Car Alignment - When to do it?

[D22]

My car has mismatched tires at the moment. Two on the back over half-thread, front passenger is brand new, and front passenger is probably about 25% (driving on damaged subframe that was just replaced)

Should I get the alignment now or wait until I need the front driver's side tire replaced? Or should I just replace all 4 when the driver's side is ready to blow? The car has 153,000, so I am thinking just bite the bullet one last time for $400 with 80,000 mile tires one the front driver's side is ready. It may not be as economical, but the safety and handling should certainly be better...or am I missing anything?

 

[Heisenberg]

The alignment should be independent of the tire wear. And IMHO you only really need to match tires on the front or the back, not all four. So I would just buy a replacement for the front driver's if the front passenger is brand new.

 

[boomerang]

If the subframe was just replaced, did they not do an alignment? Or did you replace it yourself?

It's a semi-major job in most cases which would require swapping over a lot of suspension components is why I ask.

Also to consider, if the vehicle needs struts (assuming it uses struts and not shocks) that is an almost certain call for an alignment, considering the mileage.. Best to do it all at once.

 

[D22]

Well, when I asked about the alignment after the job he said "We get it as close as we can, it should be pretty good". But alot of people (just friends and random ppl at auto shops) have said to get it done. Considering the economics of the situation I think I will have the struts checked (forgot to ask about it...) and just replace that front tire and see how that goes. This car really should not get more than 8k miles a year so I am guessing that will do for now.

 

[Baked]

When -

* Car doesn't go in straight line
* When dropping ride height after changing suspension
* When changing to different wheel size