Question on Re-alignment and tire balancing..

[doc73]

Need help from our smarter than me folk... I get "free" oil changes for 2 years (only cost $50,000 but its free...). While I was last in last week for my "15,000" mile maintenance they wanted to do a $130 or so re-alignment of the front end and re-balance the tires. I declined and they seemed taken back that I just did not say ok, they even wanted me to sign a paper saying I was declining... I asked where this was covered in the user manual in the maintenance section.. No response.
Now I have NEVER done and alignment on any vehicle I have owned unless I replaced something that would require the alignment and I have never balanced a tire unless they were replaced. How often SHOULD any of these be done?

[sugarjohnson]

On my Silverado I rotate and balance tires every 5000 due to my truck being exclusively a tow vehicle. Heavy towing will wear rears quicker then front. That being said my rotations and balancing are covered from discount tire. I did alignment when new tires were mounted.

[Wheels Down]

While we are on the subject of tire wear, and I see you have Grey Wolf TT,a question.
The other day I went to a local camp ground. We met some friends who recently purchased a new Surveyor ( and, yes have "issues" already). While around the camp fire a few other campers (one owned a 2014 Grey Wolf) explained how the axles on some of those models are mounted off center to the frame and that tire wear on the TT is excessive. I was warned not to buy that brand.
Ironically later that day we had the opportunity to look at a used Grey Wolf that was just a year old and that had not been towed too many miles. The tire wear was way abnormal and in fact looked like the tires had been rotated from one side of the TT to the other. I declined to make an offer on the trailer.
Question is, have you heard of such an issue on Grey Wolf trailers and is your tire wear normal?

[dustman_stx]

Originally Posted by doc73

Need help from our smarter than me folk... I get "free" oil changes for 2 years (only cost $50,000 but its free...). While I was last in last week for my "15,000" mile maintenance they wanted to do a $130 or so re-alignment of the front end and re-balance the tires. I declined and they seemed taken back that I just did not say ok, they even wanted me to sign a paper saying I was declining... I asked where this was covered in the user manual in the maintenance section.. No response.
Now I have NEVER done and alignment on any vehicle I have owned unless I replaced something that would require the alignment and I have never balanced a tire unless they were replaced. How often SHOULD any of these be done?

Those "free" oil changes are nothing more than an attempt to keep you coming to the dealer for bogus work like the alignment. You do NOT need an alignment at 15K. The ploy to make you sign is to scare you into going ahead with the alignment. I've never gotten an alignment unless front tires were wearing unevenly, front end parts were replaced, or I hit something that substantially jarred the front axle.

[dustman_stx]

Originally Posted by Wheels Down

While we are on the subject of tire wear, and I see you have Grey Wolf TT,a question.
The other day I went to a local camp ground. We met some friends who recently purchased a new Surveyor ( and, yes have "issues" already). While around the camp fire a few other campers (one owned a 2014 Grey Wolf) explained how the axles on some of those models are mounted off center to the frame and that tire wear on the TT is excessive. I was warned not to buy that brand.
Ironically later that day we had the opportunity to look at a used Grey Wolf that was just a year old and that had not been towed too many miles. The tire wear was way abnormal and in fact looked like the tires had been rotated from one side of the TT to the other. I declined to make an offer on the trailer.
Question is, have you heard of such an issue on Grey Wolf trailers and is your tire wear normal?

Those Grey Wolf campers are sitting on Lippert frames, just like the vast majority of campers out there. So, avoiding that brand is a waste of time. If you liked the camper, negotiate to a price you are comfortable with knowing you'll have to replace all 4 tires(I'd opt for Maxxis) and get the axles aligned. Figure close to $1000 for all of that.

[Wheels Down]

Thanks dustman. Good info.

[Kenny kustom]

Rotate, yes.
Balance, maybe.
Alignment, nope.


2016 Sabre 36QBOK
2015 Ram 3500 CUMMINS

[SeaDog]

Front end alignment is something your front tires or your steering wheel will tell you is needed. If the tries are wearing uneven across the tread when run at proper pressure or the vehicle is pulling one way or the other alignment would be called for. With static wheel weights on the tire it can be somewhat out of balance the first time it is scuffed or if a wheel weight comes off, the only true always in balance tire is one that has an active balance system like centramatics installed. Large trucks have used them for years, I have them installed on my Harley and have experienced excellent tire ware and no vibration at any speed. At speeds less then 25mph a tire does not need to be balanced. Rotating tires is a very good idea and reminds me I need to do that on my F350

[BandJCarm]

Originally Posted by Wheels Down

While we are on the subject of tire wear, and I see you have Grey Wolf TT,a question.
The other day I went to a local camp ground. We met some friends who recently purchased a new Surveyor ( and, yes have "issues" already). While around the camp fire a few other campers (one owned a 2014 Grey Wolf) explained how the axles on some of those models are mounted off center to the frame and that tire wear on the TT is excessive. I was warned not to buy that brand.
Ironically later that day we had the opportunity to look at a used Grey Wolf that was just a year old and that had not been towed too many miles. The tire wear was way abnormal and in fact looked like the tires had been rotated from one side of the TT to the other. I declined to make an offer on the trailer.
Question is, have you heard of such an issue on Grey Wolf trailers and is your tire wear normal?

For what it's worth, I just sold a Grey Wolf 26DBH that was 3+ years old, and the tires looked like new ones.

[doc73]

Originally Posted by Wheels Down

While we are on the subject of tire wear, and I see you have Grey Wolf TT,a question.
The other day I went to a local camp ground. We met some friends who recently purchased a new Surveyor ( and, yes have "issues" already). While around the camp fire a few other campers (one owned a 2014 Grey Wolf) explained how the axles on some of those models are mounted off center to the frame and that tire wear on the TT is excessive. I was warned not to buy that brand.
Ironically later that day we had the opportunity to look at a used Grey Wolf that was just a year old and that had not been towed too many miles. The tire wear was way abnormal and in fact looked like the tires had been rotated from one side of the TT to the other. I declined to make an offer on the trailer.
Question is, have you heard of such an issue on Grey Wolf trailers and is your tire wear normal?

Like others said, Lippert frame so it could be ANY trailer that they can be mounted off. I have 8,000 miles on my 2014 26DBH and the tires look great. I have not rotated them and no un even wear.

As for the whip... Thanks all, I suspected it was a sham. I rotate my tires in the driveway or at work using their lift. So no worries there. I do it every other oil change.

Several of my Jeep buds used to use the beads in their tires, some used airsoft pellets. They worked well for them to keep the knobby tires balanced when we would knock the weights off them all the time on the rocks.

I actually like this dealer. They are the same price per hour as my local guy, but they are about 15 minutes further away. Local guy is 2 minutes away. I do like they will give me a loaner truck if needed when in for service so I might continue to go back for inspections and stuff. But otherwise I do my own PM soon to begin with a new fuel filter coming up in the next 3 or so months... This ought to be good.. Easy LOOKING, but fun I am sure.

[biker2]

We have a 2013 Grey Wolf Select 28BH. After a recent 4000 mile trip the factory tires were excessively worn on the passenger side--the tread on the outside edges was completely worn off. I ended up having extensive work done. Heavier axles were installed with cross bracing, the springs were beefed up, and the tires and wheels were replaced with 16" rims and 10 ply Maaxis tires, and all was aligned and balanced, as well as the skid plates replaced with square tubing and heavy duty wheels. I haven't been camping with the upgrades yet but expect much better performance.

[doc73]

Over weight I guess?

[moff34]

X2. Typical dealer scam.

[biker2]

Wasn't overweight--no water in holding tank and just a few provisions. Just poor factory axle installation and alignment, but after extensive measurements taken by the repair shop, Lippert would not accept responsibility.

[W5CI]

Trl Axel's can not be aligned without bending the axel. There is no way ro make adjustments

[Strigflag]

2x on watching your tires for uneven wear before doing a realignment. That being said, most mfg's do not re-align the front end after mounting the coach but will pay to have it done IF THE ALIGNMENT SHOP FINDS IT OUT OF SPEC.
As a side note I purchased a used F350 with 25k miles that showed abnormal wear on the front right tire. It needed net tie rod ends and stabilizer bar. Beware.

[MtnGuy]

Originally Posted by moff34

X2. Typical dealer scam.

Agreed.

We have a local dealer that advertises "Tires for Life". But that is only if you follow their maintenance schedule performed by them, including an alignment every 15,000 miles and a bunch of other needless stuff that is not even in the vehicle manuals. Those $500 "free" tires could cost $1000 or more if all of the needless preventive maintenance items are done, and they install what tires they want, not quality tires that I want.

We got 53,000 miles out of the OEM tires, and 67,000 miles out of the 2nd set of tires.......both sets replaced before they got too worn.

We rotate our tires regularly, and I check for "feathering" for possible toe in/out problems. Due to the crown of the road, if my car pulls slightly to the left in the in the left lane of a straight road, and pulls slightly to the right in the right lane, I figure the camber should be good. 130,000 miles on the car, and it has never needed alignment.

[dustman_stx]

Originally Posted by MtnGuy

Agreed.

We have a local dealer that advertises "Tires for Life". But that is only if you follow their maintenance schedule performed by them, including an alignment every 15,000 miles and a bunch of other needless stuff that is not even in the vehicle manuals. Those $500 "free" tires could cost $1000 or more if all of the needless preventive maintenance items are done, and they install what tires they want, not quality tires that I want.

We got 53,000 miles out of the OEM tires, and 67,000 miles out of the 2nd set of tires.......both sets replaced before they got too worn.

We rotate our tires regularly, and I check for "feathering" for possible toe in/out problems. Due to the crown of the road, if my car pulls slightly to the left in the in the left lane of a straight road, and pulls slightly to the right in the right lane, I figure the camber should be good. 130,000 miles on the car, and it has never needed alignment.

Yep. Just like the "Lifetime Warranty" some RV dealers offer. You have to PAY for an inspection every 6-12 months and then pay them to do any and all maintenance they deem necessary. That "warranty" will probably cost the average owner $500+ per year and yield them very little over the factory warranty considering most repairs will likely be made in the first year at the manufacturers expense.

[Davidg]

I purchased a new F350 last year. The dealership is an hour away, but they made me a great deal on the truck and they offer free oil changes for life up to 4 per year. They don't worry about whether the computer calculates for the oil change, and they don't worry about the mileage. It's 4 per year max. I'm okay with that, because I'll probably not need more than 2 per year. Had the first oil change a few weeks ago. I was prepared for a little pressure to perform unneeded maintenance just to generate cash flow for the dealership, but it never came. They changed the oil, and handed me the keys, and I left. We'll see how it works out as the truck gets more miles on it. Most of the diesels have a 15 to 16 quart sump for the engine, so oil changes typically run about $100 or over. Local Ford dealer charges $100, but if you don't tell them, they will also top off the DEF tank, and add a few bucks to the bill for that...Anyway, so far so good with the new dealer.

[doc73]

I'm lucky I only have 10 quarts. I was expecting more!

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