Alignment updates

Nov. 4, 2009

Make it fast, make it accurate, make it work in my shop layout and help me make customers happy.   Alignment equipment suppliers have heard your requests and have answered them with new features to fulfill your needs.

Lee McLaughlin, Bee Line’s senior vice president, says of his company’s LC7080 Laser computer wheel alignment system, “The advanced technology in this system allows us to provide our customers a reliable, accurate and simple method to efficiently align anything that comes through their doors.”

It’s just one of the new products on the market that are helping to increase your shop efficiency and profitability.

Bee Line LC7080 Laser

The Bee Line LC7080 Laser computer wheel alignment system can be used for the smallest passenger vehicle to the largest commercial tractor. With the Bee Line LC7080, alignments can be performed in any shop condition whether it’s on the floor, on a lift or on a runway system. For shops that own a rear axle aligner, the LC7080 will seamlessly integrate the equipment when gauging out the rear axles on tractors and trailers. The LC7080 can be used as a two-headed truck and trailer alignment machine with the rear axle aligner, or a four-headed car alignment machine. Other features include LCD monitors which are built into all four wireless alignment heads offering live readings to save overall alignment time. A user-friendly built-in system calibration fixture allows the user to calibrate system accuracy in minutes. An easy-to-understand help section is built into WindSpeed 7000 Software featuring user-friendly help videos. Advanced steering wheel centering calculations achieve pinpoint accuracy on the first attempt. Lightweight lithium ion batteries power units offer 10 hours of continuous use. The software displays a live screen during alignment adjustments that alert the technician when the vehicle is within spec and generates before and after color printouts.
BEE LINE CO.
www.beeline-co.com

BendPak CRT380R wheel aligner
Ranger Products’ CRT380R four-wheel wireless alignment system for cars and trucks features eight-sensor CCD technology, Bluetooth data transfer and the company’s ProSpec alignment software. Designed for speed and simplicity, all alignment steps are methodically displayed with vibrant animation to make the entire start-to-finish process fast and easy to understand. The CRT380R is equipped with wireless sensor heads that deliver speed, an improved range and provide a cordless, fast set-up. Long life 7.2-volt Nickel Metal Hydride batteries provide continuous operation and automatic battery charge docking stations ensure ready-to-use capability. A sleep-mode function during non-alignment periods improves battery life. ProSpec alignment software includes “the essential tools to perform fast, accurate alignments with factory results,” the company reports.
BENDPAK/RANGER PRODUCTS
www.bendpak.com

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Bosch FWA 4630 Easy 3DAlignment System
Bosch’s FWA 4630 Easy 3D Alignment System technology includes a new method for determining wheel alignment measurements, Stereoscopic Triangulation. The durable Easy 3D system contains two portable camera pods mounted on an alignment rack with “electronics free” measurement boards attached to each wheel, operating at high speed to enable 27 updates per second. Easy 3D dedicates two cameras to each measurement board for stereoscopic vision of each wheel and an additional two cameras focused under the vehicle, allowing the system to triangulate the position of the wheels in relation to the camera pods. Measurement boards at the wheels and camera pods made from expanded polypropylene with internal suspension damping, contribute to low weight, ease of handling and drop resistance. Stereoscopic Triangulation eliminates the need for calibration during installation, and provides precise measurements that can be repeated even if the camera pods are repositioned in the middle of the alignment process. Easy 3D users can move their system to different bays within the shop. Easy 3D’s architecture provides the flexibility to work with many different racks. The system can even be used directly on the shop floor for quick alignment audits and for merchandising. With Easy 3D, the technician may sit in the driver’s seat and complete the entire compensation and alignment measurement process in only a few minutes. Setting up the Easy 3D system is fast and simple. With its intuitive operation completed in less than seven minutes, just one employee can perform the measurements, allowing faster bay throughput.
THE BOSCH GROUP
www.boschdiagnostics.com

Hunter Engineering WinAlign 11 software
Features of Hunter Engineering’s 11th edition WinAlign alignment software speeds service and simplifies alignment, the company says. WinAlign 11 provides support for the optional CodeLink steering angle sensor reset device. CodeLink directly connects WinAlign to a vehicle’s OBD-II to recalibrate the steering angle sensor (SAS) to match the final alignment angles of the vehicle, as required by the OEM to complete the alignment. WinAlign 11 automatically alerts the technician if the vehicle being serviced requires SAS reset and includes simple procedures to quickly and easily reset the sensor using the CodeLink device. The TPMSpecs database organizes and condenses thousands of OE TPMS reset procedures into an easy-to-understand, tech-friendly format. TPMSpecs provides the sensor type, tools needed, service procedures and any special instructions based on the specific vehicle being serviced. The AutoVIN feature allows the technician to quickly begin taking measurements. Using an optional scanner, the technician simply scans the VIN bar code on the vehicle to enter the make and model into the WinAlign system. WinAlign then automatically recalls vehicle-specific specs, adjustment procedures and reference materials from its vast vehicle information database.
HUNTER ENGINEERING CO.
www.hunter.com    ■

About the Author

Bob Ulrich

Bob Ulrich was named Modern Tire Dealer editor in August 2000 and retired in January 2020. He joined the magazine in 1985 as assistant editor, and had been responsible for gathering statistical information for MTD's "Facts Issue" since 1993. He won numerous awards for editorial and feature writing, including five gold medals from the International Automotive Media Association. Bob earned a B.A. in English literature from Ohio Northern University and has a law degree from the University of Akron.