If you’re doing an alignment, you have to worry about more than just caster, camber, and toe. For the most part, those angles are adjustable, but there are certain diagnostic angles that you need to make sure that you look at on your machine, and this is the benefit of having a modern machine.
The first of the diagnostic angles you should be looking at with your machine is the setback. The setback is a measurement of how the tires are positioned on the vehicle. The setback can show you that there may be damage in one corner of the vehicle that you should investigate and inspect and probably replace some of the suspension parts.
The other angle to pay attention to is the steering axis inclination or the Ackermann angles in some cases. This is the angle that shows how the steering works with the caster and also the tow. It also shows how the steering system is performing. If there is a bent part, let’s say a tie rod end or even a steering arm on the knuckle that will cause issues, and the customer could be experiencing uneven tire wear or issues with the steering feeling unstable, or the whole vehicle feeling unstable, this is important to look at.
Watch the full video above for more.
This video brought to you by Auto Value and Bumper To Bumper.
Watch more videos in the Maintenance IQ series here.
The post Check All the Angles When Doing an Alignment appeared first on Tire Review Magazine.
