spindles, the stock UCA is still at stock angles and didn't lose caster - the alignment printout shows 2 deg caster which is healthy. Aftermarket UCAs likely won't help.

I think the rack may be leaking/bypassing internally at the spool valve. The PS pump whine may be due to a hydraulic "short-circuit" condition where the fluid is getting past the internal seals in the rack (from the pressure side to return) without doing work, and heating up.

 

I appreciate the help Ken. Tapatalk won't let me upload pics so I had to wait until I got to a computer but these are the current numbers on the alignment. It's hard to read but it's all I got from them. Is it possible that they unknowingly aligned it to compensate for the bad rack? It appears that the caster is the only one out of spec but they assured me that it was due to the lift changing the angles.

 

Agreed.

To the OP. So many vehicles have so little adjustability anymore, not as many shops make the effort to keep their gear calibrated as they should.

Unless I have a way of knowing the tech personally from another contact, I avoid big box shops, and use smaller locations. I currently have a 3 year plan with a GoodYear store, but the tech I met at some SCCA events, and he does old Porsches and British stuff quite well.

Guys that perform custom 4 wheel alignments on sports cars are a good place to start; a Tacoma is easy peasy for a good tech.

 

I leave pavement every now and then but I don't crawl, jump, or bounce

like I mentioned, lifetime is useless if it can never be done right. over time you waste more money traveling and taking time off to keep going back.

If you off-road a lot I can agree. If you occasionally venture out it's really up to you if you want to spend the money. I've had my share of potholes living in the NE but no craters.

If there's no pulling or excessive tire wear you're fine. but to each his own, it's your money, I just recommend spending it on better things for the truck


p.s. the reason for me getting one is I'll be replacing ball joints, bushings, shocks, and possibly TRs. so basically a freshening

 

Not a good example as even cars need alignments from just driving around town.

But hey if you like to not properly maintain your truck thats all you

 

The picture is hard to read. However, I think I can vaguely make out the caster angles as -0.3 deg L / -1.2 deg R before adjustment, and -0.9 deg L / -0.6 deg R after adjustment. If that's true, then it would explain your steering behavior. Caster is the only mechanism that gives the self-centering characteristic in the steering system. If the caster is 0 or negative, the self-centering characteristic is gone. You want caster to be ideally around +3 deg.

Looks like the first shop's machine is out of calibration. And yes, the only way to get noticeably more positive caster is with aftermarket UCAs.

 

I do properly maintain my truck, hence why I haven't needed an alignment. and if you're car needs a regular alignment then you need to address your driving habits.

My truck drives straight, doesn't wear tires, and hasn't (up until I decide to) needed any parts changed.

Like I said to each their own, maybe I just drive in a safer manner

*Back on topic*

Looks like the OP is taking care of it by going to another shop and maybe getting it fixed.

 

Like you said, total bullshit.

Coming from a former employee... repeat after me: Firestone is where people who dont know about cars go to work on cars.

I cant tell you how many stupid stupid people are at some of these shops. There is no reason, other then for a track setup, for any one side of the car to be different from the other. Road crown caster compensation? Bullshit.

It is common for the management at Firestones to have no automotive experience, but to only have skills in sales. You need to go in there with YOUR OWN SPEC and stand there and direct the technicians on how to align your car/truck. Feel free to break their balls, as a complaint to their district manager is the only thing the are afraid of. Remember this is your baby they are putting their hands on.

I thought the exact same thing when i saw the caster as a perfect 2.0 degrees on each side. I doubt they actually did an alignment on your car.

There is no reason to have positive camber on any car or truck. It is common for the alignment specs in their system to sacrifice tire wear in order to increase straight line stability.

The best specs I can recommend for this or any truck are:

Camber: -0.4 to -0.6 each
Toe: 0.05 to 0.10 (0.10 to 0.20 total)
Caster: 2.0 each or more

Dont let them tell you they cant adjust caster, get under the car and show them how if the need be.

WTF!? Must be joking.

 

Future readers of this thread, please ignore the comment quoted above. ^^^

Alignments are part of routine maintenance procedures. And there is no 'maintenance' that you can do that retains alignment, other than having one done.

If its a trailer or garage queen, or maybe driven on perfectly smooth roads, then it doesn't matter quite as much.

I have my vehicles aligned when purchased by my fav shop as part of my baseline maintenance procedures. While I primarily buy used, I have new ones done too. Over 2/3 of them have been out of factory spec (much less precision) right off the lot.

 

So to recap.
Steering was "OK" untill first alignment. Printout #'s are suspiciously near perfect. Now no return to center from right turn.
Steering seems to be fixed but new printout #'s are way off.
Hmmmmmm

1st gen steering pumps are noisy from the factory. Pump wine is hard to judge over the web. Changes in sound over time and steering effort are the best clues to issues without pressure readings.
As far as internal lekage of the rack control valve. That would result in increased steering effort or a leak. The increased effort would be noticed reguardless of steering position. The control valve does not know or care where the steering is in its range of travel. When the steering is not being turned the valve is in full bypass anyway.

 

Are these specs you recommend for a stock height or lifted tacoma?

 

Alignments are 1 of the biggest profit producers for a shop. 5 minutes, 0 work and $100. That equates to $3000 hour machine time. An alignment adjusts exactly nothIng. If there's no problem, you're a sucker. If you NEED an alignment every year, you're doing something wrong. I worked in a shop back in the day, the owners loved alignments and 3k mile oil changes.

 

$100 alignments seem to have gone the way of the Dodo along with 3k oil change requirements.

I haven't paid $100 for an alignment, ever. Even a 4 wheel was under $100 from Les Schwab.

 

I paid $119 for 3 years at evans 3 years ago...