I almost lost 900$ due to these dirt bags

Recently went into Kal Tire on Marine in North Vancouver to get an alignment. After a hour wait I came back to them telling me I need to purchase new Lower Control Arms because they are seized. I knew for a fact they weren’t because I just installed a new suspension kit.
Thankfully when I went to the Kal tire on BrooksBank in Northvan they did everything with no problems at all and only charged me 130$.
This was a huge lesson that I learned, i’m only 20 and i’m just getting into looking after my vehicle. Gladly I talked with multiple people and got different opinions.
I hope this helps save you some money down the road

Pic on the left is the place that didn’t try ripping me off the one on the right is.

 

I went to Kal Tire in pork Kells once for an alliement never again. I only to go either dedicated alliement shops or offroad shops for an alliement.

 

well i went to Thomas tire one time to get my wheels swaped cause may friend was out of town. and they wanted to charge me 500 dallors to swap them. i told them to kindly fuck off

 

paying 130 bucks for alignment... you still got fucked.

 

Not only did you still support to the company that tried ripping you off in the first place, but you also paid like double what an alignment typically costs

 

Actually, you would be surprised, I paid $140 for mine at a shop specializing in lifted/off-road vehicles, Limo’s, fire trucks, ambulances, etc.
Went to Arrow Alignment here in Vegas, they had a limo there the on the first alignment and a city ambulance the second time I came in. I believe they also do alignments for some of the mint 400 and Baja 1000 vehicles as well. You get what you pay for, and it was well worth it, plus the 6 month warranty.

 

Those are Canadian dollars. About US$93.

 

You really think the place the OP went to, who tried to screw him out of money in the first place, is a qualified alignment specialist?

 

Was that a lifetime alignment? That's about the normal cost for the lifetime version.

You did fine.

 

We have to remember that some people think getting an alignment means they went to Firestone for the $45.00 wham bam special

 

The place i take my truck to for alignments charges around 180$, thats about 1.5 hrs labor.

I happily pay it because I don't want underpaid, inexperienced young techs working on my vehicle while under pressure to go fast.

They even loosen the u-bolts at the rear axle and shift it around to get the thrust angle at near zero.

 

I don’t think I said that, but feel free to assume what you like. There’s also a clear difference in price being it’s USD vs CAD which @2BeersPlease stated. He was worked with the first shop no doubt, it’s just some people don’t understand cheap alignments are a cancer.

 

Shop that installed my tires this morning did a free "alignment check" before putting it on the stand. They tried to sell me an alignment, saying my toe in was so bad it was unsafe.

I had a friendly discussion with the manager about trying to sell alignments based on poorly trained techs that tested while the steering wheel was cranked 90 degrees and the wheel markers weren't properly clamped on.

 

I think you all are missing the big picture.

The fact that a young person is taking on doing their own maintanace, or much as they can, screams a win.

The fact he didn't "roll over" and trust the 1st estimate, screams a win.

Way to use resources at your disposal OP.

Thanks for posting.

 

I paid about that for the Firestone “lifetime” alignment. They messed it up the first time, and I went to a different location and got it perfect. If you’re planning to keep the truck as long as you can, it’s worth it. You can make them get it right and not have to pay again.

 

Remember that's Canadian dollars not merica money

 

What's a "lifetime alignment"? I thought an alignment's an alignment?

 

For many of us that intend on keeping our vehicles for several hundred thousand miles, The lifetime alignment pays for itself.

You WILL be changing out front end parts as the truck ages. Tie rod ends wear out, springs wear out, rack and pinions go bad, to name a few. All those I listed will require an alignment after the repairs have been made.

The lifetime alignment is not really intended for people that purposely "wheel" their truck's and incur regular alignment needs. You may get denied after your 3rd visit of the year. Just be aware.