Thread: So do you think it is because I'm a girl!

Originally Posted by dullbird

I hope so

I took the car to another wheel alignment place after my fist episode of the wheels fitted only to be confronted with the same thing...the guy just baffled me with BS and then proceeded to tell me at the time that it wasn't possible to do it to my car and sent me on my way.

I got Ian to call him and find out why he couldn't do my car, and their answer was because I had specialist wheels on the car and the wheel alignment machine couldn't hook up to them.

I had standard disco alloy wheels on

Actually there is some truth in this.

To balance series/rrc/D1/Defender wheels having such a large hub hole in the wheel, there is a big mix match of adapters to use on the balance machine. Normally the lowest paid kid does the balancing and is too hard to work out, or they only ever do 1 of these vehicles every pink fit and can't find the correct adapters, if they have them.

Also on the balancing part. Out of round on large tyres is a large problem. Most tyres made are not true round but slightly egg shape, and it is harder to control the larger the tyres, to the point where 20" truck tyres are reguarly shaved from new to get them back into round. Shaving is the last thing you want to do to your new muddies, so they normally take lots of weights as compensation.

Your off-road tyres need balancing quite often if you vary your pressures alot as they to slip around on the rims when the pressure is low.

And it is not just you Dullbird. Anyone will get taken for a ride if possible by an unscrupulus operator.

CC

Originally Posted by Col.Coleman

Actually there is some truth in this.

To balance series/rrc/D1/Defender wheels having such a large hub hole in the wheel, there is a big mix match of adapters to use on the balance machine. Normally the lowest paid kid does the balancing and is too hard to work out, or they only ever do 1 of these vehicles every pink fit and can't find the correct adapters, if they have them.

Also on the balancing part. Out of round on large tyres is a large problem. Most tyres made are not true round but slightly egg shape, and it is harder to control the larger the tyres, to the point where 20" truck tyres are reguarly shaved from new to get them back into round. Shaving is the last thing you want to do to your new muddies, so they normally take lots of weights as compensation.

Your off-road tyres need balancing quite often if you vary your pressures alot as they to slip around on the rims when the pressure is low.

And it is not just you Dullbird. Anyone will get taken for a ride if possible by an unscrupulus operator.

CC

except what you have quoted me on was for was for a wheel alignment not a balance.....they couldn't do a wheel alignment because of my rare disco alloys that I had on

the same deal applies to some alignment jigs.

depending on the offset and the way the various systems hook up if they cant mate the machine to your wheels they cant do the alignment.

the cheapy ones that a lot of places have that strap onto the tyres fit everything but give the least accurate results.

the stupidly accurate ones that mount up onto the wheel hub and in some cases the axle stub requrie a specific adaptor for each hub/axle type. but they give the most accurate result.

for most landrovers doing them with 4 jack stands, 2 pieces of string, a spirit level and a tape measure is usually enough.

there unit hooked on to the Rim not the hub and because i didn't have a lip on my alloys they couldn't do it........

it was more about the special rims I had that was the funny bit as they argued with us over the rims because they had never seen rims like that before they were not standard.
This place was supposed to be THE place to go to hence why I went there....as they had supposedly done landies before.
However I'm not sure the owner like land rovers, as he gave me a massive lecture on what I should of bought and how his rally pajero that he proudly showed me was the best thing since sliced bread

did you give him the " I bought a landrover because it doesnt have to be advertised as "rally spec" to be recognised as a capable off road vehicle" line?

Originally Posted by Col.Coleman

Actually there is some truth in this.

To balance series/rrc/D1/Defender wheels having such a large hub hole in the wheel, there is a big mix match of adapters to use on the balance machine. Normally the lowest paid kid does the balancing and is too hard to work out, or they only ever do 1 of these vehicles every pink fit and can't find the correct adapters, if they have them.

Also on the balancing part. Out of round on large tyres is a large problem. Most tyres made are not true round but slightly egg shape, and it is harder to control the larger the tyres, to the point where 20" truck tyres are reguarly shaved from new to get them back into round. Shaving is the last thing you want to do to your new muddies, so they normally take lots of weights as compensation.

Your off-road tyres need balancing quite often if you vary your pressures alot as they to slip around on the rims when the pressure is low.

And it is not just you Dullbird. Anyone will get taken for a ride if possible by an unscrupulus operator.

CC

In 35 years in the transport industry I've only known one tyre service to shave tyres, it was controversial then and is still not recommended practice.

Originally Posted by Blknight.aus

did you give him the " I bought a landrover because it doesnt have to be advertised as "rally spec" to be recognised as a capable off road vehicle" line?

No because it actually was set up as a rally car......he competed on offroad rallying. I'm not sure whether he was giving me the low down to try and impress me but I thought his car looked ****

The prado that I got the SWMBO was by sallary sacrafice, which meant that there was specific places thaqt it had to be taken for services as part of the contractual agreement. I ended going back to the sallary sacrifice company and demanded that either I be freed up from the contracted companies for service or take the car back.

It was a horror story from hell, ended up with the manager by the hair with his head rammed in the engine bay to point out where the hell $700-00 for a standard 3 month service went. I guess I am bloody lucky that I didnt get done for assault. the same service with the garage down the road from me is about $135-00 4 years later. I could write a book about how bad that was but it would have to go in as fiction as no one would believe that it could be so regularly bad or ripped off as bad.