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Why Do I Need A Wheel Alignment?

Reduced Tyre Wear
Improper alignment is a major cause of premature tyre wear. Over the years, a properly aligned vehicle can add thousands of miles to tyre life.

Better Gas Mileage
Gas mileage increases as rolling resistance decreases. Total alignment sets all four wheels parallel which, along with proper inflation, minimizes rolling resistance.

Improved Handling
Does your car pull to one side? Does the steering wheel vibrate? Do you constantly have to move the steering wheel to keep your car traveling straight ahead? Many handling problems can be corrected by total alignment. With all the system components aligned properly, road shock is more efficiently absorbed for a smoother ride.

Safer Driving
A suspension system inspection is part of our alignment procedure. This allows us to spot worn parts before they cause costly problems.

Q. What are the “symptoms” of a car that’s out of alignment?
A. Have your car checked if you notice:

  • Excessive or uneven tyre wear.
  • Steering wheel pulls to the left or right.
  • Feeling of looseness or wandering.
  • Steering wheel vibration or shimmy.
  • Steering wheel is not centered when car is moving straight ahead.
  • Small errors make a big difference
  • Here is a practical example of how seemingly insignificant alignment errors can have big consequences for fuel consumption.

 

1. In the first situation, where the axles are correctly aligned, the semi-trailer in our example consumes 30 litres per 100 km.
3. Here the axles are obliquely oriented (non-parallel) in relation to each other – which is not an uncommon situation. Fuel consumption thereby goes up to 35.6 litres per 100 km, an increase by as much as 18.7 percent.  
2. If the axles on the same trailer are obliquely aligned (out of square) but parallel in relation to each other, also a very common situation,fuel consumption would increase to 31.3 litres per 100 km, an increase by 4.3 percent.  

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