Alignment after strut replacement

vipergg

Original poster
Member
Dec 7, 2011
191
I am replacing the front struts with Monroe quickstrut OE Spectrum front struts . It is generally recognized that you should do an alignment after changing the springs so my question is how long do you wait for the new springs to settle out before getting an alignment ? 1 week , 2 weeks , a month ??/
 

Denali n DOO

Member
May 22, 2012
5,596
I had OESpectrum (SensaTrac) struts #71341 n rear shocks #37242 put in last week. They did the alignment the same day.

I never thought of the springs settling. How would that change alignment? Caster Maybe? Now I'm curious to see what others say.
 

littleblazer

Member
Jul 6, 2014
9,265
When we did the torsion keys on the sierra we had to adjust them twice, once the next morning and again a day or 2 later. I'd say a day or 2 is plenty maybe a week... something like our trucks I would imagine wouldn't settle enough to really alter the alignment to the point where it would be noticable.
 

vipergg

Original poster
Member
Dec 7, 2011
191
Denali n DOO said:
I had OESpectrum (SensaTrac) struts #71341 n rear shocks #37242 put in last week. They did the alignment the same day.

I never thought of the springs settling. How would that change alignment? Caster Maybe? Now I'm curious to see what others say.
How do they feel ? they make a difference in the ride and control ? Those are exactly what I bought out of rockauto.com . They were about half price as buying them out of a place like Advance Auto or Autozone . Just have to get some time to get them installed.
 

Denali n DOO

Member
May 22, 2012
5,596
They feel OK considering what I was driving with before. Not as smooth as I expected but the shocks do work well on bumps. Feels okay in corners but I think OEM set up was better, smoother transitioning. I wish I would have checked the ride height beforehand, from in the cab the truck seems to sit higher. overall I'm very happy with the purchase, good value because of the price. $360 Can ($270 US) for struts and shocks. GM wanted $150 per spring n then shocks after that.
 

HARDTRAILZ

Moderator
Nov 18, 2011
49,665
I would wait about a week and tighten everything up then have them dial it in.
 

DanD

Member
Mar 23, 2014
46
Hewitt, WI
I took the front end apart on mine earlier this year and put new Bilstein shocks on the front along with a new seal in the drivers side of the front differential and new sway bar links. I was hoping it wouldn't mess the alignment much since I didn't touch anything that really adjusts alignment but I assumed something would be off, especially since it had been about 50,000 miles since the last alignment, but it came back perfect on all measurements when I had it checked last month. Couldn't believe it.ScanAlignment.jpg
 

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