Alignment=5-10mpg

really! Mine pulls slightly to the left but I was gonna wait for my 5K service. (2K more to go) I get about 50mpg now. interesting to be sure!

 

Because I drive so little and had my alignment done in the middle of a New York winter, I cannot say how much the alignment increased my mpg.

However, I can say that within the first 100 feet of driving slowly away from the dealer's service bay, I felt that the car's traction and handling had seemingly improved greatly. It was similar to the feeling I immediately had after I put wider Goodyear TripleTred tires on the car.

EDIT: Sheepdog - when you go in for your alignment, you should also ask them to make sure the steering wheel is centered.

 

although my recent alignment fix is not 100% spot on in regards to the print out, i have noticed a marked improvment without trying..im now at 48.2...was at 49.5 last month..but have gotten lazy with P&G and other areas..just driving it again...to ADD to keep up with it

 

I agree Boo, mine wasn't centred at my last alignment and it is a pain because the cruise control switch is in the wrong place. I won't go back where it was done, I have lost faith in them now due to that and other issues.

 

I will Boo. I wondered if the little car leans a bit towards the left because Im sitting there driving. I weight around 350 so definitely the car has to notice it.

 

What clued you into needing an alignment at such low miles (2008 Prius)?

 

I highly doubt that a driver's weight while driving solo is the problem.

This "right off the boat" misalignment problem has been well documented. Usually it manifests itself as a "pulls to the left" / "need to slightly turn the steering wheel to the right to go straight" issue. The problem apparently comes from how Toyota secures the Prius on the shipping boats.

At first, the problem was the subject of a Toyota Service Bulletin which said that if a customer complained about the alignment, the dealer was to fix it for free. This TSB "warranty" then eventually made its way into the Warranty Booklet which now expressly and separately warrants the alignment for 12 months / 20,000 miles.

I mention the related issue of centering the steering wheel because a car's alignment can be OK but the steering wheel is still off-center.

When you bring your car in for alignment, you should

(1) insist that the alignment be done to spec (and not merely to acceptable tolerance),

(2) insist on getting a printout of the alignment job, and

(3) as previously mentioned, tell them to make sure the steering wheel is centered.

Good luck.