geometry setup..... in wales ?

[rd944]

ok, nice and simple... now that my 944 is running and mot'd n stuff .. it'd be quite nice if it didnt pull to the right, tramline, hop about when turning left and feel all floaty and vague when turning right .. it does other weird things too but it'd be labouring the point to list them all []

basically .. some PO has been in there swapping out knackered bits .. and never had it setup afterwards. Parked on a flat and level surface (tesco's petrol station to be precise) all 4 wheels display visibly differing camber and toe adjustments..

so.. where to take it ? bearing in mind im currently based in Carmarthen which is.. well, miles from anywhere.

any recommends ?

 

[rd944]

so.. having phoned around my local (ish) mazda dealer swore blind they could do the job ..

got there, double checked that they knew what they were doing and sat down to have a coffee.

chap comes through,

"there isnt any adjustmnent on the back of a porsche"

went out to the workshop and explained to them how to do it

result ?

they snapped the eccentric, denied availability of a courtesy car, are ordering a new eccentric and have refused to complete the setup, or cover the cost of the hire car i now need for the next few days.

not happy ! if they have the temerity to even think about presenting me with a bill for fixing what they've broken an awful lot of shouting will ensue.

 

[zcacogp]

Doesn't sound good.

Is this worth posting in a regional forum? There must be a Wales region ... failing that, how far away is manchester with Ninemeister et al? I'm sure they would be able to help.


Oli.

 

[rd944]

i've had a quote from center gravity in warwickshire, which in light of todays shennanigans i'd be prepared to go with..

im just gobsmacked by the incompetence* and lack of service.

main problem is being without the car for the forseeable future as i live out in the sticks 10 miles from the nearest town

*I slackened off and roughly adjusted the camber eccentric they snapped only a few days ago, there's no way it was seized, they didnt even spray penetrating fluid on it.. just attacked it with a 3ft breaker bar !

 

[appletonn]

Not exactly on your doorstep, but I had mine done by Danny at Unit 11 in Warrington. He has prepared a few racing 944s in his time and also done the setup on many race cars in his time working for various race teams, so he knows the practical side of gettting the alignments right, not just the theory. Both he and Jonny are very friendly and very reasonable rates too.

I had mine corner weighted too and after the alignment session it drove like a different car! I have had mine set up with a slight track bias but they will do whatever you request.

Tel 01925 852000

Good luck with the muppets who have done more harm than good so far!

 

[rd944]

warrington's a bit far lol, im in the bottom corner of south wales .. midlands/bristol i could manage as im in those area's from time to time anyway.

im not after getting it "perfect" at the moment as all the suspension is due to be swapped out and the PAS dumped sometime in jan when i get into my new workshop.. i just want it driveable.. which really atm its not.

Every possible aspect of the alignment is off, pos camber on 3 wheels, castor wrong and both axles toeing out. makes for an interesting driving experience !

in hindsight (great stuff that) i should have asked them to take it off the ramp and give it back instead of explaining how to do it.

 

[appletonn]

Do you not have any race or rally preparation businesses in your neck of the woods who should know how to set a car up properly?

 

[rd944]

you'd have thought so wouldnt you ?

in reality.. there probably is.. but having only lived here a few months, i dont know any..

i rang every garage i know of, and this is where it got me.

 

[Suffolk944]

Promax will do it for you (and very well) though Milton Keynes is probably bit further than you would want to trek ???

 

[Fen]

If you can stretch to Exeter my indie would do it for you. He hires the use of laser 4 wheel kit from ProTyre but does the work himself and he knows what he's doing.

 

[rd944]

thanks for the suggestions, but a 400 mile round trip just to get the car set up is a tad excessive

 

[Diver944]

The trouble is that not many places will have seen and/or had experience with adjusting a 944.

In my opinion it is definately worth an inconvenient trip to have it done properly by someone who knows these cars, Chris at Center Gravity has a very good reputation.

My parents live in Carmarthen so I totally understand how remote you sometimes feel. Recently, the closest they could find that had a rear light cluster for a 2008 Megane in stock was in Glasgow?????

 

[rd944]

getting things done down here has been a complete nightmare, both with car's and bikes. Only upside has been the willingness of local mot centers to pass just about anything that can drive []

wouldnt be so bad if i were in carmarthen itself.. but im out in the sticks 10 miles from anywhere ! ho hum.

I'll be glad to be back in Herefordshire as of Jan.

i'll see what they say re part availability tomorrow and see where that leaves it.

 

[pauljmcnulty]

It's an interesting point. I've just done a good hour's round trip with a very grumpy SWMBO following in order to leave VJ at her Christmas home for MOT, service etc. Why, when I get all our other cars serviced by the guys at the bottom of my road (literally) is the 944 so different?

It's because it's over 20 years old, has a relatively odd layout and it's actually cheaper to get a good indie to work on it. RPM charge the same labour rate as my local back-street guys, who are great all-round mechanics, but Ollie can do pretty much any job on a 944 in his sleep. Saving a couple of hours through knowing the shortcuts easily makes up for the extra travel.

I guess the lesson is that you're better taking a day off work and a few hundred miles of driving to get a job done right, the alternative is the local bloke who thinks he'll have a go and then breaks your car! [] It's not, as has been suggested before, that the 944 is some mystical beast that requires arcane knowledge to work on, just that it's a bit quirky and best left to the people who've spent years learning to get it right on other people's cars. [8|]

If only I could get the boss to understand why I need her to ferry me back and forth, but the guys down the road are perfectly capable of working on her car.....[&:]

 

[PJS917]

Have you tried Neal at Discount 9 in South Cornelly, just the right side of Port Talbot. I am not sure if they do a 4 wheel alignment but I bet they know someone that will in that area.

 

[rd944]

ORIGINAL: PJS917

Have you tried Neal at Discount 9 in South Cornelly, just the right side of Port Talbot. I am not sure if they do a 4 wheel alignment but I bet they know someone that will in that area.

no, but i'll give it a try

cheers

 

[James_G]

Have you tried looking here:

http://www.alignmycar.co.uk/

I used it to find a place (Imperial Tyres) when I was staying over in Swindon to get my BMW done. They even strapped the car down slightly to ensure the ride height was correct. Been perfect ever since. In fact every car I have ever bought has always need a full alignment, as non-enthusiast types don't ever seem to get it done.

Good luck.