newbie here

[99sr54wd]

hey, y'al

tony here, i just arrived here in Indy from Los Angeles earlier today. i've been around most of the popular toy forums but mainly on YT and Ultimateyota.


i have a 99 4Runner, and i'm looking for a reputable alignment shop locally 'cause it pulls to the left badly.

here is a little more about me and my runner's profile in the sig.:

http://www.ultimateyota.com/index.ph...6&topic=6043.0

[95toyotan]

Welcome, Which side of town are you on?

Are you stayin in INDY or are you goin back to LA ?

[99sr54wd]

northeast side of the town and i'm staying here for good. but kinda miss the weather back in LA thou.

[Fuod]

Hello Tony! Were you born and raised in CA or have you lived in Indiana before? If not, you're going to hate the weather here...

As far as alignment shops, my favorite one when I lived up there was in Westfield, but that would probably be too far away from you.

If you do find one that you think did a good job, be sure to post the information in the "Off road shops in Indiana" thread stickied in this section.

[95toyotan]

Can't really help you with an alignment shop, I usually stick to a stealership for that. There is Obrien toyota on the north east side of town though.

[99sr54wd]

well, my old work place is in the process of shutting down completely, and the wife got a decent job here, that's why i moved.

back in LA, i'd never ever trust a dealer to do alignment jobs no matter toyota or not, because i've never seen one donw right at dealers, period. lots people liked the Firestone lifetime alignment deal, but the few Firestone shops i went to, none of the people i talked to seem know squard when i asked the word "toe-in"(is that "towing" what you just said?). plus, only 1/3 of them speak english. what about the shops here?

the closest dealer is Butler Toyota, that's where the wife bought her RV4.

here is a picture of my 99



as for wheeling, grew up in southern cal, i hate mudding, running sand dunes and quiet forest service fire road are my thing. pretty much the easy, relaxed type.

i can't wait to meet with you guys and get out burn some gas, but gotta fix the alignment first. it's my DD, too.


take care. and, damn the time difference, i'm still live on pacific time......

[NwiTACO]

Welcome to InTTORA! I'm up in Northwest Indiana, so I can't help you on the alignment, but I hear you on the fact that it is very hard to get anyone who knows wtf they are doing nowadays, anywhere!

[Bear]

Greetings Tony, there is an alignment shop in Plainfield (Art's Alignment if I remember right) if that is not too far for you. I'll have to look up the name for you as it has been a while since I have been by the place myself.

I know they align many civil service vehicles as well as vintage/hot rod types.

I took my SAS there after completing it, and they refused to work on mine as they said that the axle was not in "spec" for either a jeep nor a toyota, so I have not been back since.

There is also another alignment shop on the edge of downtown Indy. I believe the name of that shop is Mark's alignment. It is on capitol. I'll have to confirm all of this as I have not driven that way in a while either.

As for the second shop, I can't confirm their "quality" as I have never used them either. But I can say they have been in business for a while. I think they have an establishment date on their sign of 195something if I remember right.

Let me know if you are interested in either place and I can get you better information on either or both of them, as the one down town is around the corner from my office and I live in the next town over from Plainfield and could drive by if needed.

[Fuod]

Tony, I've added you to the InTTORA map, you can view it here:
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UT...3d5cdc8fd7b964

If I put you in the wrong area let me know, but it doesn't have to be exact. within a mile or so is OK.

View the Map thread here if you have any questions about it.

[Hagan34]

Originally Posted by 99sr54wd

here is a picture of my 99

where was this Picture snapped? Look familiar.

[99sr54wd]

thanks folks, i'll try to call these shops after the roads opened up. i'm still learning how to drive in the snow and on ice.

that place the picture was taken was in Glennwood Canyon, Co. it's called "No Name Rest Area". i was listening on the CB with bunch of truckers all after noon talking about the road conditions and the big snow storm approching. that place was the last stop i made before getting into the good stuff, just to put on my winter gear and make sure everything inside was nice and tight not flying around.

[Bear]

Well take it slow and easy. I am just now getting a little more comfortable driving in this crap myself! and I have been here about 5 years now.

Feel free to ask away if you need anything else we might be able to help with. I am sure if we dont' have the answers, we will find the solution one way or another.

[NwiTACO]

So you guys are the ones I'm always passing...

[Bear]

doubtful! I am usually inside where it is safe and warm.

[Hagan34]

Originally Posted by 99sr54wd

thanks folks, i'll try to call these shops after the roads opened up. i'm still learning how to drive in the snow and on ice.

that place the picture was taken was in Glennwood Canyon, Co. it's called "No Name Rest Area". i was listening on the CB with bunch of truckers all after noon talking about the road conditions and the big snow storm approching. that place was the last stop i made before getting into the good stuff, just to put on my winter gear and make sure everything inside was nice and tight not flying around.

Thats where I thought it was, wasnt sure if it was No Name or Grizzly Creek.

May have of even seen your truck. could have crashed here to let the weather blow over.

[99sr54wd]

just FYI, i called couple local shops from the phonebook, well, i did make an appointment with Matt's alignment ship on N. Capital(not mark's). seems it's the only one who really knew what they are doing. what i did was asking a "trick" question which is "whatever the cost of $$ is, is that for a 2-wheel alignment or a 4-wheel job? dave from Matt's replied immediatly, "that 99 4Runner you have is two wheel ajustment only, so 2-wheel only."

i'll let you guys know the result soon.

[99sr54wd]

DAMN!!! looks like i have a bigger problem than an alignment. i think the tranny F#$% 'd up. i'll have it checked out by Titus Transmission (sponsor of TTORA), keep my fingers crossed (i hope it's just the clutch).

[NwiTACO]

Hope you get it figured out.

[99sr54wd]

well, i went to the shop today and had a little chat with Chris the owner. he showed me the guts of the tranny. the problem was the shop back in Cali put the Marlin HD clutch backwards thus caused the bearings to fail. i don't really understand the technical details of what happened and i'm looking at a $1,500 repair bill. basically he's gonna replace all the gear bearings and syncro rings, OEM parts of course. the clutch disk before the Marlin had only 10k miles on it, also OEM, so Chris would replace the backwards one with it.

damn!! that goes my ARB locker money.

[Fuod]

Dude, that sucks! Good luck with the repairs!

[Full_Tilt_Fud]

Originally Posted by 99sr54wd

just FYI, i called couple local shops from the phonebook, well, i did make an appointment with Matt's alignment ship on N. Capital(not mark's). seems it's the only one who really knew what they are doing. what i did was asking a "trick" question which is "whatever the cost of $$ is, is that for a 2-wheel alignment or a 4-wheel job? dave from Matt's replied immediatly, "that 99 4Runner you have is two wheel ajustment only, so 2-wheel only."

i'll let you guys know the result soon.

I can tell you right now they don't know what they are doing if they are telling you that you only need a 2wheel alignment.

yes.......only the front of your runner' is adjustable........however if you only do a 2 wheel alignment all they are doing is aligning the truck to an imaginary line runing down the center of the truck whereas if you do a 4 wheel alignment the machine takes the rear axle into account and ensures that both axles are following the same path down the road instead of taking idividual paths which can happen if you align the front to the centerline.

you want a 4 wheel job........it is the only way to make sure you eliminate all tire wear and possibility of pulling......my

[Bear]

Originally Posted by 95toyotan

Can't really help you with an alignment shop, I usually stick to a stealership for that. There is Obrien toyota on the north east side of town though.

I heard a rumor last week that O'brien might be closing.

[Bear]

Tony, I am sorry to hear about the problems, Chris knows his shit though! next time you are talking to him, tell him you know me (might raise the bill some ) but he will take care of you. Chris turned the knuckles on my axle when I SAS'd it as well as installed my ARB and does all the work on my truck when needed. (not only just gears and tranny work but everything).

His shop is around the corner from my house so the next time you are out at the shop let me know and we can possibly meet up for a beer or something.

I also neglected to have you send me or Brinner contact information so that we can add you to the chapter roster, I know you are tied up right now worrying about the runner, but when you get a chance please do so.

[99sr54wd]

hi, folks.

i just came back from a week of "hide a way from the freakin' cold" in Vegas and Los Angeles. put 50 bucks on the Cards +3.5 over the Eagles, that's all i played in vegas and that's all i won. finised up the trip last night by shooting a bucket of range balls 10pm at a LA golf course in tee shirt and shorts and sandles. it was in the mid 80's yesterday afternoon, too hot to stay outside, i got dragged by my buddy with his kids to Paul Getty Center, just to see the 7th most expensiven painting in the world, "Irises" by Van Gogh. honestly, i didn't understand what the F&^% that thing was about, i still don't.

back to the 4Runner, it's still at the shop, i will probably get it back in couple days, last time i saw him i was told it would be a $1500 job, he's gonna re-buid the tranny with new bearings and syncrp rings on all the gears. it would save me some money if i go with a junkyard tranny, but it's a big ? if the gears are in a good shape or how long it's gonna last. neither the shop won't backup the parts.

bear, i'll let you know when i pick it up. maybe you can help me talk down the price just a tad.

[Bear]

Well I would help you talk the price down if I was able, But I know Chris is pretty stout when it comes to negotiating.

[99sr54wd]

Originally Posted by Bear

Well I would help you talk the price down if I was able, But I know Chris is pretty stout when it comes to negotiating.

j/k.

i don't bargin with my doctors and neither mechanics.

[Bear]

yea, well my wifes care might be right next to you vehicle if I can't get the damn tranny to stop leaking!

and he loves working on kias!

[99sr54wd]

called chris today, i was told the work won't be done till next monday, turned out the parts he received were wrong. the truck has been parked outside in the shop's yard since Dec. 30th. should i be concerned the cold weather?

[Fuod]

Originally Posted by 99sr54wd

called chris today, i was told the work won't be done till next monday, turned out the parts he received were wrong. the truck has been parked outside in the shop's yard since Dec. 30th. should i be concerned the cold weather?

If your coolant is in good shape you shouldn't have anything to worry about. Maybe you can ask them to start it and let it run a little every couple days?

Just a thought...

[NwiTACO]

I wouldn't worry, it's a yota. As DC said, as long as your coolant is in good shape (not a rad full of water) you should be fine. They may find a dead battery in it when they go to move it...