Dealer Alignment Necessary or.....?
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Joined: Apr 2011
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Dealer Alignment Necessary or.....?
2012 E550 Cabriolet on third set of tires (62,000 miles). Last set Michelin Pilot Sport 4S had severe wear on the very inside edge of the 2 front tires down to the steel belts. Car tracks perfectly and steering wheel never gave any indication of alignment issues. Normally would take it to the dealer but the last time I took it there the service writer wrote an estimate that he thought he would retire on (over $5,300 for rough running condition). He wanted to replace injectors, harness, coil packs, spark plugs, O2 sensors....etc etc... Turns out all it needed was to update the software for the high pressure fuel system and 2 O2 sensors ($380 all in). That being said, I am now "Once bitten, twice shy" and no longer trust the integrity of the dealer I bought the car from but my local tire dealer said the complex electronics and driver assist aids and suspension components make the car "too complicated for his machine".
Should I find another indy repair shop (performance shop for example) or spin the roulette wheel and travel 45 minutes back to this criminal dealership?
Should I find another indy repair shop (performance shop for example) or spin the roulette wheel and travel 45 minutes back to this criminal dealership?
Out Of Control!!
Joined: Apr 2019
Posts: 11,923
Likes: 6,776
From: Silicon Valley
W212 MY'14 M276-3.5NA @75kMi
new parts 1st... then alignment!
welcome to the club of twice shy who have seen the teeth inside the sharks mouth 
Your solution start with changing control arms because the rubers bushings have gone soft. This afects your toe-in angle and cause your rapid tire wear on the inside.
All the suspension parts that hang your wheels have a preset useful life: control arm, ball joints, tie rods, bearings...
Watever shop that does the alignment eats that gravy - Alignment is the process of geometrically adjusting the suspension parts they've just installed.
Your solution start with changing control arms because the rubers bushings have gone soft. This afects your toe-in angle and cause your rapid tire wear on the inside.
All the suspension parts that hang your wheels have a preset useful life: control arm, ball joints, tie rods, bearings...
Watever shop that does the alignment eats that gravy - Alignment is the process of geometrically adjusting the suspension parts they've just installed.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 4,372
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W212 FL
I would take it to a reputable tire shop . My W212 also had an uneven wears on the rear tires ,front tires were OK .It would wear off the middle portion of the threads but edges were looking OK though .
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jun 2020
Posts: 1,363
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'11 E350, '11 E550, '98 M3, '95 E320
Are we talking an alignment... no fancy computers needed. Any good alignment shop can handle it. About the only thing to set would be the ride height if it’s airmatic and I would leave it in the normal/comfort position.
Out Of Control!!
Joined: Sep 2018
Posts: 14,666
Likes: 4,568
From: unbegrenzt
2017 GLE350 4MATIC
MBs eat tires. Search for it on this site. Camber and toe specified by MB is good for 130mph lane changes on the Autobahn loaded at GVW (not facetious) but doesn't work well for tire life going back and forth to Cosco.
V8s and assist systems (lane keeping, Distronic) are additionally worse for tire life.
V8s and assist systems (lane keeping, Distronic) are additionally worse for tire life.
Senior Member
Joined: Jan 2013
Posts: 495
Likes: 47
From: south shore
12' E559
any shop that has a decent rack can do it. hell i did my own at my buddys shop. zero'd the front and toned down the rear camber. probably have done 10k miles or so since. no abnormal wear. dont forget to rotate the wheels.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 9,224
Likes: 1,798
From: V E G A S
1922 Ford Model T / no OBD
$5000 proposal is about standard I get after each stealer visit. They want to replace tires having 5mm of thread, or perform service 2000 miles before it is due.
Just get used to it.
Talking about alignments, I was getting 50,000 miles out of Firehawks on MB sedans. W212 come on low profile sport tires, so no economical rubber is available for the size, but I drive less lately so that is OK with me as the tires might age before I wear them.
To my knowledge stealers are the only fully qualified to do alignments on those cars. Some other places have Hunter machines, but what is their experience with brand?
That said, on my last alignment at dealer they released the car to me at the end of the day, when SA was no longer there and after making a scene with cashier, they found me inspection chart - showing 12 parameters in red.
I made another appointment following day and they work it again coming with only 6 parameters in red and giving me a story about corroded adjusting bolts. That was BS as the car had no corrosion.
To top it, the steering wheel was out of center. I got enough of wasting my time with stealer and having gigantic slide caliper I could buy years ago, I adjusted the steering wheel on my driveway.
Just get used to it.
Talking about alignments, I was getting 50,000 miles out of Firehawks on MB sedans. W212 come on low profile sport tires, so no economical rubber is available for the size, but I drive less lately so that is OK with me as the tires might age before I wear them.
To my knowledge stealers are the only fully qualified to do alignments on those cars. Some other places have Hunter machines, but what is their experience with brand?
That said, on my last alignment at dealer they released the car to me at the end of the day, when SA was no longer there and after making a scene with cashier, they found me inspection chart - showing 12 parameters in red.
I made another appointment following day and they work it again coming with only 6 parameters in red and giving me a story about corroded adjusting bolts. That was BS as the car had no corrosion.
To top it, the steering wheel was out of center. I got enough of wasting my time with stealer and having gigantic slide caliper I could buy years ago, I adjusted the steering wheel on my driveway.
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MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: May 2018
Posts: 6,601
Likes: 6,547
From: Jakarta-Indonesia
2014 - W212.065 - E400 ( M276.820, 3 liter Turbo) RWD not Hybrid
Funky wrote :
2012 E550 Cabriolet on third set of tires (62,000 miles). Last set Michelin Pilot Sport 4S had severe wear on the very inside edge of the 2 front tires down to the steel belts. Car tracks perfectly and steering wheel never gave any indication of alignment issues.
To have such wear on the inside edges of the BOTH front wheel to that extend, something is wrong.
At the minimum you may need camber correction bolts, assuming all other steering + suspension components are healthy which I doubt if they have not been refreshed based on 62,000 miles work life.
If that wear is on the outside edge, it is normal, if you track the car with OEM alignment spec.
Go to a decent alignment shop with the Hunter 4 wheel alignment machine and carry your own alignment spec sheet for your car.
Sometimes the database inside those alignment machine is general and your model may differ.
You need WIS/EPC assistance based on your VIN to make sure the alignment spec is correct.
Dealer if proper and authorized should have the Romes inclinometer which can tell a lot what goes wrong even before using the alignment machine and more so if for air suspension.
You can ignore the Romes device for now if you can find that Hunter 4 wheel alignment machine + proper spec for your car.
Good luck.
2012 E550 Cabriolet on third set of tires (62,000 miles). Last set Michelin Pilot Sport 4S had severe wear on the very inside edge of the 2 front tires down to the steel belts. Car tracks perfectly and steering wheel never gave any indication of alignment issues.
To have such wear on the inside edges of the BOTH front wheel to that extend, something is wrong.
At the minimum you may need camber correction bolts, assuming all other steering + suspension components are healthy which I doubt if they have not been refreshed based on 62,000 miles work life.
If that wear is on the outside edge, it is normal, if you track the car with OEM alignment spec.
Go to a decent alignment shop with the Hunter 4 wheel alignment machine and carry your own alignment spec sheet for your car.
Sometimes the database inside those alignment machine is general and your model may differ.
You need WIS/EPC assistance based on your VIN to make sure the alignment spec is correct.
Dealer if proper and authorized should have the Romes inclinometer which can tell a lot what goes wrong even before using the alignment machine and more so if for air suspension.
You can ignore the Romes device for now if you can find that Hunter 4 wheel alignment machine + proper spec for your car.
Good luck.
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Super Member
Joined: May 2018
Posts: 505
Likes: 288
From: Sammamish, WA
2011 E350 Wagon, 2010 GL450
I've found a good middle ground between the dealer and Firestone is a shop that specializes in alignments for sports cars. This is the one I use near me. They do alignments all day long for things like Ferraris, Porches, Lamborghinis, etc. and their rate isn't terrible. The nice thing is they'll talk to you about how you use/drive the car and tune it accordingly.
https://trulineseattle.com/index.html
https://trulineseattle.com/index.html
