How to Fix the Alignment on a Car Four Parts:Preparing to MeasureMeasuring Your
ToeMeasuring Your CamberCorrecting Your Toe Proper wheel alignment is crucial to
properly responsive steering and to getting the longest life out of your tires
autel
maxisys. If your car is showing uneven or unusually rapid tire wear,is
pulling to one side or vibrating when you drive,or if your steering column
doesn't seem straight,there's a good chance you wheels are out of alignment.[1]
Using the following steps,you can diagnose common alignment problems with your
car and correct the most common one,front-end alignment issues,at home. Part 1
of 4: Preparing to Measure 1. Check your tire pressure. Your tires should be
appropriately and evenly inflated before you proceed autel
maxiscan ms609. Tires that are not properly inflated may actually be the
cause of your performance issues,so it's a good idea to check this first. You
may not need to do anything else. Additionally,having your tires inflated
properly is important for getting accurate reads on the measurements you'll be
taking later. 2. Check your specifications. Look in your car's manual for
details about the proper alignment settings. You should find numbers describing
the car's ideal toe,camber,and possibly caster. Write these numbers down. You
may not know what these numbers mean yet,but don't worry,this will be explained
in parts 2 and 3. For now,just make sure you transcribe them accurately. 3.
Check the front end suspension. If your suspension is loose or any parts have
worn out,this may also be the cause of your problems. Like tire-pressure
issues,problems with your suspension call also throw off your measurements,so
it's important to take care of any issues here first. Drive the car onto a flat
area,jack up the front end,and place the care on jack stands. The easiest way to
check the suspension once the car is lifted is to grip each wheel and shake
it,both horizontally and vertically. If you don't feel much movement,your
suspension is probably in good shape. If not,this may be the source of your
problem.[2] If the suspension is loose,you must replace any worn parts. This
could include bad ball joints,rack,bushings,gear boxes,tie rod ends,or steering
pads. Unless you have experience doing suspension work,you will probably need to
take your car to a professional mechanic. Part 2 of 4: Measuring Your Toe 1.
Determine the proper toe. Toe is the amount by which the wheels are closer
(toe-in) or further apart (toe-out) at their front edges than at their rear
edges,as viewed from above. Depending on your car,your manual will probably
recommend either zero toe (equal distance between the front and back) or slight
toe-in,which increases stability. Toe is the source of most alignment
problems,and the easiest to correct yourself.[5] 2. Draw a line. With the car
still up on the jack,hold a pocketknife,thin piece of chalk,or white pencil
against the center of tire tread. Hold your hand very still and have an
assistant turn the tire one full turn,creating a line around the circumference.
Do the same on the other side. If there is no area on the tire where the tread
is flat,you may need to suspend your marking tool with a clamp or similar
stabilizer. 3. Lower the car. After you lower the car to the ground,push down on
the car above each wheel a few times to allow the car to settle. 4. Roll the
car. Push the car forward at least 10 feet with the steering wheel unlocked to
make sure the wheels are straight. 5. Stretch a string. With an assistant,take a
piece of string or wire and stretch it between the lines on the front of the
tires,even with the spindle,and measure the distance on the string. Repeat at
the process at the back of each tire. As long as you use string or wire that
does not stretch,you can get a very accurate measurement this way. 6. Subtract
the differences. If the distance in the front is smaller than in the back,your
wheels toe-in. If the measurement in the back is larger,they toe-out. If they
are identical,you have zero toe. Rear toe is also important for control and tire
life. It is also important to have your front and rear wheels aligned with one
another (e.g. parallel). You can measure your rear toe similarly to the front.
If your rear toe is out of alignment,you may need to see a professional
mechanic. Rear toe should be adjusted before front toe,so if you find a problem
with the rear,don't waste time adjusting the front yourself. Spinning the rod will adjust the toe in or out. If you have a
parallelogram linkage system,there will be adjusting sleeves that you can turn
to adjust your toe. These sleeves can be damaged by this process,so be careful.
There are special tools for rotating tie rods which can prevent damage.
Whichever system you have,make sure to keep in mind that the change you are
making to the toe will be distributed across two wheels. Each tie rod should be
adjusted 1/2 of the total desired amount of change in or out. 4. Re-check the
toe. Tighten your nuts (and clamps,if applicable) back up. Then,recheck the toe
using the same procedures you followed in part 2. Readjust as necessary. Unless
you are well practiced at this,there may be a certain amount of trial and error
to get this right. 5Test drive the car. Take the car for a drive to verify that
any obvious alignment issues have been corrected (e.g. that the car does not
pull to one side or vibrate excessively). If your alignment problems persist,you
may have a problem that requires a professional mechanic.
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