Alignment & Steering Wheel 996 C4

I have a 2002 996 C4 Cabrio which is new to me. I just got new tires and wish to get a wheel alignment. The tire shop didn't want to tackle a 4wd Porsche, and I am glad they admitted not having experience at such. Does both the front and rear suspension require alignment on a C4? The PO recently had the trans/engine out for an IMS replacement, but there is no indication that an alignment was done. I have also noted that my steering wheel has about a 5 degrees right misalignment, and pulls to the right... I think that is after the new Conti O2 tires were installed, but it may have predated the tires. Is the steering wheel misalignment indicative of a wheel alignment issue or does it need a different fix or remedy? And what should I expect to pay (or how many shop hours) should I expect for an alignment at a local Independent shop? Thanks in advance.

Yes, I think your crooked steering wheel can be fixed with a 4-wheel alignment (aligning the front and the rear). In California, the cost of alignment can vary from $100 to $400. I�m sure there are other places that charge outside this range, but these are what I�ve seen.

There's two common types of "pull" that happen on older cars like this. (Newer cars have more failure modes.) 1) The rear axle is misaligned, so even if your front axle is straight, the car's butt is shifting left and that points the nose to the right via rear-wheel-steering, effectively. 2) The tires themselves have a flaw in the belt that causes either extra drag or a not perfectly cylindrical shape, that can point the nose to the right as well. If you swap the front left and front right tire, and the direction and severity of the pull don't change, then we can suspect alignment. The steering wheel angle is a red herring, it could also be a previous owner simply sticking the wheel onto the column wrong. Besides the most expensive, comprehensive race-prep shops, most shops will not check for you that "center" on your steering wheel is "center" on your steering rack, that's something you gotta do yourself with a tape measure. All this is to say you have some homework to do before assuming an alignment is the answer. Buying used cars can be fun like that.

There is no magic to aligning a porsche. Both the 2 and 4 cars align the same. Its basically 2 points of adjustment. In the front u shift the top of the shock for camber and turn the tie-rod links for toe. In the back there r eccentric cam bolts that u rotate for both the camber and toe. It should be $2-300 for a full alignment and any measurement out if spec on any corner can cause wear or pulling issues. U should also have the shop check for worn parts. These cars r 20+ years old and the suspension rubber has probably aged oit regaurdless of milage. Any shop with a decent rack should be able to do the job.

For best results the shop should center the steering rack (not necessarily the steering *wheel*) then set toe. Then adjust steering wheel if needed, then reset steering angle sensor if the car has PSM. Of course this takes time and most shops just twiddle the driver's tie rod end and send it.