How Does a Wheel Alignment Work?

Have you ever noticed your vehicle drifting off to one side? If yes, this is mainly when and why you need a wheel alignment. A perfectly and routinely serviced car moves in a straight line, but if you start to notice your vehicle pulling in one direction, there’s something wrong with your wheel alignment. Continuing reading here at Jack Carter Chevrolet to find out how a wheel alignment works and what wonders it can do for your vehicle’s durability and performance. 

Types of Wheel Alignment 

Our certified technicians suggest one of the three most common types of wheel alignment that work best for your vehicle:

• Four-Wheel Alignment: The aim is to bring the vehicle back to its original wheel specifications through four-wheel alignment. A technician aligns all four wheels into the centre, adjusts the rear suspension and fixes the rear axle angles to ensure a smooth on-road performance
• Front-End Alignment: This, as its name suggests, adjusts the front axle of your vehicle
• Thrust Alignment: A thrust alignment adds to a front-end alignment to make certain that all of the wheels are squared with one another.

How Are Wheels Realigned? 

Some of the causes that demand getting your wheels realigned include uneven tread wear, steering wheel vibration, an off-centre steering wheel and a poorly functioning suspension system. To fix all these problems, our skilled technicians and mechanics at Jack Carter Chevrolet work on different wheel elements to properly align them, ensuring a steady and consistent on-road performance. 

Here’s how a wheel alignment is done with the help of an alignment machine:

• The wheel alignment process begins by measuring the wheel angles;
• Necessary adjustments to the caster, camber and toe of each of the four wheels are made and then;
• Using a real-time computer, a technician will ensure whether the proper wheel angles are met or not;
• Before handing over the vehicle for a quick test drive, the technician will check the steering wheel to ensure it aligns with the wheels. 

Visit our showroom in Calgary or call us to schedule a service appointment with our highly experienced and certified technicians for routine car maintenance and auto detailing.