Rear Wheel Misaligned? (UPDATE: some rear axles out of spec; warranty replacement)

[emki]

So I mostly just wanted to say thank you to forum members here for pointing out the rear alignment issue on these cars. It really helped me out a lot with my new (to me) Mirage. I bought my used 2014 with 13.5K miles in July after watching the price steadily drop for a few months at the dealership. They had a carfax for the car available, and a red flag was that the car had two tire rotations and two new tires mounted/balanced within the 13K miles of the car's life. Test drove the car twice, and was surprised by how much I liked it. Decided to enter negotiations on the car, but made it clear to the sales staff that I wanted some guarantee about the rear alignment before I signed anything. I was assured it was "no big deal." I asked to see alignment specs, but was told the printer wasn't working (seems to be a common response from them). I asked for a new alignment test, and was told the service staff had gone home for the day. After refusing to move forward, they--surprise surprise--found a staff member after all who could do an alignment test. I wasn't savvy enough to snap a picture with my phone, but the test came back with horrible rear alignment specs (I asked for a copy of this too, but amazingly, that darn printer just wasn't working again! What a coincidence!). I said I'd still be willing to buy the car if I could get in writing that the rear alignment would be fixed under warranty. I was assured this was no problem. The finance manager came over to make small talk with me at this point and be friendly.

Next the sales manager came over to butter me up. Said he doesn't think the alignment is a big problem, he'd only heard of one instance of it, and they're happy to take care of it, and it's probably a tire rotation issue. He then tells me that it's normal for tires to wear out in 13K miles. Hmmm...I almost walk out after this insult to my intelligence.

Negotiations continue. The price is right. I ask for sales contract to have a written guarantee that the rear axle will be repaired so the alignment is in spec. My salesperson agrees, goes to the sales manager to get it in writing, and comes back with a guarantee saying that the alignment will be checked. I tell her this is not what the agreement was. The sales manager comes over and is clearly exasperated with me, blaming me for having a hangup for something that isn't a big deal. I refuse to budge. In the end, he does the right thing: we halt the sale, and has the service department check it out the next morning.

Surprise surprise, a problem is found!



^^Note: I didn't complain about the car pulling to the right. Not sure why that was included, but they replaced the axle, so I wasn't about to split hairs about it.

At this point, after this many months of trying to sell the car, I think they were motivated to get it off the lot. They agreed to replace the axle under warranty with no further BS. I agreed. A week later the axle was replaced. Amazingly, the printer was working this time, and I got a printout of the new alignment specs! How lucky! Specs aren't perfect, but at least it is within specifications.


I doubt they'd have gone to this much effort if they weren't desperate to sell the car, so I felt I had some unusual leverage in this situation. Sorry to all the forum members who have had to deal with unresponsive dealerships and Mitsubishi refusing to acknowledge the issue, as it really is unacceptable. Perhaps there'll be a recall yet. On my end, I made some noise, which at least helps the overall cause. And though this may not be of any help to those dealing with this problem, I really appreciate everyone who took the time to post in this forum, who posted alignment photos and specifications, and who shared their experiences. It really helped me out, informed me, and saved me a headache down the road. Good karma to you all!

[Eggman]

So I mostly just wanted to say thank you to forum members here for pointing out the rear alignment issue on these cars.

Nice! I'll bet that dealership remembers your sale for a long time.

Now go get your alignment checked at a third-party shop for comparison.

Welcome to the forum! Now make a Garage entry and tell us a little about yourself.

[R01k]

Congrats!!
Yes, by all means go to a third party shop and the alignment checked.
I still wonder if they changed the axle design in the '17 model.

[MetroMPG]

Thanks for the detailed description of your experience, emki. Too bad most buyers aren't aware of the potential problem and will instead be dealing with tire wear. (And sub-par handling.)

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And THANKS to 3Dplane for the info on correcting the problem yourself. As more of these cars go past the warranty period, members are going to be looking for info like this on how to fix the problem.

[Remy]

WAIT so has Mitsubishi taken care of this or not? I've been told that my car is up on all of its recalls but I'm not 100% on if this is a recall or not. There are just too many pages here to go through.

[Car Nut]

WAIT so has Mitsubishi taken care of this or not? I've been told that my car is up on all of its recalls but I'm not 100% on if this is a recall or not. There are just too many pages here to go through.

There is no recall. If you have strange tire wear, especially on the passenger rear, and or the steering wheel is not centered when driving, you may have an issue. If so, you will want to read through this entire thread, before contacting the dealer. If you think you have an issue, you should also go to a good, independent alignment shop, and have your alignment checked , and get a printout to take to the dealer, in case you need it.

[Eggman]

Good advice there. I was advised to find a shop offering free alignment checks, and found one at a local NTB.

Thanks, Daox!

[Remy]

Crap. Now I'm concerned about it. The dealer had 4 new tires put on the car and seeing as the spare was bald from being driven on i thought that was why. I have an appointment with my local dealer in the morning so I guess I will see if they will check that for me too.

[Remy]

There's my results after the dealership told me it was fine.

[palebeachbum]

Am I reading that correctly that all 4 wheels are misaligned? If so, go to a different Mitsubishi dealership. That's bull.