New 2018 Ram Alignment Issues

[Captain Dunbar]

Called Ram Care and got a case manager assigned. They were supposed to call back within' 24 hours, no call. When i finally called after the 24 hours she had already went home for the day. Waiting for a call back today from Ram Care. I have no issue returning the truck back to stock to resolve this but it's very frustrating knowing the leveling kit does not have any effect the Camber. Only reason aftermarket parts went on is because the 1st dealer said everything was fine and that's the way the truck would drive. I couldnt accept this so i went to aftermarket 2" Thuren Springs, Track Bar and Synergy Drag Link (assuming they actually aligned the truck in the beginning, which they did not) to get the truck to handle (steer) right. Had i gotten the alignment printout after the 1st dealer visit ( or had they done an alignment) it would have shown the Camber off from day 1. Assuming the dealer performed the work cost me alot of money and has now put me in a warranty dispute. Man i hope Ram Care has some better news today.

 

[Captain Dunbar]

I do want to add that the Thuren and Synergy parts are top notch . This leveling kit isnt a spacer, it's new springs front and rear and new heavy duty track bar. I bought the Synergy Drag Link because i couldnt stand the fact the dealer welded the OEM drag link to keep adjustment nuts from backing off. These parts are high quality.

 

[Jimmy07]

Called Ram Care and got a case manager assigned. They were supposed to call back within' 24 hours, no call. When i finally called after the 24 hours she had already went home for the day. Waiting for a call back today from Ram Care. I have no issue returning the truck back to stock to resolve this but it's very frustrating knowing the leveling kit does not have any effect the Camber. Only reason aftermarket parts went on is because the 1st dealer said everything was fine and that's the way the truck would drive. I couldnt accept this so i went to aftermarket 2" Thuren Springs, Track Bar and Synergy Drag Link (assuming they actually aligned the truck in the beginning, which they did not) to get the truck to handle (steer) right. Had i gotten the alignment printout after the 1st dealer visit ( or had they done an alignment) it would have shown the Camber off from day 1. Assuming the dealer performed the work cost me alot of money and has now put me in a warranty dispute. Man i hope Ram Care has some better news today.

It sounds like the dealer left the door open for you to bring it back stock and any warranty concerns would be covered? Why not just put the stock parts back on? It’s easy enough. Then, they can do their thing without ANY assumptions, and know 100% for certain if it’s a defect. No bickering back and forth, no waiting days at a time on phone calls that might not be returned. We can do the chicken or the egg thing all day long, but sometimes misdiagnosed things are the result of “it can’t possibly be this”.

 

[Captain Dunbar]

I'm not opposed to doing that at all. The dealer wont give me a clear answer weather or not they will cover it. After talking to Ram Care today, i'm hoping they will be ok with me putting it back to stock then taking it back to a dealer and have the Camber issue resolved. Just frustrating that they didnt catch this on my 1st visit to the dealer. It's quite a haul for me but will do whatever it takes.

 

[Captain Dunbar]

Update: Spoke to Ram Care and they tried to talk the dealer into seeing if the aftermarket parts would cause the camber issue. They refused to touch the truck and also informed her that the truck is no longer under warranty so returning it back to stock will not help in an warranty work. The only thing Ram Care did do is compensate me for the loaner car. I returned the loaner truck and picked up my Ram (untouched). Took it back over to the alignment shop and mysteriously now the camber is fine. WTH! Here's the latest printout. How in the world was the camber so far off now fine? This has been a circus. Alignment shop says the dealer must have done something. I'm so confused now. I guess i'll confirm the alignment is fine with a separate shop and drive the truck. Now...with no warranty. Only have 4,000 miles on the truck and 4 months old.

 

[22hemi13]

Update: Spoke to Ram Care and they tried to talk the dealer into seeing if the aftermarket parts would cause the camber issue. They refused to touch the truck and also informed her that the truck is no longer under warranty so returning it back to stock will not help in an warranty work. The only thing Ram Care did do is compensate me for the loaner car. I returned the loaner truck and picked up my Ram (untouched). Took it back over to the alignment shop and mysteriously now the camber is fine. WTH! Here's the latest printout. How in the world was the camber so far off now fine? This has been a circus. Alignment shop says the dealer must have done something. I'm so confused now. I guess i'll confirm the alignment is fine with a separate shop and drive the truck. Now...with no warranty. Only have 4,000 miles on the truck and 4 months old.

View attachment 182351

All they can do is not warranty any suspension components. They can’t void your trucks warranty. That said with a lift anything that would wear out wouldn’t be covered anyways. Unless your wheeling your truck hard. Again that would void too. I wouldn’t expect any issues with the suspension. But if you engine has issues they can’t blame this lift. If they try the dealer is horrible horrible horrible.

 

[Jimmy07]

Update: Spoke to Ram Care and they tried to talk the dealer into seeing if the aftermarket parts would cause the camber issue. They refused to touch the truck and also informed her that the truck is no longer under warranty so returning it back to stock will not help in an warranty work. The only thing Ram Care did do is compensate me for the loaner car. I returned the loaner truck and picked up my Ram (untouched). Took it back over to the alignment shop and mysteriously now the camber is fine. WTH! Here's the latest printout. How in the world was the camber so far off now fine? This has been a circus. Alignment shop says the dealer must have done something. I'm so confused now. I guess i'll confirm the alignment is fine with a separate shop and drive the truck. Now...with no warranty. Only have 4,000 miles on the truck and 4 months old.

View attachment 182351

Person operating the equipment has to know how to use it...

 

[avantiguy]

I'd probably call Ram back or use email to inform them of the Magnuson-Moss Act that protects the warranty they offer to owners. If that doesn't work, I escalate it higher up the chain with either the contacts in the owners manual or names and addresses I found on line. They are in violation of the law as I see it.

The suspension may be a sticking point but the rest of the truck, not so much.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnuson–Moss_Warranty_Act

 

[Jimmy07]

I'd probably call Ram back or use email to inform them of the Magnuson-Moss Act that protects the warranty they offer to owners. If that doesn't work, I escalate it higher up the chain with either the contacts in the owners manual or names and addresses I found on line. They are in violation of the law as I see it.

The suspension may be a sticking point but the rest of the truck, not so much.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnuson–Moss_Warranty_Act

People sometimes mistakenly interchange “voided warranty” with “denied warranty claim”. His entire warranty is not void, just that particular claim was denied. The ram warranty book is clear on the only instance where they will void the entire warranty.

 

[avantiguy]

People sometimes mistakenly interchange “voided warranty” with “denied warranty claim”. His entire warranty is not void, just that particular claim was denied. The ram warranty book is clear on the only instance where they will void the entire warranty.

My point exactly, well put.

 

[Captain Dunbar]

I sure hope it was a misunderstanding and that the whole warranty is not void. I can understand suspension parts not being covered. I drove the truck on the highway to town and back (70 miles). It just seems to wonder around on the highway. Making changes to the steering wheel, keeping me "busy" as i drive. Looks like it's something i'll have to get used to.

 

[Booner21]

I sure hope it was a misunderstanding and that the whole warranty is not void. I can understand suspension parts not being covered. I drove the truck on the highway to town and back (70 miles). It just seems to wonder around on the highway. Making changes to the steering wheel, keeping me "busy" as i drive. Looks like it's something i'll have to get used to.

Not sure what tires you have on but my 35x12.5 definatley follow the road a lot more. Truck is aligned but have to steer it especially with the poor condition our roads are in.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

 

[bubbajames]

Might I add a log onto the fire....
I'm a recent owner of a 2018 3500 RAM w/6.7L. Only 25K miles. Immaculate condition and traded key for key to get the pulling power. I noticed the outer wear on the front tires but also saw on carfax that the vehicle routinely went in for alignments. I figured that's kinda odd for only 25k miles, but did the swap. I took it to Les Schwab tire and asked them to do a front end alignment as I felt a slight pull to the right only if in the right lane (ever so slight). They checked it out, gave me the print out and what they explained was that the caster values were not within specifications. Furthermore, they said the vehicle has no caster adjustment. They could order a 3rd party off brand part but they could not guarantee it would fix the problem... I find this really odd especially coming from a respectable company such as Les Schwab. I notice on this forum - discussion of caster adjustment. I say what gives... Is Les Schwab incorrect? I need some help on this. See attached for the number and comments. Thank you everyone up front. I'll be hauling soon and want my truck safe.

 

[18CrewDually]

With outer wear and the numbers you have to much toe. I just realigned mine a few months ago for same issue and got new tires. Set the toe to 0 and no odd wear problems now.

 

[crazy jerry]

dodge have caster adjustment on the control arms for atleast 20yrs if im not mistaken. this shows the caliber of people running and working at alignment shops.
to get a leg up on the common idiot at these shops, do some research on your vehicle to atleast get familiar with the basics of how it works mechanically. then perhaps you wont be viewed as just another dumb customer in their eyes.
your caster is slightly higher than what ram deems acceptable but i wouldnt say its terribly high. the toe could be adjusted a bit. the adjuster is on the driverside of the tierod bar.
pulling one direction or the other could be excessive road crown. get the toe dialed in and see if it drives straight on a flat road .

 

[White six four]

With outer wear and the numbers you have to much toe. I just realigned mine a few months ago for same issue and got new tires. Set the toe to 0 and no odd wear problems now.

x2! I've set mine to 0 toe also and since have had no more outside tire wear. Thuren and I think CJC has good information about aligning our heavy dutys. Do not use factory specs when having it aligned. At least not for the toe otherwise you're just wasting money on the alignment to continue to have outer tire wear.

Alignment & Handling

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[crazy jerry]

caster is largely a matter of preference. shops might suggest 4 and thats fine if you like it there. mines always been closer to 5 and it drives great imo