Alignment: Description and Operation
Wheel Alignment Angles
Camber, caster and toe are adjustable for the front suspension system. The front camber and caster are adjusted by first aligning the subframe and, if necessary, by resetting the alignment plates on the shock towers. The front toe is adjusted by the use of the front wheel spindle tie-rod.
Camber
Negative and Positive Camber:
Negative and Positive Camber
Camber is the vertical tilt of the wheel when viewed from the front. Camber can be positive or negative and has a direct effect on tire wear.
Caster
Caster is the deviation from vertical of an imaginary line drawn through the ball joints when viewed from the side. The caster specifications will give the vehicle the best directional stability characteristics when loaded and driven. The caster setting is not related to tire wear.
Toe
Positive Toe (Toe In):
Positive Toe (Toe In)
Negative Toe (Toe Out):
Negative Toe (Toe Out)
The vehicle toe setting:
^ affects tire wear and directional stability.
^ must be checked after adding aftermarket equipment, such as a snowplow or body.
Ride Height
The vehicle ride height can be checked by measuring the distance between the lip of the fender(s) and the ground. The vehicle must be in a level, static ground position with full fluids and the fuel tank at least half full.
Ride Height Correction
If there is a ride height concern, such as the front or rear of the vehicle being higher or lower than normal or an apparent lean, it should be corrected before aligning the vehicle. Any heavy items such as tool boxes, sample cases or any other items should be removed.
If no unusual load is present, check for damaged components or nonstandard replacement suspension components.
Dogtracking:
Wheel Track
Dogtracking:
Dogtracking
Dogtracking is the condition in which the rear axle is not square to the chassis. Heavily crowned roads can give the illusion of dogtracking.
Wander
Wander is the tendency of the vehicle to require frequent, random left and right steering wheel corrections to maintain a straight path down a level road.
Shimmy
Shimmy, as observed by the driver, is large, consistent, rotational oscillations of the steering wheel resulting from large, side-to-side (lateral) tire/wheel movements.
Shimmy is usually experienced near 64 km/h (40 mph), and can begin or be amplified when the tire contacts pot holes or irregularities in the road surface.
Nibble
Sometimes confused with shimmy, nibble is a condition resulting from tire interaction with various road surfaces and observed by the driver as small rotational oscillations of the steering wheel.
Poor Returnability/Sticky Steering
Poor returnability and sticky steering is used to describe poor return of the steering wheel to center after a turn or steering correction.
Drift/Pull
Pull is a tugging sensation, felt by the hands on the steering wheel, that must be overcome to keep the vehicle going straight.
Drift describes what a vehicle with this condition does with hands off the steering wheel.
^ A vehicle-related drift/pull, on a flat road, will cause a consistent deviation from the straight-ahead path and require constant steering input in the opposite direction to counteract the effect.
^ Drift/pull may be induced by conditions external to the vehicle (i.e., wind, road crown).
Poor Groove Feel
Poor groove feel is characterized by little or no buildup of turning effort felt in the steering wheel as the wheel is rocked slowly left and right within very small turns around center or straight-ahead (under 20 degrees of steering wheel turn). Efforts may be said to be "flat on center."
^ Under 20 degrees of turn, most of the turning effort that builds up comes from the mesh of gear teeth in the steering gear. In this range, the steering wheel is not yet turned enough to feel the effort from the self-aligning forces at the road wheel or tire patch.
^ In the diagnosis of a readability problem, it is important to understand the difference between wander and poor groove feel.