'Can't align the back wheels'

P

PboroRyan

Member
I know there's confusion over this, even I don't really understand it sometimes, but a while back I had my alignment done at ATS and they told me that the rears couldn't be aligned.
Now i've had new springs in, I'll need the geometry done again, which has left me with some questions.
-An alignment is only a small part of a full geometry check, is this correct?
-Can the rears be adjusted as part of this geometry check (and was the man at ATS talking out of his arse)?
-Is there any real benefit of going to BMW to get this done, or will any garage with a laser alignment/geometry machine do the job exactly the same?
 
The rear Toe and camber can be changed on a Zed so ether your camber arms are seized (which is why he couldn't align the car) or he is talking Bull and doesn't have a clue what he is on about!

I wouldn't be taking any car for an alignment in ATS, Kwickfit or any other big company as most have the equipment and don't know how to use it.

Find a good specialist and have a chat to them first and see if they know what they are doing.

I can advise you a few depending on where you are based.

Look on http://www.alignmycar.co.uk too to find out companies near by who do 4 wheel alignment using hunter machines.

Ash
 
A geometry check is an alignment, although strictly speaking a check is just putting it on the machine and seeing where you're at and an alignment is when they actually adjust something.

Both front and rear camber plus toe are adjustable.

It's often best to avoid KwikFit and ATS etc as although they have decent equipment they don't know how to use it or adjust your car properly. I went to KwikFit and I said £50 was expensive for just front toe so he gave some BS about the machine being worth £0.25m when it's actually about a tenth of that. I asked for zero front toe and they only knew how to follow the screen to standard settings.

Find a garage who does motorsport or a well respected indy with a 4 wheel alignment machine and they should do a much better job.

The machines don't have that much difference, far more is down to the operator and how methodical they are. Like rolling the car back and forward after adjusting to check it's spot on and where appropriate weighting the car. BMW will charge a lot for the work, I use a guy who does nothing but alignments all day every day and the most you pay is about £90. Typically you'll get a check for free and then charged per item that is adjusted. For example £25 for front toe and £20 for front camber.
 
^^^^ what they have both said.
However, it is quite common for the bolt used to adjust rear camber to be seized. It uses a captive eccentric washer to adjust, you will probably need to replace the bush as well whilst changing them.
 
Went to have mine done at quick fit and a couple local to me, when they punched in the cars details it came up on their compuger that a special tool was needed to adjust the rear, load of bollocks ive changed the rtab and done it myself manually,.
But computer says no.
M
 
I thought as much regarding ATS, I only had it done there because my aircon was being done at the same time and knew the alignment needed a quick check.
Hopz, do you know of any specialists/places that will do it properly near Peterborough?
 
As above - I have had the rear camber affected by exuberant undersealing - it had to be "adjusted" to get more movement in the rear to hit the correct adjustment setting - the original guy tried telling me the car was twisted and had been in a side impact accident as he couldn't get the correct setting!

You can also get adjustable rear camber arms if you need some further movement.... some here
 
Afraid not no I can give you a few in the South West or London but that's it I'm afraid.

I have gone down adjustable camber arms on my M3 (Tuner ones) These are a doddle to change and also are very well made and lighter than OEM. :)
 
Maybe they just dont know how to do them.
Years ago I tried a few places to get my wifes MR2 alignment done as one of the rears was wearing badly on the inside.
At the time everywhere we tried said they couldnt do it as Toyota hadnt released technical info that enabled them to do it.
Had to go to Toyota in the end who charged around £120, this was about 13 years ago.
 
Not sure where you're located, but I took mine to 'Wheels in motion' Also called Backboots in Chesham. They carried out a Hunter 4 wheel Laser alignment. I got the recommendation from this site. Very professional and the guy set up the back to a spec that gives max traction but won't shred the inside of the tires. He obviously put it in more technical terms :wink: Cost me £68. Cost varies depending on what they have to do, the max cost is £138 but I'm not sure what you get for that money. Maybe a new set of wheels, :rofl:
 
When I had mine done - properly - I watched him do it out of interest, and when the chap did the rears it was a bit of a PITA. He had to try pretty hard to get a tool in there with which to move the fitting and then tighten it back up. Perhaps Mr ATS was just not try hard kind of guy. I wouldn't have them or kwik fit or Halfords do it - if always use a specialist with the proper equipment and knowledge.
 
I took mine to ATS for a full alignment check and the guy told me they didn't have the right tools to do the rear camber. Total horlicks. Took it down to my local mechanic and he adjusted it spot on, with two spanners and a vernier plumb line. :D
 
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