Causes of needing a wheel aligment

[xdviper]

I had my upper control arms, and lower ball joints replaced, the mechanic told me to get a wheel aligment, got it a month later after I seen uneven wear on the front tires. Paid about $75 for it, was done with the "Hawk Eye Technology" and its alright and doesn't pull to the right unless the road has a crown. But I'm curious now to what are the causes of needing a wheel aligment and how often should it be done?
Could say, a flat tire mess up the aligment? Uneven tire pressure on the sides? Big bumps? Hitting the curb while parking?
Just want to avoid those.
Reason I ask is because today in 30*F weather got a flat, and it is absolute ***** in this weather but also want to know if it will mess up the aligment at all. Thanks

 

[FordGT55]

Hitting a pot hole or large bump really hard can cause the need of an alignment because it can cause a tie rod to loosen and need replaced. A flat tire or uneven pressurized tires wont effect the alignment but will cause the car to pull that direction due to the uneven PSI.

Also it is suggest to get an alignment once a year but not needed.

 

[xdviper]

Thanks for the reply.
Also I have the tires from before I got the wheel alignment, if you look you can see the wear on the inside of the tires. I've been driving them for a month now after the wheel alignment, would there be anything wrong with driving them? And also how can I tell if it's been fixed? I observed the tires, there doesn't seem to be any more wear than before I got the alignment, but I still want to be sure.

 

[Blee1099]

Wearing more on the inside indicates bad camber (too much positive camber) The stock factory and OEM upper control arms don't have enough play to adjust the camber without some camber adjusters.. If you rub your hand against the tire and feel it cupped then I'd recommend getting the adjusters and rotating frequently.

 

[Joe Dirt]

Trying to do a reverse 180 in your Ford Escort which then 270's into a curb breaking the front axle and bending everything else results in needing an alignment. Don't ask me how I know...

But yeah- if you replace all of that, you need one. If you hit a curb, you may need one, depends on how hard you hit. Flat tire no, good potholes like FordGT said, can create a need.

 

[FordGT55]

Thanks for the reply.
Also I have the tires from before I got the wheel alignment, if you look you can see the wear on the inside of the tires. I've been driving them for a month now after the wheel alignment, would there be anything wrong with driving them? And also how can I tell if it's been fixed?

There is nothing wrong with still running the same tires that have wear on them. As you stated it's just harder to tell if they are still wearing. It's hard to say if it aligned you can check the outer tie rods to see if those were adjusted (which I doubt they were since you said there was no pull prior to) If you don't have the camber adjustment kit installed already I doubt they did anything other than set the toe unless you had said to get the kit and fix it. A good alignment center would have had a print out of the final alignment to hand to you showing everything was in the correct spot.

 

[2TimingTom]

Wearing more on the inside indicates bad camber (too much positive camber) The stock factory and OEM upper control arms don't have enough play to adjust the camber without some camber adjusters.. If you rub your hand against the tire and feel it cupped then I'd recommend getting the adjusters and rotating frequently.

First of all, wear on the inside of a tire would be the result from too much NEGATIVE camber (the top of the tire leaning in) or too much toe out (the front of the tire pointing out).

Secondly, don't buy anything until you know what's wrong. More than likely what's causing the excessive inside wear is too much toe out. Improper toe settings are far more harmful to a tire than improper camber.

 

[budwich]

causes??? lot's of causes, some you would likely know about... curb "dings", pothole "tang", collision "bangs", etc... some you would likely not know about... general wear and tear on ball joints and tie rods and perhaps torsion bar "relaxation". Depending on how bad your inner wear was, ball joints might be "marginal" causing just enough "droop" in the wheel. They could adjust the alignment maybe just enough to get around that but if the joints have significant looseness, then your are looking at replacement... BUT the alignment shop should have indicated that. Back to your question, IF they didn't indicate any "part issues" (ie. bent rods, worn joints), then my guess, your torsion bars might have "sagged" with time just enough to "squat" your front end. Otherwise, I would say you shouldn't just happen to need a "alignment" if everything is "tight".

Further, you had some major work done (joints) and depending on how they did it, an alignment might be necessary BUT depending on "things", they could have "dropped" in ball joints and not required any alignment because of how things are "fixed a bit"... assuming no "structural problems" (tie rod bends, wear, lower control arm bend, etc).... and your alignment would have likely been back to "normal" (before the joint replacements).

 

[xdviper]

Thanks for the informative replys.
I did have the car pull to the right before the alignment so much that after a couple minutes of driving, you'd feel your arm going weak like after a workout. Now on smooth roads driving at 60mph there is no pull unless the road has a crown and uts much easier to control the wheel.
They didn't give any printouts, but while the alignment was being performed, I've looked at the computer screen and after it was done, the front wheels angle was at 0, so I'm assuming it was complete. How do we check the outter tire rods?

 

[JCat]

Maybe I'm crazy, but over the 37 years I have been driving . . . I have noticed that once a tire starts noticibly wearing on its inside edge......it is like a cancer. It creates all kinds of alignment, balance, and increased wear problems.

I have also noticed that certain vehicles "like" certain tires. My 300C liked its Kumhos and Pirellis....but distroyed Toyos.
.
.

 

[FordGT55]

How do we check the outter tire rods?

To test them or to see if they have been adjusted?

 

[xdviper]

To test them or to see if they have been adjusted?

Both, if possible, without the need for special tools. Thanks

 

[waskly]

I had my upper control arms, and lower ball joints replaced, the mechanic told me to get a wheel aligment, got it a month later after I seen uneven wear on the front tires. Paid about $75 for it, was done with the "Hawk Eye Technology" and its alright and doesn't pull to the right unless the road has a crown. But I'm curious now to what are the causes of needing a wheel aligment and how often should it be done?
Could say, a flat tire mess up the aligment? Uneven tire pressure on the sides? Big bumps? Hitting the curb while parking?
Just want to avoid those.
Reason I ask is because today in 30*F weather got a flat, and it is absolute ***** in this weather but also want to know if it will mess up the aligment at all. Thanks

pot holes over time will wear out suspension/steering comments and they will develop play.

also aligning a car with bad tires the minute you put good new tires on will throw the alignment off...

air pressure will throw an alignment.

 

[FordGT55]

Both, if possible, without the need for special tools. Thanks

To test you jack up the front end and see if there is play in the tire. Grab it and move it side to side. If it's tight the tie rods are good if there is a pop, or if it feels loose something is worn out and needs replaced. (Hard to describe without showing how to do it)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSsC-lWB1lg&feature=related
What he does first tests the tie rods and the top and bottom movement tests the wheel bearing.

And to see if it has been adjusted look at the outer tie rod end at the nut at the end of it. It may have been moved to allow for adjustments. (Hard to tell unless you were the one who did it).