I have a 98 993. It has 33,000 miles on it. I just had new shocks and struts installed. While the car drove fine I was only getting about 2500 mile a set on the rear tires. In 7000 miles I went through 3 sets of Continental Extremes. I was told the rear needs to be aligned to correct this. I can't find anybody in Mid-Michigan that has the machine to do the rear alignment. Any suggestions? There is a place in Detroit but they want $900 and I really don't want to drive to Detroit.

btw Continental has replaced the last three sets for pretty much free under the tire warranty. You do have to send them in with a pic of the odometer..

 

Not sure where in mid-Michigan you are, but AA might be closer. Certainly less expensive than your Detroit option. ArborMotion did mine last year for approximately half that cost.

https://www.arbormotion.com/services...sche-rennstatt

 

I am near Jackson. Thanks for the info. I am actually closer to East Lansing. Not sure if my car would be accepted with open arms in AA?

 

thumbs up for Arbor Motion, they're south of town in a 'normal' part of Ann Arbor.

 

Normal part!!!!!

 

I dont think Arbor Motion have ability to measure/adjust kinematic anymore. No probs going there for a normal good alignment.

Tim Potts and his kinematic gauge went to Automotive Technique (Novi). I went there last time - will be going again soon for another alignment.

I'd spend the time and pay the money to get someone who knows 993's. I've had bad alignments and for me, not worth the hassle.

 

That’s a bummer, I specifically asked if they would be adjusting the kinematic toe and they assured me they would. That was in early 2020.

You’ve been happy with Automotive Technique? They are closer to me so that would be a bonus.

Jordan

 

I spoke with Arbor Motion and they said they do. They knew exactly what I was referring to. They quoted $400. They seemed very knowledgeable on the phone. I normally take my car to Automotive technique in Novi. They are very good but its 200 miles there and back.

 

Just be sure they have the Kinematic tool / gauge, and have the factory settings to complete the alignment. If they do and appear to be aware of what's required to do a proper alignment with the aid of Kinematic tool on a 993, you should have better tire ware. The rears will always need to be replaced before the fronts. Hope this helps.

 

Any Porsche dealer has the proper tool specific to the 993 for the rear kinematic toe setting. Have your tires mounted drive it to the dealer for an alignment. Should be $300 or less to do. For your next set of tires get ones with a UTOG rating of 400 or more. The you should get 15 to 20K out of the rears.

 

Jeff Jones owns Automotive Technique and has worked on Porsche for over 30 years. Real nice guy. My car is a 98 and the first owner had all her servicing done there from day one. I have a book with all receipts and there are a bunch. She averaged about 1200 miles a year and had oil changes every year, stored at the dealership every winter on a trickle charger. I bought it in 2017 with 27,000 miles on it. I probably should just drive another 100 miles and go there. I spoke with them last spring and they told me $900 for the alignment. AA told me $400. WE shall see.

The car has new tires and I just had a new suspension installed in November. My local Porsche dealer will not work on Air cooled. That is in Okemos near E. Lansing. The guy I bought the shocks from, Gert?, said it should be getting around 7,000 miles. He said the alignment should solve the issue.

 

I put 4k miles on my PS4s post alignment with no issues and don’t have premature wear. I’d guess I can get another 6-10k based on wear and driving style.

 

I went through 3 sets of Continental Extremes in 7,500 miles. The warranty is 30,000 miles but because of the different tire sizes from front to rear, Continental cuts the warranty in half. to 15,000. When they wear out, I buy new tires and send in the old tires for inspection. The tires are wearing even they just wear out very quickly. They prorate and send me a check for about 90% of what I paid for them new. The front tires were new at 27,000 miles and are still in very good shape at 35,000.

 

1-Steve Weiner has gone on record stating the 993 is the hardest of all 911's to correctly align.
2- UTOG ratings are not always easily compared nor are they necessarily equal. It's what each tire manufacturer determines the number to be based on its own tests, and those based on a DOT benchmark. But, it's all possibly subjective: suspension, wheels, road surfaces, tire pressures, driving styles, driver's weights, ambient temperatures, etc..A UTOG 300-Michelin 4S is not a predictable or accurate mathematical fraction of a UTOG 340-Continental Extreme Contact in how they wear. We all know rears wear out faster, but how fast..?
I think the tire companies love it this way, probably lobbied such.

 

Hey Jordan, to be honest I used them because that was where Tim was. I will use them again, I had zero issues except trying to pay them, which took a while...
I should clarify that Arbor Motion didnt have kinematic ability last May/June when I enquired. They may now have the person & gauge to do this. I like Arbor Motion, they work on our other vehicles.