to aline or not to aline
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 177
Likes: 0
From: sunrise fl
to aline or not to aline
my car drifts back and forth when driveing is that an allinement or something else (i have new tires new tire rods new rotters and new front bearings) :cool:
Team Owner
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 27,818
Likes: 8
From: CT
Re: to aline or not to aline (fastrob)
An alignment can NOT hurt. I haven't done one on my car since I got it back in 1996. I will do it very soon as mine isn't the most stable thing. It's probably wayy out. Get it done, it'll help.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Mar 1999
Posts: 3,029
Likes: 137
From: Nashville TN area
Re: to aline or not to aline (fastrob)
new tires won't affect previous alignment settings as long as they're the same size overall diameter..
new tie rod ends tho, while you can get close to how they were, usually should be re-aligned after the job is done.
worn out wheel hubs/bearings can also cause wandering.. and so can weak shocks.. loose suspension in the rear often plays a bigger role in unstable / tracking feel.. grab all your wheels, one at a time of course and try wiggling them from the 9 and 3 o'clock positions and also the 6 and noon positions.. if you get side to side movement, it's usually associated with tie rod ends and top to bottom movement is usually associated with wheel hubs/bearings.. the wheels will not have ANY play, not even a slight wiggle if everything is in great shape.
it helps to have a buddy to wiggle the tire while you watch for which areas exhibit play in them..
new tie rod ends tho, while you can get close to how they were, usually should be re-aligned after the job is done.
worn out wheel hubs/bearings can also cause wandering.. and so can weak shocks.. loose suspension in the rear often plays a bigger role in unstable / tracking feel.. grab all your wheels, one at a time of course and try wiggling them from the 9 and 3 o'clock positions and also the 6 and noon positions.. if you get side to side movement, it's usually associated with tie rod ends and top to bottom movement is usually associated with wheel hubs/bearings.. the wheels will not have ANY play, not even a slight wiggle if everything is in great shape.
it helps to have a buddy to wiggle the tire while you watch for which areas exhibit play in them..
Drifting
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 1,295
Likes: 2
From: Surprise Arizona
Re: to aline or not to aline (mikey)
If yours is a high mileage car theres one more thing to consider if all else is good. The universals and leathers on the stearing shaft (from the firewall down to the rack) can get sloppy. You will notice a considerable amount of play in the wheel if they are worn out.
Pro
Joined: Mar 1999
Posts: 532
Likes: 0
From: Cleveland Ohio
Re: to aline or not to aline (fastrob)
Is the wheel moving while the car is wandering? If not then it's as mentioned, sloppy steering. If the wheel does move or tug at you then it's just the tires following the road contours...Frank
Burning Brakes
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 1,238
Likes: 0
From: walled lake MI
Re: to aline or not to aline (fastrob)
another alignment setting to check is the front caster. this angle makes the front wheels want to move back to the straight position. i have about 6 degrees on mine and it tracks pretty straight.
also, like Frank C mentioned, the vette likes to follow the road contours. another related phenomena, in my case, depending on which way the road is tilting, the car will go in the "downhill" direction very slowly. (i.e. if the left side of the road is tilted down, the car will drift to the left.) i thought this was an alignment or tire problem, but after driving on a couple of different roads led me to think that the road tilt is the cause. getting a smidge of toe-in would help this i think, and may help your situation too.
but again, it doesn't hurt to check your alignment.
good luck!
also, like Frank C mentioned, the vette likes to follow the road contours. another related phenomena, in my case, depending on which way the road is tilting, the car will go in the "downhill" direction very slowly. (i.e. if the left side of the road is tilted down, the car will drift to the left.) i thought this was an alignment or tire problem, but after driving on a couple of different roads led me to think that the road tilt is the cause. getting a smidge of toe-in would help this i think, and may help your situation too.
but again, it doesn't hurt to check your alignment.
good luck!
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