Good day Gents,

Two days ago, I purchased new Pirelli Scorpion Verde Plus 2 from Mavis tires. The tires were balanced accordingly, and they did a wheel alignment. I was kind of on the fence about having Mavis do the wheel alignment since I would prefer to have had Lexus do it. However, I went ahead and let them do the alignment. The vehicle now pulls to the left. Before the alignment, I had a right pull.

I called Mavis to let them know what is going with the vehicle and the site manager told me that the RX350 has a height-level sensor that may not have been considered when doing the alignment. I was told to bring the vehicle back. Have any of you guys encountered this while getting an alignment done? Most alignment shops are a hit or miss.

Thanks!

 

What year is your RX? If you have HID headlights, they do have a height sensor. You can tell because you will see the headlight beams go up and down as they adjust and level when turned on. I think it is located near the rear axle, but I have never heard that used as an excuse for screwing up an alignment.
I have HID and never had any alignment issues.
There are other possible causes of your car pulling, such as a defective new tire. It is called belt steer.
Check if the alignment printout they should have provided, which would indicate before and after adjustments, shows anything out of alignment or near the limit.
You don't need the Lexus dealer to do a good alignment, just a diligent technician. This same chassis is used on many Toyota models, aligning it is not rocket science with modern alignment machines.
Also ask them to try swapping the tires right to left to see if the pulling changes or goes away.

 

Check your tire pressures to make certain they are correct.

I have always found that the best alignment shops are locally owned and have been in business for many years. And make certain your tire installer utilizes Hunter Road Force Balance equipment. That is the current best on the market.

 

Yes, check the tire pressure, and also the wheel lug nut's torque.

Ask them to refund the alignment service, they did not do a good job.

From my experience (Belle Tire), the tire shops always upsell alignment, whether you need it or not. Last year when I got my new tires, they insisted that my alignment was way off. But my car drives straight and the tires wear evenly, I think they lied. They said the alignment should be done every 6 months, what?!?

 

My 2c based on personal experience:

Let the tire shop do balancing, but don't let any one (including the dealer) touch alignment if you do not have issues with abnormal wear or pull.

Only ask for alignment if your suspension was touched or there are issuers with alignment.

My worst to best experience for alignment have been Sears [RIP], dealer, speed shop. I only go to speed shop now.

I have had the best experience wit speed shops. They are going to be expensive but they are knowledgeable and willing to put in time to tweak the settings and still stay with-in limits [there is a range of 'green' values that the tech can tweak.].

Salim

 

Good morning Gents,

Thanks for the informative feedback. I appreciate it.

Sitting tire pressure is 32 all around, so I am good regarding proper inflation.

Might I add the Pirelli Scorpion Verde Plus 2 is fantastic aside from the bothersome tire pull. The Pirelli thus far has better road manners as far as comfort and road noise reduction compared to the Michelin Latitude. I have been a Michelin guy for a while, but good transition thus far. Time will tell.

I am going back to Mavis on Saturday, and I will have them look into the things you gents suggested in the thread. If I am still having an issue with the alignment, I will ask for a refund and take the vehicle to a speed or stance shop that caters to alignment.

The techs at Mavis look young (21 to 22 in age). Not trying to be age biased, but I’m hoping they have good experience in regards to what they are doing overall. Like one of you gents mentioned doing an alignment is not rocket science.

Thanks!

 

The modern alignment equipment makes the process almost fool proof [except they have to center the steering manually .. that is where Sears messed up fo me]. The experience comes into play when the tech has to ensure that nothing is amiss in the suspension ... a slight bit of play or unevenness can cause problems. As a customer, you need to bring in the vehicle with tank full of gas. Any previous suspension work needs to have been performed per spec .. simple things as torquing the bolts with the vehicle laden. Then just getting the four wheels on green is just the basics requirement.

Salim

 

The full tank of gas is important. BMW even calls for weights to be placed on the seats to simulate a driver and passenger.

 

Awesome feedback. I will keep all these things in mind as I head there tomorrow.

Thanks gents!