Ok guys, this is what happened today. I went to this mechanic shop called Exotic in Toronto to do my alignment ($80 job) after letting my coilovers settle for 2 weeks, and putting on my rims. My regular shop referred me to Exotic because they don't do alignment jobs for any rims bigger than 18"s. I go there and the guy started to use these manual tools to measure the camber. He told me there is -2 on all 4 sides, but he can only correct the rears. I asked him why, and he said there is nothing that can be adjusted camber wise on an IS. He also said that there are currently no aftermarket companies that make camber kits for the IS.

He proceeded to jack up the car on his hoist, walked under my car and looked around. He comes back and says, "Yep, there's nothing I can adjust, I can only adjust the toe, so you might as well live with the camber as is since the car still goes perfectly straight." I said ok fine, just leave it then. He brought the car back down to the ground and said, "Ok, I'll just charge you $50.

I was like, "What, you didn't do anything except play around with your tools, and you jacked my car up. It was like 5 minutes." He said, "Well, you still have to pay for my time. I said, "I don't mind paying you for your time, but $50 for nothing is a little steep. He said, "Fine, give me $40." I was standing there like deer in headlights. Finally, I said, "I'll give you $30, but that is the last $30 you will ever get from me ever." He accepted $30, and I took off.

Did I just get ripped off? If the mechanic didn't do anything, should it cost this much? Was he lying to me telling me that nothing can be adjusted just to create this scam? I'm still lost as to what truly happened.

When you guys lower your cars with 19"+ rims, do you guys do alignments? What types of mechanic shops should I look for in my case? I really want to bring my car to somebody that knows what they are doing that won't blow smoke in my face. I can bring my car back to my regular guy if I put the 18's back on. But I also heard that I should do the alignment with the rims that I'm going to run with. What should I do?

That was my rant for the day. Thanks for looking.

 

Yes, you got ripped off. There should be a front and rear camber adjustment. Even if there were no way of adjusting camber, he should have still adjusted your front and rear toe settings as that alone will dramatically reduce your inner tire wear and correct the toe out condition you probably have right now. I guess it is up to the shop owner to elect NOT to do the alignment and charge you for the shop time, but IMHO most shops that I have dealt with int he past did not charge me if they couldn't complete the alignment. They simply told me to come back with a camber kit, or they'll get one for me and reschedule.

 

I am sorry you had to deal with such a ********. You should not have to PAY to jack up your car. Not even the best mechanics in the world would be worth 30 dollars per 5 mins. That is just ridiculous. If he had any common sense, he would have not charged you because he just ruined his store's reputation by telling this to a community of thousands of car owners. What a ****...

 

man...30 for 5 minutes...

 

Yep, but I will use that $30 as a lesson well learned. I should have done more technical research first before stepping foot into any shops, as well asking more people for good recommendations. I'm confident that this guy named Alex from Exotic will burn in h*ll soon enough. I will surely share this negative experience with all fellow IS owners at the big meet on May 30th!

 

so why didn't he adjust the toe? most places won't charge if they don't adjust anything. you can get a print out of your alignment specs for free.

 

This guy didn't even have any special equipment for doing alignments. I didn't see any of those wheel grabbing machines, he had no special jacks, he didn't have a computer or printer in the garage area. He wasn't even wearing a mechanics jumpsuit, come to think of it. He and his shop was so clean, not a speck of grease anywhere. I should have known... anyways, that's why I paid the price.


So can anyone confirm if 08 IS350's can adjust camber or not? I just called another shop (A more reputable one), and the guy on the phone said that some IS can adjust camber, and some can't (he couldn't remember which one). I just don't want to go to another shop only for them to tell me lies. Thanks.

 

some stores actually can align up to 20" bro!

 

that shop sounds suspect. at least he didn't do any mechanical work on your 2is.

consider this a $30 lesson.

 

If he had measured the toe and found it good, $30 would have been cheap for a 4 wheel alignment. Since he literally did nothing, except put it on the lift, every mechanic I know would not have charged anything hoping you would come back for their honesty.

 

sorry to hear that, that mechanic is wack!!

go to Bullockcity in Markham, talk to andy, he's done 2 alignments for me, no problems.

 

I've had similar experiences with other car-related issues, due to my relative noobiness at this kind of stuff. Just reflect on it!

 

Yes, that's the same guy I found from another source. Already booked for Friday morning! Thanks bro!

 

it only takes 5 mins to do an alignment after on the ramp or whatever. but he did it by eye? then i wouldn't pay him.

 

check if they are on BBB..and there are aftermarket camber kits from megan racing.