Wheel Alignment with Before and After Printout

The most common signs are a pull to one side on a flat road, a steering wheel that sits crooked when driving straight, and tires wearing faster on the inside or outside edge. A hard pothole hit or a curb strike can knock angles out at once, even if the car felt fine the day before.

Watch for:

• Pull or drift: you hold the wheel slightly off to go straight.
• Off-center steering wheel: the logo tilts while the car goes straight.
• Edge wear: one edge wears first. We read tread depth in 32nds of an inch at the inner, center and outer rib of each tire, so the difference is a number on paper and not an opinion. See tire wear patterns.
• Feathered tread: blocks feel sharp one way and smooth the other.
• Squealing tires at low-speed turns.
• Recent work: new tires, struts, tie rods, ball joints, or a lift or leveling kit.

Some roads have a crown that makes any car drift toward the curb. We road test first to separate a road effect from an alignment problem.

For general tire care that goes along with alignment, see NHTSA's tire safety page (opens in a new tab).

All three are angles, and all three are measured in degrees, usually to 0.01 degree. Camber is the tilt of the tire in or out seen from the front. Caster is the tilt of the steering pivot seen from the side. Toe is whether the tires point in or out seen from above. The vehicle maker publishes an allowed range for each one, and that range prints next to your measured number.

Camber

Most passenger cars are specified within about plus or minus 1 degree of camber. Your car's exact range is narrower than that and it is on the printout.

• Negative camber: top of the tire leans in toward the engine. Too much wears the inner edge.
• Positive camber: top leans out. Too much wears the outer edge.
• Side to side: alignment practice commonly treats a left-to-right camber or caster split of about 0.5 degree or more as enough on its own to pull the car.

Caster

Caster affects steering stability and how the wheel returns to center after a turn. It is usually the largest of the three numbers in degrees, and it rarely wears tires by itself, but an uneven split left to right makes a car drift.

Toe

Toe has the biggest effect on tire wear and is specified in a fraction of a degree, often to 0.01, or as total toe in inches or millimeters. Being slightly out scrubs the tread sideways every mile you drive, which is what creates feathering. Toe is also what centers the steering wheel.

Thrust angle

The thrust angle is the direction the rear axle points compared with the car's centerline, also in degrees. If it is off, the car tracks slightly sideways down the road and the steering wheel sits crooked to compensate.

Vehicles with adjustable rear suspension, which includes most modern cars and many crossovers, get a four-wheel alignment: the rear is set first, then the front is set to match. Vehicles with a solid rear axle get a thrust-angle alignment, where the front is set relative to where the rear axle points. We measure all four wheels either way.

Measuring all four corners matters even when only the front can be adjusted. It shows whether a bent rear part is the real cause of a pull.

The printout lists all 12 readings, three angles at each of the four corners, in degrees before and after the adjustment, next to the vehicle maker's allowed range for your year, make and model. Numbers in range usually show in green, out-of-range in red. It is your proof of what was wrong and what we changed, and it is useful for warranty records and for the next shop that looks at the car.

How to read it:

1. Find the spec column. That is the maker's allowed range for each angle, in degrees, and it is specific to your vehicle. There is no universal camber or toe number.
2. Compare the before column. Red values were out of range.
3. Check the after column. Every adjustable angle should be in range.
4. Note non-adjustable angles. Some cars have no factory adjustment for camber or caster. If those are out, the printout shows it, and we explain whether a part is bent or worn.

We walk you through the printout at pickup. A sample is part of our digital inspection sample page.

An alignment only holds if the parts under it are tight. Before adjusting, the tech sets tire pressure to the doorjamb placard, reads tread depth in 32nds, checks ride height, and looks for play in tie rods, ball joints, control arm bushings and wheel bearings. Worn parts get photographed and written up first, because aligning around a loose part wastes your money.

The pre-alignment check:

• Tire pressures set to the number on the driver's doorjamb placard, not to the maximum stamped on the sidewall
• Tread depth in 32nds of an inch at three points across each tire
• Ride height measured and compared with the maker figure, since a sagging spring moves camber before anything else does
• Tie rod ends and inner tie rods
• Ball joints and control arm bushings
• Wheel bearing play
• Struts, shocks and springs for damage
• Adjuster bolts that are seized or at their limit

If a part is worn, we show you and quote it as a need. You decide whether to replace it first. See suspension, shocks and struts for that side of the job.

It can. Many newer cars use cameras and radar for lane keeping, adaptive cruise and emergency braking, and a steering angle sensor that expects the wheel centered. Changing the thrust angle or steering center can mean those systems need a reset or calibration. Your vehicle maker decides when that is required.

What we do:

• Check whether your vehicle maker calls for a steering angle reset or camera calibration after an alignment
• Tell you before the work if it applies
• Perform the steps we can do in the shop, and tell you plainly when calibration has to happen elsewhere
• Note it on the estimate so it is not a surprise

If a driver assistance warning appears after an alignment, call us. We would rather hear about it the same day.

Every alignment ends with a road test. The tech drives the car on a straight stretch to confirm it tracks true and the steering wheel is centered, then checks the ride on a few turns. After that we print the report, recheck tire pressure, and walk you through the results. If anything still feels off, we look again.

After your alignment:

• Tires should wear evenly from here on, so keep rotating them on the 5,000 to 8,000 mile interval most manufacturers publish
• Any pull that remains after a good alignment can come from a tire, and we can test that by swapping tires side to side
• Keep the printout with your records
• Recheck alignment after big pothole hits, curb strikes or suspension work, and any time the inner and outer ribs of one tire stop reading the same depth on the gauge

Pairing an alignment with new tires protects the investment. See alignment after new tires and the tire and alignment bundle.

Alignment angles change slowly, and sometimes all at once. Everyday wear on bushings and tie rods lets the angles drift. A hard pothole, a curb hit while parking, or a speed bump taken too fast can move them in a single moment. Lifting or lowering a vehicle changes them by design.

Common causes around town:

• Curb strikes: tight parking lots and drive-thru lanes are where many front-end bumps happen.
• Potholes and street patches: utility cuts on busy corridors like Foothill Blvd hit hard at speed.
• Worn parts: tie rod ends, ball joints and control arm bushings let the wheel move out of position. An alignment will not hold until they are fixed.
• Suspension work: new struts, control arms or tie rods call for an alignment afterward.
• Height changes: lift kits, leveling kits and lowering springs all need a fresh alignment.
• Heavy loads: a truck that regularly hauls or tows can settle over time.

If the car was fine last week and pulls today, tell us what happened in between. That detail helps us check the right parts first. It is also why we inspect steering and suspension before adjusting anything, and why the suspension and alignment guide is worth a read if you drive a lifted or lowered vehicle.