How to Fix the Alignment on a Car

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. 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.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. Part 3 of 4: Measuring Your Camber 1. Determine the right camber. Camber is the vertical angle of the wheels when looking at the car head on. Wheels that are closer together at the top are considered to have "negative" camber,those closer together at the bottom have "positive" camber. Depending on your car,the manual will probably recommend slight negative camber,as this increases stability. 2. Cut a measuring triangle. Get a piece of stiff cardboard or wood and cut it into a perfect right triangle (one with a 90 degree angle) that is the same height as your wheels. 3. Place the triangle. Starting in the front of the car,put the base of the triangle on the ground,perpendicular to the car,and the other side of the 90 degree angle against the center of one of the wheels. 4Take your measurement. There will be a gap between your measuring device and your tire,probably at the top. Measure this with a ruler or calipers. This is your camber. Repeat with the other front wheel. The two wheels should be about the same and within the range specified by your manual. If not,your camber may need alignment. Repeat the process in the back autel maxisys mini. If you think the camber is off,move your car forward or backward enough to spin the tires half a turn,then try measuring again. Problems with camber,front or rear,can affect how your car handles. At the same time,however,unless your car has been in a serious accident,it is unlikely that your camber will be seriously out of alignment. If your camber does need to be corrected,it should be done before adjusting the toe. Camber cannot typically be corrected at home with ordinary tools,and indeed,for some cars it cannot be adjusted at all without bending or replacing major parts. Unless you have experience with automotive repair and professional tools,do not try to adjust this yourself. Part 4 of 4: Correcting Your Toe 1. Locate your tie rod ends. The tie rods are the connection between your steering system and your wheels. The rod ends are L-shaped parts found near the inside of the wheel. It's a good idea to look at your car's manual and/or at some pictures on the internet to get a sense of what tie rod ends look like if you haven't done this before. 2. Loosen the lock nuts. Between the tie rod and each tie rod end is a nut that holds it in place. You'll need to loosen this nut with a wrench. Be aware that on some vehicles,the driver's side lock nut may be threaded counterclockwise,while the passenger side is threaded clockwise. Depending on your steering system,there may also be a clamp that needs to be removed at each end to make sure the bellows boot is not sticking to the inner tie rod. Consult your manual for details. If it has been a long time since you had an alignment,the threaded parts may be stubborn and require some lubrication,such as WD40,in order to make them turn. 3. Make your adjustments. Depending on the type of steering you have,there are two different ways you can adjust your toe. If you have rack and pinion steering,you should turn the inner tie rod itself. 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 autel ms908p. 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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11 Sep 2015