How To Know When it’s Time for a Wheel Alignment
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The alignment of your wheels greatly impacts how well your vehicle operates, and how long your tires will last. Having them aligned on a regular basis is a critical service that is needed to balance the tread wear and to keep the performance of your car’s tires optimal. So what does it mean when your wheel’s are out of alignment? And how do you know when it’s time for a wheel alignment?
When a car’s tires are out of alignment it means that at least one tire is pointing in a direction other than straight. This can occur as a result of several things. Most often it is caused by spring sag or wear on your suspension such as the ball joints or bushings – especially on an older vehicle. It can also be the result of an impact with a pothole or curb, or even from a change in your vehicle’s ride height (lowered or raised).Out-of-alignment conditions can cause significant issues including a decrease in fuel efficiency and even cause excessive wear of vehicle parts. Bad tire alignment can also make wheels work against each other, and wear out your tires by causing bad tread wear patterns. So how do you know when it is time for a wheel alignment? Head on over to the Kayser Ford blog to read the rest of this article and find out!
justin
Monday 31st of October 2016
I noticed my tires were wearing a little funny in the front just the other day and it looks like they're in desperate need of an alignment. Since my car is used I have no idea when it was done last =0
Brooke McAvoy
Tuesday 12th of July 2016
It is interesting that raising or lowering of a car can actually affect the alignment. Now that I think of it, I think this might be my husband's problem. He recently got his truck raised, and we just noticed that the alignment is off. We will be taking your advice and taking it to a shop to get it fixed soon, thank you!
John Carston
Friday 17th of June 2016
I didn't know the causes of wheel alignment problems until I read this post. Knowing that an alignment problem could come as a result of hitting a pothole or curb is good to know, and I'll have to take extra care to avoid this in the future. This should help prevent trips to the repair shop and extend the life of my vehicle.
emily bennette
Monday 16th of May 2016
I didn't realize that driving over a pothole could get your tires out of alignment. It seems like that is why you need to be careful when you drive. Do you know if heavy vehicles can get their wheels out of alignment like normal cars do?
Sarah Smith
Monday 16th of May 2016
I just got a new car and I want to make sure that the wheels are probably aligned. It's good to know that a misalignment means that the tires are not quite pointing in the same direction. I'll have to keep an eye on misaligned tires and make sure that when I next take my car in that I have them align my car's tire.