Wheel Alignment

[JessUK98]

Is there a way to know for sure if your tracking has been done? I took my car for a wheel Alignment today and as it was busy I left the car with them and went for a walk with the dog. When I got back the guy said to bring it back in about 3 weeks for them to check that it hasn’t sprung back. I didn’t question it at the time, but now that sounds a bit odd to me, and he also never gave me any paperwork. In the past i’m sure I’ve had a diagram of wheels with what the alignment of each wheel was.

[chas49]

https://www.google.com/search?q=free+wh ... ment+check

Revealed several national chains offering a free check.

[ReformedCharacter]

Is there a way to know for sure if your tracking has been done? I took my car for a wheel Alignment today and as it was busy I left the car with them and went for a walk with the dog. When I got back the guy said to bring it back in about 3 weeks for them to check that it hasn’t sprung back. I didn’t question it at the time, but now that sounds a bit odd to me, and he also never gave me any paperwork. In the past i’m sure I’ve had a diagram of wheels with what the alignment of each wheel was.

I worked in a tyre bay many years ago and cars may have changed a bit since then but probably the principle is the same.

There's a guide here which shows the idea:

https://www.howacarworks.com/steering/s ... e-tracking

There are exceptions but generally it's only the front wheels which need adjusting. Most cars front wheels are set to parallel or with slight toe-in (wheels pointing slightly inward at the front) perhaps half a degree. Slight toe-in apparently helps keep the vehicle travelling in a straight line if you take your hands off the wheel. Tracking that is not parallel increases tyre wear and presumably slightly increases mechanical drag and reduces fuel efficiency. Depending on the design of the suspension some vehicles are more or less prone to the tracking changing when the vehicle is loaded with people or luggage, tracking should be then carried out with a typical loading. We would generally give the car a bit of a bounce either by letting it down quickly on the trolley jack or by leaning down on the front wings a couple of times to make sure the suspension had returned to it's normal geometry after being jacked up.

RC

[88V8]

Couple of years ago I had new arb bushes put in our trolley. Even though it's a 1990 car it's 'new' by my standards and I can't often be [expletive deleted] to work on it, so I take it to a trusted garage.
Anyway, a few months later I noticed that the nsf tyre was bald around the outer tread.

Two new front tyres - the nsf would have been good for several more years - and I took it elsewhere for alignment.
Turned out the lazy mechanic had done all the adjustment on one side only, so it nominally tracked correctly when straight ahead but not as soon as one turned the wheel.

If in doubt, take it elsewhere. Most tyre dealers can check tracking.

My garage now less well-trusted.

V8