alignment under warranty

[psywzrd]

I took my H3 to the dealership this morning for an oil change and tire rotation was told that I needed an alignment as well. My H3 has never been off-road (no comments from the peanut gallery please ) and it has just over 15k miles on it. Does this seem right to you guys? I don't doubt that it needs the alignment (the front tires are clearly more worn on the outside) but shouldn't something like this be covered under warranty? Or is this considered more of a "wear and tear" type thing? I don't recall ever having an alignment done on any other vehicle I've owned, let alone at 15,000 miles. Any help is appreciated as I am going to pick the vehicle up shortly. Thanks!

[H3.007]

It is quite possible. Mine was out of alignment at 5,000 miles. The only way i realized it was after a garage, specializing in alignments, adjusted my torsion bars. The did a pre-adjustment measurement and told me the factory alignment was terrible. I wonder if the alignment gets pulled out out during shipping (i.e. chaines down to trucks, trains, etc...).

Regardless, yes, it is possible. I do not know if it would be covered by warranty but I would make the argument that it should be...

[djaqualight]

I had mine alligned (under warranty) a few weeks after I bought my H3. It pulled to the right pretty bad. No problems since then and no visible abnormal wear on the tires. I'm at 18K miles.

[The Green Lantern]

The alignment warranty is under 7k miles, otherwise you pay around $80-90 to get it done.

[Hummer Guy]

15k sounds about right...but your call..

[f5fstop]

I wouldn't approve it, but I have no say in your dealership. Alignment can be set off by driving on so-called paved roads. Depends on the roads in your area. Why should GM pay for something that is considered normal wear and tear.

If the vehicle was delivered with a bad alignment, something that would be noted in the first 1-2K miles, then yes, that should be under warranty, but with 15K!

[psywzrd]

Originally Posted by f5fstop

I wouldn't approve it, but I have no say in your dealership. Alignment can be set off by driving on so-called paved roads. Depends on the roads in your area. Why should GM pay for something that is considered normal wear and tear.

If the vehicle was delivered with a bad alignment, something that would be noted in the first 1-2K miles, then yes, that should be under warranty, but with 15K!

I totally understand what you're saying but at what point does it become ridiculous? For example, I had the alignment done today (I don't have the invoice in front of me right now but I'll post what I paid later). Who's to say that I won't need to have it done again in a week? Shouldn't the vehicle be able to stand up to a certain amount of wear and tear without getting out of alignment? I'm not saying that having to do the alignment at 15k was unacceptable but I would be pretty pissed if I had to do it again at 16,000 miles. Is there a "warranty" attached to getting the alignment done? Based on what I'm hearing, the answer would be no since they have no way of knowing what kind of driving you're doing (off-road, etc.). Again, this concerns me because I've driven the same roads in several different vehicles I've owned and I've never needed to have my alignment fixed. I know the road conditions could have worsened, I might drive this vehicle harder, etc., but it seems to me that this is one of those things that could be a constant problem.