My friend has a volvo S40 with 43,000 miles. He is replacing the front tires and the mechanic is advising that he get an alignment for $100 dollars.
Is this an ok price? Does he need to do the alignment even though the mechanic says that the tires are wearing evenly?
First of all, if your friend is only replacing two tires the new tires should be mounted on the REAR of the vehicle. I know this seems odd, but it’s true.
My personal opinion is that it’s foolish to spend money on new tires, whether it’s two or four, without having the wheel alignment checked.
Is the $100 price for a 2-wheel alignment or a 4-wheel alignment? It seems high for just two wheels.
Thanks for the response. I relayed the information to him.
$100 is high, unless you are in a real high cost of living area. It is probably unnecessary as well. If the tires wore evenly and lasted as long as would be expected, then I would not recommend an alignment. I have seen tire places actually throw the alignment off and make the next set wear faster because their equipment wasn’t calibrated.
Like Red Green says, if it ain’t broke, fix it till it is.