Adjustment of angles of installation of wheels. Why is the wheel alignment set on the car?

One of the most underestimated violations of the technical condition of used cars is the lack of wheel alignment. Sometimes drivers are unaware of this and use their four wheels as usual. This unawareness - because it is usually to blame for everything - has its consequences. Which?

What is a collapse?

This parameter applies to wheels on the same axle, so it is set separately for the front and rear wheels. We are talking about the so-called convergence of the track angles, in other words, whether both wheels, right and left, are relatively parallel to each other. The deviation limit allowed for measurement is only 3 degrees. This is called the angle of convergence, and when it is positive, the circles are said to simply converge, and at -3 degrees, they are said to diverge. On the other hand, toe-in does not occur when the front discs are closer apart than the rear discs. Different brands have different alignments, but too much or too little overlap can have negative consequences.

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Wrong alignment check value - consequences

This parameter primarily affects driving comfort, steering accuracy, speed of suspension elements and tires, and traffic safety. If the wheels are not properly aligned in relation to each other, sooner or later we will feel the consequences, and these may include:

• difficulty or inability to maintain a straight line of travel,
• uneven tire wear
• incorrect rolling resistance value (a car on a straight road loses speed faster, consumes more fuel and has a greater or lesser effect on the driving performance of the car),
• torque delay due to an incorrect value of the tire-to-road contact surface (thus, the car can create a feeling of inertia in tight corners, and even lead to a collision with little driver experience).

Camber setting

To be sure that the car we use has the correct toe-in, it is worth regularly subjecting it to the so-called suspension and wheel geometry check. Sebastian Dudek, expert at Autotesto, says: – As experts, we advise you to do this on average once a year, especially after changing seasonal tires, because then there is a greater chance that a toe-in correction is required.

“We do not recommend adjusting the wheels yourself, because there is even more risk of making a mistake, and a deviation of even 0,5 degrees can turn into a big problem while driving,” the expert adds.

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