Frax Posted March 14, 2015 Share Posted March 14, 2015 Well a little while ago I changed some ball joints and my steering went a bit haywire. I run 33” tyres and the string method of alignment just did not work for me. Today I decided to have a look and see if I could get the steering set up a bit better so armed with a good tape measure I went for it. Get underneath and hold the tape measure on the edge of the inside of the wheel rim and stretch across to the other wheel and touch the tape on the opposite side at the same height and lock it. Take a reading – my front was 66mm rim to rim. This was as near to centre on the horizontal as I could get. Do the same at the back of the wheel rim at about the same height as the front – lock and take a reading – my back was 58mm which was giving me 8mm toe out, as far as I know it should be 2mm toe out. Loosen the lock nuts on the back tie bar and adjust till you get the 2mm toe out and lock the locking nuts back up. Measure at the same point back and front to confirm that it has not moved when locking the lock nuts. Just thought I would share. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muddy Posted March 15, 2015 Share Posted March 15, 2015 You should mark the wheel rims where you are measuring and then roll the car backwards or forwards until the marks are ~180* from original and re measure, this should eliminate and rim or hub irregularities. This is how I was taught to do tractors by Goodyear. Will. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmgemini Posted March 15, 2015 Share Posted March 15, 2015 Please do not use the wheel rims. They could be bent. Use the tyre wall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vulcan bomber Posted March 15, 2015 Share Posted March 15, 2015 I set my tracking off the brake discs and with no toe in or out.. Then take it to my mot station for a double check. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snagger Posted March 16, 2015 Share Posted March 16, 2015 Tyre walls are going to have more discrepancy than the rims. The bit to use is the vertical face of the bead seat, not the very lip of the rim, which as Mike says is prone to minor damage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frax Posted March 16, 2015 Author Share Posted March 16, 2015 I would not use the tyre as I have seen some large eggs on tyres, you could always turn the wheels a few times after setting and then recheck if you think your wheels are damaged or bent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reb78 Posted March 16, 2015 Share Posted March 16, 2015 Doing what Muddy describes though removes the worry about imperfections doesn't it? If you mark the rim or tyre and measure in the same place after rotating 180 degrees, then you are measuring the same thing and as you are looking at the difference, any imperfections wont affect this??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muddy Posted March 16, 2015 Share Posted March 16, 2015 Exactly right Reb. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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