hello all, i'm now in the process of preparing my car for college away from home (about 7 hours away). currently i have h&r sport springs on stock shocks and i plan on swapping them out for some quality pieces

i was wondering if you changed out the shocks and put new ones in, would you need to have an allignment done?


and i'm also considering tokico hp shocks because they are below 300. if anyone can give me a good arguemtn to pay more for shocks be my guest

thank you

 

Anytime you change anything with the suspension you need to get an alignment EXCEPT for changing wheels/tires.

 

get the yellows, youll end up doing it later anyway.

 

i thought that too but wouldnt that mean everytime the average joe changes his shocks cuz they're worn out, that'd mean he'd have to get an alignment? i kno family and friends that never got an allignment after an oem suspension change

 

It's not because you have new shocks,It's because when you install them, you gotta take the suspension part apart and reassemble them. That will throw all the setting off. Even if you take out the OEM shocks and put the exact same shock back to its place, you still need an alignment.


I changed my shocks and springs last year and never got an alignment done. The car still goes straight but I should get it done for better tire wear.

 

anytime you disassemble the suspension..you'll need an alignment. (with exception of brake pads and tires)

 

A good friend of mine is a tech at a Firestone. He's told me that even when they do tire changes, they are supposed to throw the car on the alignment rack, but that is at no charge to the customer unless they request it. if you know anyone that works at shops in your area, ask them if they do that at their shop then find an excuse to get your car in for something simple so you can get a quick check on your alignment for free! of course, if the alignment is out, they have to tell the customer. My buddy likes the alignment rack deal at his shop, because the customer doesn't get charged for it, he leaves the car on the rack for about 20 minutes while doing other things, and he gets paid for an hour of labor @ his $18/hr rate.
Another thing you could try is see if you can find shops with a "lifetime alignment" package. His shop charges about $100-110 for it, but any time you think your car is out of alignment, just take it in and they'll check it for free. Hey, even if you only ever take the car in 3 times on the lifetime alignment deal, it's worth the $100-110 initial cost, as the alignment rack is an hour labor and just about every shop out there charges $45+/hr labor!

 

you can get away with it np
but most people here will recommend it
i didnt do mines btw

 

Well not really. Your car will handle funny and in emergency braking the car could be uncontrollable. Plus you would get weird tire wear and other things.