Front End Tire Alignment
 

I am having the tires replaced on my 2019 Pacifica Hybrid. The dealer is telling me that this year had a bad design and it is not possible to aign the front tires unless they add a $250+ kit on to the vehicle or the tires will have bulging from mis-alignment. Has anyone else been told this for their 2019 Pacifica? You would think if it was true that the 'alignment kit' would be covered under the warranty.

Is this a tire dealer or a dealer service dept? Are you having uneven wear issues on your tires? Depending on your mileage, you may be covered under the 3yr/36,000 mile warranty. Note though the tires are likely not covered.

The first order of business is to check the alignment to determine if it is within spec and if not what portion is out of spec. They should be able to provide you with a printout of the current alignment indicating the current settings and allowable tolerances.

Typically the only alignment portion that is adjustable is toe. The caster and camber are set at the factory and are not adjustable for the most part thought it should be noted that rarely are the caster and camber are out of spec. An accident or front suspension damage are the leading causes for caster and camber to be out of spec. The 'kit' noted by the dealer is likely a camber kit (also known as a crash kit) that allows the camber to be adjusted.

No. The tires are fine at 51,000 and three winters. We are replacing them before the Wisconsin weather hits. This is the dealership where we bought the vehicle from. They indicated they could not balance the new tires on the front unless this kit was also added. We had not had an accident with the vehicle.

My BS meter is clicking. If there are no obvious uneven wear issues, a 'kit' is not needed. I would suggest getting the tires elsewhere. Check out tirerack.com for tire reviews and local installers.