Alignment...these guys are unreal

[SilverStone05]

I just switched my tires back to summer tires, and I've been visiting garages this whole morning trying to get someone to align my NSX. I can't believe these people. This has turned out to be a ROYAL pain in the ass. And I refuse to take the car to the dealership by me because those guys will never see a cent of my money.

First garage:
Me: How much is an alignment?
Guy: Well...for YOUR car its $100.
Me: K THX BYE!

Second Garage:
Me: How much is an alignment?
Guy: Well its 69.99 but I won't be able to get your car on the rack cause its too low.
Me: Allright, thanks. (At least these guys were honest)

Third Garage: (These guys didn't see my car when I drove up)
Me: How much is an alignment?
Guy: 69.99.
Me: Great, can you get me in now?
Guy:Sure thing....
...so I pull the car up by the garage door.....
Guy: Oh wait a minute! I'm going to have to charge you $160 for the alignment!
Me: What? Why?
Guy: Well because that's one of those NSX's!
Me: So?
Guy: Well its got all kinds of gizmos on it that regular cars don't.
Me: (truly disgusted) Yea? Like what?
Guy: Well see we got to adjust the camber caster AND toe on that one!
Me: Well don't you do that on most cars?
Guy: Um, well yea, but see here, it's different. You know, its just different.
Me: So what you're saying is that you can't really explain why you're trying to charge me three times more than your posted price?
Guy: Well i'd try to explain it but you probably wouldn't......
This is when I gave him back his service order and left.

Ugh...anyone else have problems like this?

 

[clr1024]

No but a $100 for an alignment seems reasonable. I took mine to a well respected NSX mechanic locally, I would rather get it done right than pay less and get it wrong. Car goes through tires fast enough no need to expedite that.

 

[Daedalus]

Pretty common response in my experience, and I drive beaters mostly. Sometimes I think service writers have a special class that teaches them to exert a low whistle while looking shocked.

What do you think is a fair price? I paid I think $60 for my last alignment, but that was at an older shop. I would have gladly paid $100 if they had a laser system and if the guy would have printed out the numbers before and after so I had peace of mind it was done right.

 

[burbel]

I got my alignment done at a SpeedyAlign here in town, for $99, but they didn't get a printout, and afterwards the car handled very poorly. Went to NTB and got a standard alignment with 3 year warranty for $140 (1 year was $99). I live in a cheap part of the country, and wish I could find someone for under $100!

 

[710]

$22 (€18 at Deproost in Lembeek) and I watched to see that they did it right.

I guess this doesn't help, huh?
Peter:smile:

 

[JoeSchmoe]

Your $100 alignment quote doesnt sound too bad. My last 2 alignments, both done at shops which do a lot of NSXs, were $100 and $120.

I would be more concerned about whether the $69 place has any experience getting the NSX in spec. Some shops dont know how (my local acura dealer included) and you end up having to pay a different shop another $100 to get it done right.

-- Joe

 

[Aero]

My last full alignment at Acura dealer was $100. thought that was pretty good.

 

[Osiris_x11]

goto import-tuner shoppes that work on the creme'...

I get mine for free from my preferred shoppe, provided I keep giving him work... :tongue: :frown:

The alligment specs' print-outs are real insightful, especially for my NSX since I had to replace a few suspension components & cross-members when I pulled a Dukes of Hazzard in Hill Country over the Colorado River in '04... :biggrin:

(in-fact I'm going there this week, I got a list of tasks to address... allignment will be on the house as I'm changing my suspension, wheels, brakes, etc'...)

 

[zahntech]

Guy: Oh wait a minute! I'm going to have to charge you $160 for the alignment!
Me: What? Why?
Guy: Well because that's one of those NSX's!
Me: So?
Guy: Well its got all kinds of gizmos on it that regular cars don't.
Me: (truly disgusted) Yea? Like what?
Guy: Well see we got to adjust the camber caster AND toe on that one!
Me: Well don't you do that on most cars?
?

No they don't adjust camber or caster on most cars because it's not adjustible on most cars (accord/taurus ect ect) "Set the toe, let it go":wink:

For a real alignment for all angles you need to go to an alignment shop (not a tire store) or the acura dealer and even there you should ask for a printout before and after...and 69.95 is not going to get you that.:frown:

 

[RC000E]

Fishing line, jack stands, chalk line, plumbbob, level, and a steel ruler=free alignments in my garage for eternity

 

[rjp]

Just picked mine up from local Acura dealer. $69.95. Did the zero toe thing.

 

[Larry Bastanza]

My experience is that if you relate cost to alignment quality you are wasting your time. What you need to do is find a tech that KNOWS THE MACHINE he is using, and allow him to take his time. I do not care if you spend $59 or $300 if the tech cannot use the equipment properly it is worthless.

The NSX is one of the most easiest cars to align, should take about an hour for a stock alignment.

JMO,
LarryB

 

[nsxtasy]

The NSX is one of the most easiest cars to align, should take about an hour for a stock alignment

...as long as the tech doing the alignment knows what he's doing.

There are some NSX services (oil changes, brake jobs, tire replacements) that any competent mechanic can do. There are others where a lot of experience with the NSX is a huge benefit. This is one of the latter. I trust some routine tasks to my independent mechanic, but I take my car to my local NSX experts when it needs an alignment.

I don't know what your beef is with your dealer, or which of the two Cincinnati dealers you're referring to. However, many Cincinnati-area NSX owners use and recommend Scott, the NSX tech at Superior Acura in Fairfield.

 

[SilverStone05]

Finally, got it done at goodyear. $49.99 with a $20 off coupon. Provided a before and after printout and I even watched the tech perform the whole thing. They did a great job and the guy knew exactly what he was doing. I was surprised because there are some weird adjustments for the NSX up in the front.

 

[MoreRPMs]

...What you need to do is find a tech that KNOWS THE MACHINE he is using, and allow him to take his time.

That's what I hear the laser alignment machines do...make it much easier on the dude who's working on the car.

Why not then, seek out a place that has one of these? If the end result is less prone to error, it should be a win win for both the customer and servicing center.

 

[Ko-nsx]

here's a link to the thread i posted about wheel alignment. Most shops i went to couldn't do 19 and 18 inch wheels. The machine this place used was cool. I paid about 118.00, the extra 30 was some time i used to adjust ride height for my coilovers. I was very pleased with price and service.

http://www.nsxprime.com/forums/showthread.php?t=59939

 

[MiamiMermaid]

No they don't adjust camber or caster on most cars because it's not adjustible on most cars (accord/taurus ect ect) "Set the toe, let it go":wink:

For a real alignment for all angles you need to go to an alignment shop (not a tire store) or the acura dealer and even there you should ask for a printout before and after...and 69.95 is not going to get you that.:frown:

So you don't recommend Tire Kingdom?

 

[Ninous]

I just switched my tires back to summer tires, and I've been visiting garages this whole morning trying to get someone to align my NSX. I can't believe these people. This has turned out to be a ROYAL pain in the ass. And I refuse to take the car to the dealership by me because those guys will never see a cent of my money.

First garage:
Me: How much is an alignment?
Guy: Well...for YOUR car its $100.
Me: K THX BYE!

Second Garage:
Me: How much is an alignment?
Guy: Well its 69.99 but I won't be able to get your car on the rack cause its too low.
Me: Allright, thanks. (At least these guys were honest)

Third Garage: (These guys didn't see my car when I drove up)
Me: How much is an alignment?
Guy: 69.99.
Me: Great, can you get me in now?
Guy:Sure thing....
...so I pull the car up by the garage door.....
Guy: Oh wait a minute! I'm going to have to charge you $160 for the alignment!
Me: What? Why?
Guy: Well because that's one of those NSX's!
Me: So?
Guy: Well its got all kinds of gizmos on it that regular cars don't.
Me: (truly disgusted) Yea? Like what?
Guy: Well see we got to adjust the camber caster AND toe on that one!
Me: Well don't you do that on most cars?
Guy: Um, well yea, but see here, it's different. You know, its just different.
Me: So what you're saying is that you can't really explain why you're trying to charge me three times more than your posted price?
Guy: Well i'd try to explain it but you probably wouldn't......
This is when I gave him back his service order and left.

Ugh...anyone else have problems like this?

That last guy thing, its as simple as this...
He see's that you have a special rare car, so he things your floating on $$$. It shows when he says; "Um, well yea, but see here, it's different. You know, its just different". thats just him showing a way to get more money, when its indeed no different than most other cars. Always go to dealer.

I also hate it when people drop 60K on a car and dont go and get it serviced at the dealer, but instead take it to brake masters or something.

 

[Ko-nsx]

i wanted to go to the dealer but they couldn't do 19's. When i was shopping for alignment shops i got turned down because of the 18 19 setup. i had to shop to get a leaking valve stem fixed!!! Lots of shops don't want to be responsible for our expensive cars. this tire place had better equipent then all the local dealers.

 

[sjones]

My local dealer charges $150 for an alignment on the nsx. The price for tire mounting is pretty high though. $60 per tire to mount and balance a tire.

 

[DocL]

...I also hate it when people drop 60K on a car and dont go and get it serviced at the dealer, but instead take it to brake masters or something.

How about those of us that DIY?? I can't justify paying $115.00 for an oil change on a car that is easier to do than a Prelude. Plus, when you see how easy it is to replace brake pads, rotors, and bleed the system you'll never go back to the stealership's service department with your NSX.

 

[SilverStone05]

That last guy thing, its as simple as this...
He see's that you have a special rare car, so he things your floating on $$$. It shows when he says; "Um, well yea, but see here, it's different. You know, its just different". thats just him showing a way to get more money, when its indeed no different than most other cars. Always go to dealer.

I also hate it when people drop 60K on a car and dont go and get it serviced at the dealer, but instead take it to brake masters or something.

Why always go to the dealer? Dealer techs aren't necessarily versed in NSX maintenence. In the case of the RX-7, most dealerships couldn't service it. Hell, the reason I don't take my NSX to Superior Acura which is 3 miles from me is because last time I went there, I had one of the techs ask me what kind of car it was.

As far as routine maintenence I'd rather do it myself. Brakes, fluids, belts and what not.

 

[Andrie Hartanto]

The NSX does require more time to do alignment than most cars.

Take civic for instance. The only thing is adjustable on the civic is front toe and rear toe. The camber and caster are not adjustable.

The NSX on the other hand has adjustments on everything. And it definitely take more time to do an NSX then a civic, does the price difference.

 

[nsxtasy]

My local dealer charges $150 for an alignment on the nsx. The price for tire mounting is pretty high though. $60 per tire to mount and balance a tire.

Wow! I'm familiar with mounting/balancing prices, at dealers and elsewhere, all over the country, and sorry, that doesn't sound right. I've never heard of a place that charges more than $40/tire (and even that is already at least twice as much or more than the typical $15-20/tire). Are you sure that isn't $60 for all four tires?

(See this previous topic for a poll on mounting/balancing prices.)

I can't justify paying $115.00 for an oil change on a car that is easier to do than a Prelude.

My dealer charges $30 plus oil for an oil change on the NSX, including the $17 oil filter. They don't stock 10W30 synthetic so they prefer I buy the oil myself ($28 at Costco or Sam's Club). $58 total, of which $45 is for parts/fluids.

when you see how easy it is to replace brake pads, rotors, and bleed the system you'll never go back to the stealership's service department with your NSX.

I can't justify paying $450.00 for a cavity to be filled when they do them all day long. Too bad we're stuck going to a denthief and we can't do THAT ourselves.

Why always go to the dealer? Dealer techs aren't necessarily versed in NSX maintenence.

In some areas, there are independent mechanics who have the most NSX experience around. In other areas, including mine and yours, the dealer mechanics have the most NSX experience around.

the reason I don't take my NSX to Superior Acura which is 3 miles from me is because last time I went there, I had one of the techs ask me what kind of car it was.

So they have a junior tech who isn't familiar with the rarer cars they work on. So what? They almost certainly only assign the NSX service work to the tech(s) like Scott who have the most experience and the NSX training. Now, if you tell me that Scott said this, that's another story...

 

[LeftLane]

Third Garage: (These guys didn't see my car when I drove up)
Me: How much is an alignment?
Guy: 69.99.
Me: Great, can you get me in now?
Guy:Sure thing....
...so I pull the car up by the garage door.....
Guy: Oh wait a minute! I'm going to have to charge you $160 for the alignment!
Me: What? Why?
Guy: Well because that's one of those NSX's!
Me: So?
Guy: Well its got all kinds of gizmos on it that regular cars don't.
Me: (truly disgusted) Yea? Like what?
Guy: Well see we got to adjust the camber caster AND toe on that one!
Me: Well don't you do that on most cars?
Guy: Um, well yea, but see here, it's different. You know, its just different.
Me: So what you're saying is that you can't really explain why you're trying to charge me three times more than your posted price?
Guy: Well i'd try to explain it but you probably wouldn't......
This is when I gave him back his service order and left.

Ugh...anyone else have problems like this?

$160/$69.99 = 2.286 :biggrin: