Looking for good Alignment shop in Richmond, VA

[911Brian]

Hi guys!

I am looking for a good alignment/tire shop here in the Richmond,VA area. Know of any?

Thanks!

[david914]

Hey Brian. I had my last alignment done by Wayne at Euroclassics Porsche. He did a fine job. I've also had them mount tires and was pleased. There is a shop that's actually just up the street from Euroclassics called Ron Ellis Frame and Front End. They're supposed to be really good and their schedule shows it, but I talked to them about an alignment a few years ago and had a real problem with their attitude. I, personally, would not use them (but that's just me).

[911Brian]

Hi David,

Thanks for the input. If you don't mind, how much was it? I kinda had a small problem with them regarding my PPI so I am a little hesitant taking it to them but I am willing if the work is good. Wayne also came recommended to me by a friend of the fam.

[david914]

Goodness, I honestly don't remember. It's been a while. It would be worth a phone call, though. I haven't had much experience with them other than with Wayne. I can tell you that their parts department won't do you any favors. When my alternator went out, I asked them about a replacement regulator. They were twice the price of our host, and that was for an "aftermarket", non-Porsche part! The Porsche factory part was three times that! At any rate, if you're uneasy about spending your money at Euroclassics, try Ron Ellis. As I said before, they do have a great reputation. I just didn't like their cavalier attitude.

[911Brian]

Thanks David! I will give both of them a call

[ohecht]

I was not impressed with Ron Ellis checking my alignment after I replaced all the bushings in the rear of my suspension. They welded the updated sway bar mounts on and I gave them explicit instructions on checking my attempted home alignment (to check my own work for the future) and exactly how I wanted the car set up. They pretty much ignored that stuff and gave me a hand written (printer was down) sheet showing me everthing was "in spec". The good news was that I was not charged more than $30 for the check and the welding looked good, so I took my car and left.

My last corner balance and alignment was by Glen Kynock, although he has someone else do the alignment after he does the corner balance. That was $400, $200 for the balance and $200 for the alignment, which I though was high. I did not get a printout of the alignment numbers as requested on that one as requested either.

I always seem to get "brushed off" when I am particular about alignment settings, which is a big reason I am trying to learn to do it myself and trust my own work in this area.

Olivier

[david914]

Yeah, this area is not exactly brimming with good Porsche shops. I do almost all of my own wrenching anyway, but there are some things that most of us aren't equipped to do like tire mounting and such. G & W Motorworks does good work, but it's kinda hard to justify the 2 hour drive to Waynesboro for most stuff.

Olivier, were you at RPM last year? I seem to remember a car that looked like yours parked in Alex's back yard.

David

[ohecht]

No, I was not there. I was at a few Autocrosses and the October VIR, but the car needed some TLC after all that flogging.

Olivier

[GeorgeM]

You can always drive to VB and go to Eurosport.

[ohecht]

I have considered that, there seems to be a much better race support network out there.

Olivier

[GeorgeM]

If you do a reasonable number of track events, consider joining the Eurosport Car Club. They offer track support and many other bennies. Just the cameraderie is worth it.

757 425-6651
www.eurosprt.com