steering wheel not straight..

Most shops don't mess around with Volvo steering wheels because of the air bag. Some seem to be adjustable at the steering gear, but everyone I see is master splined. With new tires and a good alignment your truck should track nice and straight. Most trucks need a caster adjustment to help with pulls to the right, but this gets skipped most of the time because it can be costly and time consuming. You may need to see what was adjusted. If your truck has a Hendrickson Airtek axle, there isn't too much you can do about some of the caster adjustments due to the design of the axle. Also I like to stagger the tire pressure in the steers a bit. I think those tires recommend 105 psi, so I like to have the right steer at 105 and I will put the left at 97 or so.

 

It all depends upon the shop doing the alignment. I've got my truck back & had the wheel a bit off-center after an alignment. It really isn't a big deal (as long as everything important is lined up properly)...and sometimes the wheel can be pulled & turned a notch or two to get the wheel straight.

In my opinion, though, when you get an alignment, the steering wheel ought to be straight when you get the truck back. If they can't do that, they'll never perform an alignment on my truck again.

 

That's a tricky one sometimes. The steering wheel is the first thing the customer sees. Yes, your right, the steering should be centered... but, we have a flat rate charge for alignments, and therefore only so much time I should be spending on doing the alignment. I will admit it happens, rare, but it does happen where you get a truck that needs all the adjustments, including caster on the left and right. (Alignment guys know what I am talking about...) Nothing came apart easy, you have the torch out, come-alongs and every pry bar you own to make the adjustments. Now your over the allowed alignment time by 35 mins, everything is done, then you notice the steering wheel is out, oh my god, I could just pull my hair out!!!! Sooo frustrating especially when it is only one spline! So now we are at a cross road, either I spend another 15 mins or so and overrun the alignment time by about an hour, charge the customer an extra hour for the extra labor, or just let it go... Sometimes too though, I have to leave it off centered because someone used the wrong thread of bolt before and now the puller holes are mangled. That's definitely not getting fixed during the alignment time and would be an extra operation, at that point, no one has ever complained!

 

...so you charge the customer extra...beyond your "flat rate"...or choose not to complete the job if the time exceeds what you figured it should take...

...Do you also discount your "set price" when the job takes less time?


If you say it is going to be a set price for a given job, I expect the job to be done for that price. I'm not going to pay extra. The only time I've ever had an issue with the job not being done correctly, I made them go back and double check to make sure everything was correct...and they fed me some BS story about the wheel not always being straight after an alignment.

That shop took a short cut. I have never put my truck back into their shop for an alignment, nor have I ever suggested their shop to anyone else. If somebody asked my opinion as to whether or not they should get an alignment done there, I would strongly advise against it.

So, you take a short cut...don't finish the job you were hired to do....and you end up with a dissatisfied customer who turns away other drivers who might have come your way had you done the job right the first time.

This is trucking. You aren't going to find very many sympathetic ears when you start complaining about complications you ran into while doing the job. We are also hired to do a job, and we are expected to meet our pickup and delivery appointments no matter what else happens. We are paid a freight rate to deliver a load, and if something happens...blown tire, road closure with an extended detour, etc...we can't go back and try to charge the customer more than what we had agreed to haul the load for.

Stuff happens. If you have a set rate for alignments, that's what you will be paid. Every once in a while, you might get a job that takes a little longer...but you have other jobs that don't need as much adjustment that you can knock out in less time. It averages out. If it doesn't, you need to rethink the time you are figuring for the job, and adjust your rate accordingly.

ANY shop which does not complete the job they were paid in full to do isn't going to see my truck again.

 

Wow, bite my head off! You make is sound like I do half-### work and cheat and take short cuts and rape customers for extra time! I didn't intend to make my post come across like that. I am talking about the rare time something does go bad and you make it as if it is every time! Sounds like you have been bent over a few times and just hate everyone now. I'm sorry you have that attitude, but thats your problem. No, I do not skip steps! Alignments are my most favorite job to do and I take a lot of pride in my work. Believe me, I know all about pissy customers that demand the world for next to nothing, and so I try to give it to them. You don't rush alignments, you don't just slam sensors on and beat stuff with sledge hammer till the numbers turns green. As far as extra time, it is a case by case basis. We are always in contact with the customer. If they want us to stop, then we stop, no problem. If we don't contact the customer and they refuse to pay, most of the time they don't. We do try to keep everyone happy. If you are a regular customer, generally we eat the time. It depends on how much extra was needed and why. Again, generally it is about 50/50 time eaten and extra time charged. Basically if your truck is a 12 year old weapon, requiring more adjustments and parts are seized or by their design more labor intensive to adjust, why should you pay the same as the next guy who has a 2 year old truck and only needs a couple of tweaks? If your truck honestly required more work why shouldn't you pay for that? I understand trucking is trucking and you guys absorb a lot of what you truly should be paid for. But if you don't get paid for delays or whatever, I'm sorry, but that has nothing to do with me. Seriously, if you go into a store to buy a tv and dvd player, then realize you need to also pay for a HDMI cable to go in between do you give the salesman the same story you just gave me because you think the cable should be included? I don't think "flat rate" is the best terminology. The rate doesn't include unseizing parts or replacing ubolts or whatever, sorry, too bad! Again, these types of jobs are once in a blue moon anyway, not really a big deal! This is why I don't like flat rate, not my choice. I think you guys should be paying by the adjustment. If all you need is toe set and one drive thrust, then that is all you pay for. If you need toe, caster right, caster left, thrust, scrub and steering wheel recenter, you should pay more. That would only be fair. The numbers are right on paper so we can show you! No one is getting screwed! I usually don't have too much left over time because I like to do extras for the customer since they are paying me for the time anyway. I always take the bolts right out, wire wheel them and anti-sieze them, I always put a torque wrench on any ubolts that were loosened, I always double check my sensor readings to make sure they are true, I,ll grease the man's fifth wheel, what ever... I don't know, I kinda thought I did a good job. If you don't think so and believe I need to rethink things, I'll still be ok since I didn't get your sympathy!

 

Sometimes, alignments could be compared to getting stuck with hauling cheap freight on an impossible schedule into a dead zone!
The flat rates are there to be competitive and draw customers. There isn't much money to be made in alignments unless the unit needs a bunch of parts replaced in the process and the labor is also very tight on the replacing of those parts.
You really can't knock a guy for striving to do a great job but also at the same time striving for break even on time. Some trucks are clearly neglected and two or three labor hours just ain't gonna make the ole girl new and purty like she once was. The vehicle tends to get treated like it looks by many. I myself am far past that but many aren't.

 

quation number one! Is there EBS/ESP in your truck? if yes, you got steering wheel angle sensor

 

Do they help with a Freightliner steering wheel? I drive a 2003 Freightliner classic XLT. I fix it but it didn't succeed that I thought it would. Can somebody help me with my steering wheel please?