DIY car Wheel alignment

[Avocet]

Can you get the older optic type still? Is a fair amount but friends will be interested in chipping in i reckon

Yes, just type "tracking gauge" into the search box on eBay.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=m570.l2736&_nkw=tracking+gauge

 

[appletree]

+1. I've seen state-of-the-art laser alignment equipment used by grease monkeys who really shouldn't be in the job. There's absolutely no point in having equipment that wil lmeasure to the fraction of a millimetre when, even from the waiting room, you can see that the muppet hasn't got the gauge properly touching the wheel!

Conversely, I've seen the old optical "Dunlop" mirror-and-tube gauges used to set up racing cars with no problems whatsoever. It's really just down to the skill and care of the operative.

I think I'm going to try and get one of those Trackace jobbies (though I see here that they've whacked up the price by £15 from when I last looked, and are now offering a £15 "Christmas discount"!

http://www.trackacestore.com/

Maybe I'll go for the Machine Mart ones....

First time I decided I needed to do my own tracking was because I went to a well know garage for a check, kid came to waiting area and told me my car needed adjustment, I wandered round to where i could see him working, he was using floor standing dunlops and the clown had one gauges resting on a wheel balancing weight, when i told him to move the car so it would contact the wheel and not the weight he refused and told me it didn't matter, even the guy at the counter agreed with him, I let him do it then went back the next day when the manager was in and he went mad with both of them, rechecked and adjust my tracking which was set wrong, that was it for me, If I can do it myself, I will.

 

[appletree]

Would car ramps be ok ?

I've got outside tread wear but only on the passenger side. Would that be fixable with re-aligning?

I've also seen 4 wheel alignment advertised. Is it worth doing and can that be done diy?

I run up my ramps to adjust, then roll back off, roll straight forward rock suspension to resettle and then a quick recheck with the trackace gage, and repeat as required, outside tyre ware on one side could be something else but could still be tracking. worth checking, i know i have had ware on one side more than the other that was due to tracking, i reckon if mis-aligned, one wheel can take the track more than the other, making the other take more of the scrubbing. I have never bothered with 4 wheel alignment but only because i have never had uneven rear ware, and on most previous cars rears were not adjustable, but they are adjustable on my mondeo, trackace site says they are bringing out a 4 wheel add on kit so i probably will get that for the future as long as it costs no more than the trackace did. If you can check all four, why not do so.

 

[pj11]

HI just a few a things to check before you check you tracking.Check front wheel bearings for any play, check front suspension bushes and arms for any play or wear,check steering ball joints for any excessive play.Also check wheel rims are not damaged or bent,if you take your reading from the rim, all these faults will affect your tracking settings. Most vehicles these day have quite a range of degrees for track setting so it not absolute zero.

 

[Avocet]

Also ride height chan change it a bit. If your springs have sagged or you've lowered the car deliberately, that can have an effect too.

 

[appletree]

Spring and Autumn I give our 3 cars a go over so I have had the trackace gage out again, 2 cars out side setting spec but still inside checking spec, put them both back to setting spec anyway n one had the sterring wheel go off center over the winter, still notice the improvment just from the small corrections, any way wanted to check for bent wheels, jacked up, held a big flat screwdriver on my tool box with the tip a couple of mm's from the rim and turned the wheels by hand, watch the small gap, no great changes in the gap, thats gotta be an OK test for bent wheels hasn't it?

 

[Burnerman]

Thats an excellent test for dented rims....do check the inside rim though - these are much more prone to damage due to the design of the wheel pressing / casting.
John