Need advice on of Tacoma alignment.

[kbshadow]

My 05 DC Sport 2WD is about a month old and about 600 miles on it.

When I got it it pulled slightly to the right when I drove it.

I changed the Dunlop tires to Mitchelin and driving home noticied it pulled to the right more than before.

I took it to my neighbor hood alignment shop and they aligned it. They have always done a great job on alignments for me.
After the alignment it pulled streight on a flat road. It was great on a flat streight road.

However driving on city streets or the freeway as soon as the road had a slight crown the truck pulled, first to the right than to the left, always had to correct the steering, like walking a dog on a leash, slight pull in one direction or the other all the time.

I read everything I could in thes forum, really some great stuff, the thread about Tundra alignment really helped, it said get a Hunter Alignment and print out.

I tried, I called the Hunter Distrect manager and he gave me the name of three alignment shops here that have the latest equipment.

I called them and the first two said they do not do a print out, the last one said he usually does not give a print out that on pickups and cars he uses gages that don't have a print out but if I got a 4 wheel alignment he would be able to give me a print out.

It costs twice as much and was wondering if this sounds right or if it is BS.

I want to do whatever I have to do to get it right and any feedback from the group would be welcome.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

kbshadow
stockton Ca

[DJ]

Your truck has the same caster on the left and right front wheels, so it doesn't pull on a level road. But, it doesn't have enough caster, so it pulls when it's on a slanted road. The cure is to align it with more caster.

My recommendation for the Tundra and Sequoia is also good for the Tacoma, and I practiced it on my '89 Toyota truck (which was before it had any other name): Set camber and total toe dead on the factory spec, and set caster all the way at the upper end of the range that Toyota allows for it. Neither Toyota nor the alignment shop should have any valid grounds for complaint.

The cure is simple, but you'll have to find a shop that's willing to do it right.

[kbshadow]

Originally Posted by DJ

Your truck has the same caster on the left and right front wheels, so it doesn't pull on a level road. But, it doesn't have enough caster, so it pulls when it's on a slanted road. The cure is to align it with more caster.

The cure is simple, but you'll have to find a shop that's willing to do it right.

DJ

Thanks a lot for the answer.

Going to have the shop do it that will give me a print out.

Like I said they said it has to be a 4 wheel alignment, whatever that is, but I want the print out to be sure.

Thanks again

kbshadow

[DJ]

Originally Posted by kbshadow

DJ

Thanks a lot for the answer.

Going to have the shop do it that will give me a print out.

Like I said they said it has to be a 4 wheel alignment, whatever that is, but I want the print out to be sure.

Thanks again

kbshadow

They are not misleading you.

The truth is that every vehicle that needs an alignment needs a "four wheel alignment". EVERY vehicle.

A "four wheel alignment" implies what is measured, not what is adjusted. It means that the measurements are made using sensors on all four wheels, even though the alignment of the rear wheels on a Tacoma is not adjustable.

To make a long story very short, and very non-technical, you undoubtedly wish to have your steering wheel level when the vehicle rolls in a straight line. Right? To get this, you have to measure where the steerable wheels point relative to the non-steerable wheels, and adjust the steerable wheel alignment accordingly. This technique was pioneered by Hunter Engineering in 1978 and has been the world standard ever since.