How much alignment toe is too much?

[MrFusion]

Still have been having issues where my car feels like I always need to hold the steering wheel just a tad to the left to go straight.

Went to the SC today and they aligned it again but I couldn’t tell any difference with the steering centering. So then they were very nice and had me actually sit in the car and hold the steering wheel centered while they aligned it again.

I still didn’t really notice a difference. So then we repeated it again and the tech said he would increase the toe to see if that helped.

I think that may have helped a little bit but it still feels like the steering wheel is slightly off to me. I’ll have to test it some more over the next few days but I’m pretty confident that the SC has done as much as they really can other than adjust the alignment values differently.

The new front toe is 0.07 / 0.08 L/R. Anybody familiar with alignments and know if this will cause any issues with handling or tire wear? The max spec looks like it’s -0.20-0.10 so it’s still within that but previously it was at -0.04 on both sides so this is a pretty big difference and went from negative to positive toe.

 

[KenC]

Still have been having issues where my car feels like I always need to hold the steering wheel just a tad to the left to go straight.

Went to the SC today and they aligned it again but I couldn’t tell any difference with the steering centering. So then they were very nice and had me actually sit in the car and hold the steering wheel centered while they aligned it again.

I still didn’t really notice a difference. So then we repeated it again and the tech said he would increase the toe to see if that helped.

I think that may have helped a little bit but it still feels like the steering wheel is slightly off to me. I’ll have to test it some more over the next few days but I’m pretty confident that the SC has done as much as they really can other than adjust the alignment values differently.

The new front toe is 0.07 / 0.08 L/R. Anybody familiar with alignments and know if this will cause any issues with handling or tire wear? The max spec looks like it’s -0.20-0.10 so it’s still within that but previously it was at -0.04 on both sides so this is a pretty big difference and went from negative to positive toe.

What were the original toe angles before the first alignment? Were the fronts feathered? Did you rotate them back?

I'm only asking, because if there was some feathering, and you didn't rotate them, then you may be feeling the residual effect of that, even if your toe has been corrected.

As for the current toe, it's within spec. That spec is chosen for optimum feel and handling given normal driving conditions. Positive toe means the tires are toeing in, pigeon-toed, while a negative toe, is toeing out, duck-walking. The angles they're using are very tiny. Mine came from the factory off from neutral by a WHOLE degree, not less than a tenth.

Did we already go over whether road camber might be the issue? Now, if the answer to my original questions is that the original toe was fine and there was no feathering; then I'd think about asking the tire techs, whether setting the toe to help the car a little. Within mfr specs, ask if setting the Right tire toe a little positive, and the Left tire toe a little negative. That'll put both tires pointing a fraction to the left, a fraction, and perhaps counteract whatever tiny pull to the right you're feeling. If they tell you you're out of your mind, tell 'em that you saw them do it on NASCAR, to help the driver turn left on an oval.

 

[Mperezkr]

Mine is off as well, Tesla doesn't want to cover it. Wants to charge $300 for an alignment. Question is, can any wheel alignment shop handle this or is this something that only Tesla can perform?

 

[destructure00]

Mine is off as well, Tesla doesn't want to cover it. Wants to charge $300 for an alignment. Question is, can any wheel alignment shop handle this or is this something that only Tesla can perform?

Any shop can do it, there's nothing magic or proprietary about any of the steering or suspension parts. Expect to pay somewhere around $80 at a generic alignment shop.