Tire and alignment issues

[Bluemill]

Maybe I've been spoiled by owning several foreign cars with McPhereson Strut front ends that seldom needed front end adjustment.

I have a set of Perrelli PZero-Neros that feel awfully good still but with only 20,000 miles, they have worn so unevenly, they will have to be replaced at probably 25,000 miles. The regional tire/repair chain put them on for me, and did an alignment back then. About six months ago I started having mystery slow air leaks, in both front tires, but not the rears. Each time I took the wheels off and searched for the nail and or cut that could be leaking, I found nothing. I bought the tires through the Tire Rack.

I took the fastest leaking one to another branch of this chain, and they said that the wheels had been mounted improperly with hammer on, conventional balance weights, and that one of these had started a leak. They were somewhat taken aback when I told them that they had mounted and balanced them then.

They also told me that I should have my alignment checked every 6 months to keep my wear even. The left front is very worn on the outside edge, almost no tread left on the outer 1.2", while the right looks like too much toe in with the same kind of wear pattern on the inner most band of tread. The car does not pull to the left or right, it seems fine while driving.

Do they sound like they are giving me good information, or is it possible they are trying to take advantage of the fact that they are one of the few outfits that can handle wheels that large?

Could they have aligned the front end and forgot to tighten it up?

What is the book on how long a Corvette C5 will normally hold a good alignment?
How often should they be checked?

I put <10,000 miles on a year on this 6 speed coupe

I do admit that I did replace my front spring a year ago, about 10,000 miles back. Also, I did unbolt the upper control arm bolts to that job. Recently, while putting on C-6 Z06 shocks I also undid the upper a arms again.

I marked things the best I could, but honestly, it seemed like there wasn't a lot of play at those big bolts anyway, it seemed pretty tight up there.

Any thoughts?

Thanks,

Bluemill

[c4c5specialist]

HI there,
First, GM engineered these rims to seal with clip on wheel weights, so that is a falicy.
These rims will seal, and the tires will not lose air.
The truth about alignments is that I have seen very few people do them correctly.
Correct printouts before and after, correct torque values for ALL fasteners, especially on the control arms.
But, every time those suspension components are loosened, removed or otherwise manipulated, the alignment should be redone and printouts provided.
My personal opinion, is that you were never given the proper process for alignments and tire mounting.
I recommend the alignment be checked once a year or 12,000 miles.
Allthebest, c4c5

[vettex2]

Originally Posted by c4c5specialist

The truth about alignments is that I have seen very few people do them correctly.

boy is that the truth !

Most can rarely get the steering wheel straight so that makes you wonder about the rest of the settings.

When I was doing these I had to set up an appointment schedule because customers always wanted me doing theirs and wouldn't want the rest of the techs doing them.
This led to some resentment from other techs but I considered it job security.

Here is what I do currently because I don't have an alignment rack for my street car.
I had a friend do mine correctly.( This is the hardest part for most)
I set up my scales and marked the spots exactly.
I then put the car on scales and checked all the angles with gages and a toe-bar.( A toe bar is easy to make and you can get by with cheap bubbles gages for caster and camber )
I then wrote everything down.
While I haven't had to pull an arm , I have had to pop ball joints loose from time to time.
I set the car back up and check.
If it's good and matches my notes , I leave it and drive it.
If not , I can make SMALL adjustments and then have it checked on a rack.
For wear , toe is the most critical.
If caster and camber change, it's back to the rack.
If it's just a toe change , I cant get it correct easily.
To make sure it's square, I string the car.
Just like I did on old American Indy Series cars.
I've used string on Formula Atlantics and my championship cars too.
It isn't as accurate as lasers but it does work if you know what to do.

[Bluemill]

Thanks gentlemen.

Twelve months and 12,000 miles will be the rule going forward.

I'm curious about the clip on weights causing leaks, as I was told at this Tire store/service facility. I was suspicius about a weight causing a leak after 2 years and 20,000 miles. They said it was because of corrosion.

I'd love to know how to do the string thing, but probably it would be too difficult for me, without a rack and all. All I have is a couple of floor jacks and jack stands. A Vette is a little low to the deck so you can't move around down there too easy.

Thank you,

Bluemill

[c4c5specialist]

HI there,
Honestly, it sounds like its more than just toe.
You would see oxidation if it was in a highly corrosive environment, salt, sand, near the sea water.
Another question is did they use COATED wheel weights?
THEY SHOULD HAVE.
So, then, I would as them to remove the tires and show you the corrosion.
If thats the case, the clear coat would be peeling up and THAT COULD cause leaky tires as the bead couldnt seal correctly.
Coated weights are not shiny, they are plastic looking.
Allthebest, c4c5

[aquaholic]

the front spring change alone would have hosed your alignment. i'de not only try to find someone with a hunter electronic alignment rack but also someone who knows how to use it properly. after having all my cars and trucks done on that rack i've never had to have any of them redone yet. and when your running $1700 worth of 37" tires on a truck you really dont want to be wearing those out prematurely. kinda makes the vette tires seem cheap.

[C5Jim]

Bluemill - I had the Pirelli P Zero Nero's and I loved them. I put 35,000 miles on them plus 4 track events when I replaced them and I could have put another 5,000, but I wanted to try the Bridgestone RE960's. I'm going back to the Pirelli's next time.

I do my alignment every year because its cheaper than buying tires. my local Chevy dealer charges $69.95 to align Corvettes. Now that's a bargain.

Good luck,
Jim

[bradfordsvettes]

ask for the before and after spec sheet ,although these can be scewed to if someone really wants to spend the time and fart around with the cameras takes as much time as doing the job right Steve