NE San Antonio Alignment shop?

[Herbert]

Ok, I own a BMW m3 not a damb F1 car, all I need is an alignment to my specs.  FireStone told me they don't have the sand bags to do the alignment, and they would only do manufacturer (mf) specs, what a crock of bullshit. I get the cya, but the mf specs for any bmw sucks the life out of the tires by dragging the inside down the road with over toe at both the front and the rear. *** RANT OVER ***

Any shops in the NE San Antonio area that will do an alignment to my specs?

TIA,
Herbert

[John Patterson]

I think some of the guys on here have used Gill's Tire shop with good results and he is located on San Pedro north of Hildebrand.

[Herbert]

Thanks John. I tried call Martinez tires on Nacogdoches to see if they do alignments, but no answer.

[Speed3]

Wayne at Gil's...call to make sure he's there.  He'll align to your specs.

[Herbert]

Perfect!

[kujitsu]

2 Firestone's in the entire city will do custom.

[danscanlon]

I know if you ask for Ossie at the Marbach Firestone store, he'll work with you. 
Their # 210-675-2000.

I'm overdue for an alignment.  Since I bought their Lifetime Alignment, it's free!

[Li0nel1234]

Are the techs at these Firestones capable of adjusting upgraded suspension equipment?

I only ask since I bet they mostly work on stock cars and stock allignment settings.

I need a good place to go too.

There is American Muffler and Brake up in Fredricksburg. Ask for Heath, he's got a Hawkeye system and is familiar with all types of suspensions from 4x4s to super car coilover type builds.

But here in San Antonio? hmm... I'd have to ask for a pre and post printout just to be sure.

[John Patterson]

Last night at the meeting the guys were talking about Gil's Tire shop on San Pedro inside the loop. Sounds like Wayne is one of the best guys around town to use for alignments. Call and ask for Wayne and schedule an appointment with him.

[Herbert]

Thanks all. It is just about time to get new rubber, and what's the point if the alignment can't create the right contact patch, or worse unwanted wear.

[John Patterson]

I dont know if there's such a thing as a general rule for an autocross setup when it comes to alignments, but some negative camber in the front usually improves the cornering ability of car and tires, especially if you have a lot of body roll. There use to be a rule-of-thumb to use as much negative camber as body roll to prevent the shoulders of the tires from rolling under as you are turning.

Toe-out will help improve the turn-in response but tire wear will suffer. I would suggest running zero toe on the front and use the factory toe-in spec on the rear. You can run less toe-in in the back if you want to increase the amount of oversteer. Of course, if you have a solid rear axle you cannot increase the toe without bending the axle.

[Pants!]

Are the techs at these Firestones capable of adjusting upgraded suspension equipment?

Those "Techs" could not elude the clutches of a dampened paper bag.

They only know how to follow written guidelines.  Shops like those are for Grannies and soccer moms.

People who know, only take their cars to indy service centers.

I just had my allignment done by Federico at 911 Motors in NW San Antonio.
And it is fricking sweet.

[Li0nel1234]

^ That's what I figured... Thanks for the tip. How long do you normally go between alignments? I just had mind done about 1k miles ago but have done 3 events on them and some daily driving.

[Pants!]

What kind of allignment was performed?

Was it custom?

 I only redo mine if I've damaged or replaced components.

Hey Lionel, I do need a favor from you when we're out at the track.

Do you think you can help me out?

[Li0nel1234]

It was a custom setup.

Aggressive. I have the numbers somewhere....

I can help depending on the favor...