Dealer keeps recommending an alignment

I have a 2016 4Runner Ltd. with 40k miles. Every time I take my vehicle to dealer they say I need an alignment. Assuming the vehicle was aligned when I bought it and I had 2done already that’s three and at 40k miles their recommending a 4th.
I was told Toyota recommends an alignment every 10k miles. I never off road and only city and highway driving.
I think they’re feeding a line of BS. Can anybody shed some light here?
Thanks

 

Ask them to show you on the printout. It will show you spec vs where your car is at. Also, go to firestone or somewhere that sells a lifetime alignment for ~$150.

 

I second the advice of buying a lifetime alignment at a reputable shop. Some Firestones are fantastic (I have a lifetime alignment there). Some are awful. Just depends on the owner/manager/mechanics that work there.

The guy at my shop recommends once every 5,000 miles (even with my lifetime alignment). I don't have time for that. I just go once a year.

 

Agree completely, although if you are stock, a monkey should be able to do it given all of the fancy electronics the new racks have these days.

 

Agreed, they should! Unfortunately, some owners/managers/mechanics are dumb as rocks or just plain don't care. It's up to us to weed out the bad ones. Just the way it is.

 

Is it correct that Toyota recommends 10K mile intervals for alignments?

I can't find that any where.

Thanks.

 

All the guys on my Trailblazer forum just use four cinder blocks and some strings. The TB is a less-refined beast than our T4R's though.

 

Appreciate the feedback. I'm going to the firestone shop for a lifetime, $179.

 

I have worked in the automotive business for 32 years now. 24 of those years were spent working in dealerships with 7 of those years in Toyota dealerships. I can tell you for a fact that an alignment is not recommended every 10,000 miles.

An alignment inspection is recommended once a year or every 15,000 miles, whichever occurs first. The problem with that is that to inspect the alignment, you have to set the vehicle up on the alignment rack which is most of the work in performing an alignment UNLESS the dealer or shop has the newest alignment inspection equipment that can check the alignment as you drive over the sensors as you drive into the service drive. The only issue there is they are not always accurate and can sometimes give incorrect readings.

I would just stick with having an alignment once a year or every 15,000 miles unless you start to experience an abnormal steering pull or if you start to notice irregular tire wear in which you may need it sooner. It is also a good idea to always get an alignment when buying new tires.

 

Makes sense, thank you.

 

It’s tough to buy something you never see and can’t touch, haha. I guess that’s why a lot of guys don’t do alignments, and then complain that xxxx brand of tire is noisy. Ok, some brands are noisier than others, but once your tires get even a microscopic cup in the them, they will be noisy.
A 4x4 vehicle has a lot of hardware in the front end, and it’s well worth it getting regular alignments so that everything runs as true as it can.