Wheel alignment on new motor home
We're in the process of buying a Newmar Bay Star 2903. Dealer says not necessary to do a wheel alignment, but I've heard otherwise. Would appreciate suggestions from forum members. Thanks!!
Forum Discussion
Keep in mind that the chassis are mass produced. The "alignment" person gets extremely limited time do check, let alone change any alignment specifications.
As a kid I worked at a GM plant that made the P series chassis. They were produced on the same line and at the same speed as everything from a 1/2 to pickup to a 10 to straight truck. Depending on the production demand the alignment person had between 2 to 3 minutes to check and change any parameters necessary.
The only thing they cared about was getting it close. They didn't have time to put all adjustments into perfect alignment. As for the body builders all I've ever seen them do is to check the toe in and adjust it to be within the specification range.
When was the last time you took a car or truck into an alignment shop and had it completed within 3 minutes? The "alignment" performed at the factory was intended to get the vehicle from the assembly line to the dealership without damaging anything. I don't know what all is involved in the normal PDI of a new automobile or truck these days, but when I worked for both Ford and GM dealerships an alignment was part of the package.
Most RV dealerships don't have the capacity to do alignments. Thus they push the responsibility off to the retail customer. As far back as 1999 Ford released a TSB stating that it was the retail customers responsibility to have the front end aligned on any motorhome built on the F53 chassis. They recommend loading the motorhome with all the gear, fuel, and water you normally travel with. To this day they have not changed their position.
If you can negotiate an alignment into the price of the motorhome the more power to you. If you can't it should still be done. The price of an alignment is about 1/3 the cost of a single new tire. If you don't like replacing prematurely tires I would strongly suggest investing in an alignment.
As a kid I worked at a GM plant that made the P series chassis. They were produced on the same line and at the same speed as everything from a 1/2 to pickup to a 10 to straight truck. Depending on the production demand the alignment person had between 2 to 3 minutes to check and change any parameters necessary.
The only thing they cared about was getting it close. They didn't have time to put all adjustments into perfect alignment. As for the body builders all I've ever seen them do is to check the toe in and adjust it to be within the specification range.
When was the last time you took a car or truck into an alignment shop and had it completed within 3 minutes? The "alignment" performed at the factory was intended to get the vehicle from the assembly line to the dealership without damaging anything. I don't know what all is involved in the normal PDI of a new automobile or truck these days, but when I worked for both Ford and GM dealerships an alignment was part of the package.
Most RV dealerships don't have the capacity to do alignments. Thus they push the responsibility off to the retail customer. As far back as 1999 Ford released a TSB stating that it was the retail customers responsibility to have the front end aligned on any motorhome built on the F53 chassis. They recommend loading the motorhome with all the gear, fuel, and water you normally travel with. To this day they have not changed their position.
If you can negotiate an alignment into the price of the motorhome the more power to you. If you can't it should still be done. The price of an alignment is about 1/3 the cost of a single new tire. If you don't like replacing prematurely tires I would strongly suggest investing in an alignment.
