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Tire q's: Rotation & Alignment

2K views 15 replies 8 participants last post by  GTINC 
#1 ·
  1. Tire rotation interval = ... 5k? (With the long 10k service interval, I can no longer rely on regular maintenance and winter/spring tire/wheel changeover for my tire rotation, so in a weird way I'm new to this issue. The main section of the Town Fair Tire website does not seem to specify the freebie interval, but this blog post: http://townfairtire.blogspot.com/2016/01/why-tire-safety-is-so-important.html ... says 5k.)
  2. For those of us with the SEL-P's full-size spare, looks like we can do a five-wheel rotation (which I vaguely remember from a family 1970s Dodge Dart!), but I think we have to buy a fifth TPMS sensor? (On-line manual excerpt: "Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) / Spare wheel or compact spare wheel / The spare wheel or compact spare wheel in the luggage compartment does not have a tire pressure sensor.")
  3. For wheel alignment, I remember hearing a claim that some car suspensions get more easily whacked out of alignment -- any truth to this, and if so, any thoughts on whether the Arteon would benefit from more-frequent-than-average alignmments? Either way, just wait until obvious signs that it's out of alignment (e.g., no tracking straight, steering wheel askew, uneven tire wear, major curb/pothole impact) or go with some sort of interval?
Thanks for any thoughts on these are related tire & wheel maintenance issues -- love the discussions here, especially the broad range of perspectives.
(I think the Arteon brings out such a wide range of opinions, given that it appeals to so many different types of people.)
 
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#2 ·
I plan to keep it simple; rotate tires every time I change oil.
iirc Les Schwab offer free rotation on OEM tires; they provide the service hoping you'd buy replacement tires from them, when the time comes.

The local firestone offers lifetime alignment package, so I'd probably get that at some point. I have the package for the Passat wagon already and I've been happy with it.

.02
 
#4 ·
While trying to upsell me on expensive dealer maintenance packages :rolleyes::banghead:, the sales/finance guy tried to make a big deal out of alignments and how the ACC radar would need some complicated ($$$) alignment procedure after a wheel alignment. He acted shocked that I wouldn't take me up on the "great deals" they were offering, but I felt fine telling him to move along.

Anyone else hear/read about any radar issues with alignments?

T
 
#6 · (Edited)
Laugh all you want but I have absolutely heard this happening to plenty of atlas owners after their front suspension components were replaced under warranty. Also when the windshield was replaced. It was leading to false emergency braking as well.

Both the VW badge radar sensor and rearview mirror camera need to be calibrated using this space age holodeck-looking machine that the car drives up to. I thought it was nonsense too until I actually saw it myself!

As for tire rotation, follow the scheduled maintenance and leave the spare for emergencies. That means once every 10k miles or once per year depending on what comes first. Same as oil changes.

After our Arteon replacement, VW threw in 3 years of maintenance, and they said it was priced at $599 so that's pretty hefty for a non-luxury car. My guess is the third year is where you get dinged harder than the first two (which is why the 2020 only comes with 2 years of maintenance).

Edit:
 
#13 · (Edited)
So does this mean that ... any wheel alignment requires recalibration of the various safety tech at the dealer? ... or just that all sorts of suspension work and/or body repair would require such recalibration?





Especially with the tighter tolerances of tread wear differentials for AWD, seems like 10k is way too long.


[*]Change AWD clutch fluid @ 3yr (ditto).[/LIST]Is this typical of most cars these days?
I think the system will let you know when it needs re-calibration, replacement of a shock or spring OEM for OEM shouldn't require it. Either way price tags of 300-500 aren't unheard of for the procedure.

VW will warranty an alignment if you notice any anomaly in the first few months and something like 2000 miles. The rest they will say is wear and tear due to crappy roads/pot holes, pay up.

Remember the haldex has open diffs front and back, I've heard a 2-3% difference isn't bad for the units between tires. There's a lot more wiggle room than traditional AWD systems.

Also "AWD clutch fluid" should be 30K or 3/yrs which ever comes first, like the Alltrack and Golf R. drain and refill, only $30 or so in parts, $100+ for the dealer.
 
#15 ·
Also "AWD clutch fluid" should be 30K or 3/yrs which ever comes first, like the Alltrack and Golf R. drain and refill, only $30 or so in parts, $100+ for the dealer.
The official VW procedure seem to be a drain/fill only, but if you look at pictures online of the crap on the screen attached to the pump, you may want to make sure that the pump is pulled, and that screen cleaned also. All in all, it shouldn't take much more that 1/2 hour for a semi-skilled DIY that has never done it before (which means I will end up taking more than an hour ;) ) I tentatively plan on doing it at 15-20k miles -- if things look great, I'll go to the factory 30k thence forth.

-Gary
 
#11 ·
Just to clarify, I was not questioning the advisability of the 10k service interval.
Rather, I was just wondering whether it's a relatively recent innovation or if I am just late to the party.
(Looks like the latter!)

Meanwhile, out of curiosity, I removed the full-size SEL-P spare to check the valve stem: same design and brand as on the drive wheels, so perhaps some chance that a TPMS sensor really is in the wheel?!?
(BTW, don't even think of trying to remove the full-size spare if you have any back issues, as the angles make proper lift technique impossible, and that thing sure is heavy.)
 
#12 ·
Just to clarify, I was not questioning the advisability of the 10k service interval.
Rather, I was just wondering whether Yit's a relatively recent innovation or if I am just late to the party.
(Looks like the latter!)
Yeah, I think it has been this way for at least 5 or so years now.


Meanwhile, out of curiosity, I removed the full-size SEL-P spare to check the valve stem: same design and brand as on the drive wheels, so perhaps some chance that a TPMS sensor really is in the wheel?!?
(BTW, don't even think of trying to remove the full-size spare if you have any back issues, as the angles make proper lift technique impossible, and that thing sure is heavy.)
Yes there's a chance that only the SEL-P full size includes the TPMS sensor, and that the print is for the majority of VWs (including most Arteons) which only have a donut and don't have the sensor.
 
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