Wheel alignment on a new car

[amt]

What are the correct specs for wheel alignment. I take it that the R36 would be different to the other Passat's is that right?

[Rocket36]

I take it you went to Gerald Slaven audineil??? They are a new VW dealer (i.e. they were Holden/HSV only until last year) which is why it's a combined service centre (which isn't actually anything to worry about as there are different trained mechanics working on the two model ranges) and the Belconnen Bridgestone Tyre Centre guys do all the alignment work for them. They have a very new laser wheel aligner (not sure what you mean by VW approved) but they rush all their work.

I have to echo the comments regarding Chris at Inline. THE best place to go in the region FOR SURE!!! But with all your motorsport experience you would no doubt already know that... I am like you and VERY fussy when it comes to my balance/alignment/steering centred. Go and see Chris and don't let the Gerald Slaven guys arrange it AT ALL.

If it's brand new, get the before print out AND the after print out and make a warranty claim. Speak to Aaron at Gerald Slaven - he's a top bloke and genuinely wants to help (in my experience with him). Rob and Paul are also very good.

Cheers!

[audineil]

Rocket,
Chris is an old friend and motorsport colleauge. He is always my #1 choice.
Just to be clear, in the Canberra region there is Inline Suspension and then a considerable amount of daylight to the next best suspension place.
Coincidently, Elizabeth's A4 is booked in with Chris on monday and I have just finished machining some special parts for the suspension on an Audi ur S4 for a customer of Chris'.
Neil

[Rocket36]

Nice! Then why did you let GS Service arrange anything? LoL

[audineil]

This is my first ever brand new car. The A4 I bought new for Elizabeth never needed any mechanical warranty work, so I have no experience with that. I guess that, as GS is a VW dealer, I thought they would look after the problem responsibly.
Neil

[Rocket36]

yeah that's a reasonable assumption... and the high volumes they do and the work they do would satify the masses. but for the fussy people out there like us it's just not enough sometimes.

[Rob Burns]

I wouldn't call it not looking after the work responsibly. They don't have the facilities to do alignments so you can't judge the quality of their work by an alignment they didn't do.

You also shouldn't be judging them on being a Holden dealership either. I'm a technician and my work quality isn't dependent on the build quality of the car I'm working on. I did a year at Slaven's about 10 years ago and there were some good techs there who I'd have no problem letting them work on my car.

[audineil]

Rob,
I am not writing off Gerald Slavens, but as this is my very first and only experience of their service department, you must appreciate my concerns. I have always done all of the work on my own cars, but as I am building race engines for teams all over Australia and several international teams as well, I no longer have the time (or inclination) to work on my own cars. This is a new experience for me.
I am not judging them by work they did not do. It just seems strange to me that a dealer would not do their own wheel alignments. It is not like the equipment is expensive.
Having said that, it would have taken leas than a minute to see that the alignment was not correctly carried out. The steering wheel is 10 degrees off centre when the car is going straight.
Neil

[audineil]

Chris has just done an alignment and it has absolutely transformed the handling.
The car had way too much LR toe in. It felt to me that it had too much toe out at the front, but it was actually toe in at the back.
The front toe was also offset contributing to the steering wheel offset. The car was literally "crabbing" down the road.
It had too little LR -ve camber as well.
Very happy now, and given the large amount or rear toe in, the highway fuel consumption will probably improve as well.
Neil

[audineil]

I had a very refreshing call today from big Phil at Gerald Slaven VW Canberra, the branch manager. He wanted to know why I felt unhappy about service as I have been discussing here.

I find that encouraging and I want to say that my experience with my wheel alignment will not stop me recommending Slavens as the place to go for VW in the ACT region.

As a service provider, you can't possibly always get it right, it is how you respond when you don't get it right that separates the good from the bad. I appreciate Phil taking the trouble to ask my opinion on this issue.

Neil Trama