wheel alignment 2001 corolla

[prasadh]

hi all
jus back from discount tire center. got the wheel alignment done. pls answer the queries....

queries

1. from the alignment report i find that caster angle is outside OEM recommended range. [ Mine was 2.6 deg in left & 4.2 deg in right. OEM range is 0.6 deg to 2.1 deg both sides]. shop manager says they can not adjust the same. won't this deviation result in tire wear ? shop manager says no.

2. what is the OE recommended frequency for wheel alignment ? [i got in done after a year.is it ok ?]

thanks
prasadh
2001 corolla 124k

[leakyseals]

The question is why cant the car align to range? The answer is likely a worn suspension part or the car was in an accident. A mechanic can figure that out. Discount tire should have informed you they could not align the car correctly prior to performing the work, told you why they can't, give you the option to refuse the alignment. Because Discount Tire did not tell you what was wrong but took your money anyways you need to go to a mechanic to see whats wrong. If the mechanic replaces a part, will require a new alignment. If I were in your case i would drive and watch the wear. If you start having wear problems seek a mechanic then.

[PhatRoyale]

1. Those numbers are way out of spec, take it back to the shop and tell them to redo it. A good quality shop should be able to get it within OEM specs easily unless the cars been in an accident before or parts are worn out like leakyseals said.

2. Usually once a year is enough, but that depends a lot on the quality of the roads in your area.