When do most people perform alignments (or recommended times)? I just took in my 2012 PriusC to the stealership for the 35k service this morning (already a steal at $50 for essentially a tire rotation), and the service manager tried to convince me to spend an extra $100+ or so to do an alignment. Should I have done it? Or was he just trying to get my money?
Some people do an alignment every year. It depends on if you have a lot of pot holes in your area, etc. A decent tire shop will probably be able to align it for you for cheaper than the dealership however.
Is it worth getting the Firestone Lifetime Alignments? Is Firestone trustworthy or it depends on your location? Los Angeles streets aren't that great. I put 35k miles on the car in 14 months, so I'll have easily 150k miles by the time I finish paying it off. I'm hoping to run this PriusC for as long as possible as my commuter car.
I've heard Firestone alignments are pretty good but it can depend on how good Firestone is in your area. In my area, they suck so I will just pay for alignments every few years as needed. Actually, they place I bought my 17" tires from offers free alignment checks and only charges if it needs adjusting. I'd recommend you check the reviews on Yelp for the Firestone locations in your area if you are leaning on going to them.
I don't think it's necessary if your call is all stock. Unless you feel the car is not driving straight. Due to wear and tear, the front toe is all they tend to adjust. Then there's suspension damage due to potholes, that's shouldn't be fixed just with an alignment. I did one but because my car was lowered. Even with that, all Toyota did was adjust the front toe. That' s on my Prius, i'm not sure if the Prius C has a trailing arm rear as well? BTW, even with my rear toe out of spec, they still didn't do anything. My dealer charged $79. Perhaps you can negotiate?
t There are shim kits. My point to them(Toyota), is my car is new and why is it out of spec? If it's not adjustable, then replace the whole trailing arm. If shouldn't be out of spec. Their respond is they see a lot of Prius rear suspension out of tolerance.
I think the rear can even come from the factory/port slightly out of spec. A friend of mine who knows a lot about suspension says for a trailing arm rear suspension, it being out of spec doesn't really matter much.
^ Granted it's a quick job for them, but they've got a massive investment in lifts, air tools and torque wrenches, personnel. Try doing it yourself in your driveway or garage: it might change your perspective. ^ I wouldn't touch it, unless you've hit a curb, have obvious problems or uneven tire wear.
I noticed on the bottom of my invoice it says "Brakes: Front-8mm Rear-5mm". Is this about average or BS? I thought Prius brakes were supposed to last until 100k miles or so. I regen brake as much as possible. Does anyone know the initial and worn out measurements for the Prius C?
I'd hazard 9~10 mm new, worn out is typically 1 mm. But if I was checking brakes and they were at say 3 mm, I'd get on it. As far as BS, why not just check them for your self? Their measurements are probably on the money, my 2 cents.
Damn, that would be an expensive alignment. I pay $60. Firestone in my area charges $90, or something like $120 for unlimited lifetime. Depending on if your running over curbs, pot holes, motorcyclists in New York, you really don't need to do it frequent. If you feel your car start to pull right/left with your hands off the wheel you'd want to have it checked out. Uneven wear on tires doesn't necessarily equate to needing an alignment and a good reputable shop will be able to tell you if you did need one. Generally I get mine done when I put a new set of tires on the car.
Having the alignment checked is not the same as having it adjusted. If you are the type that has someone else rotate your tires, have them "check" then. Any real shop worth a damn will do this free and give you the print out before you decide. It is part of Preventative Maintenance.
