Should I realign?

[fmicle]

Another question I wonder about is, if I only measure tire to tire, how can I make sure that the tires are actually pointing straight forward with respect to the wheel position? I mean, I could have zero toe, but maybe both tires are pointing 1 degree left or right, which I couldn't tell with the naked eye. I think if I measure tire to tire I wouldn't catch that. But then, it probably doesn't really matter, since the steering wheel will only be off by some fraction of a degree?

[Loren]

Originally Posted by fmicle

Another question I wonder about is, if I only measure tire to tire, how can I make sure that the tires are actually pointing straight forward with respect to the wheel position? I mean, I could have zero toe, but maybe both tires are pointing 1 degree left or right, which I couldn't tell with the naked eye. I think if I measure tire to tire I wouldn't catch that. But then, it probably doesn't really matter, since the steering wheel will only be off by some fraction of a degree?

That's why you test drive after you adjust toe. If the steering wheel is off-center, you adjust each side accordingly to bring it back to center. Tedious, but doable.

You know when they align your car on a rack, all they do is center the steering wheel by eye and prop a special tool between the seat and the wheel to hold it there, right? That part of an alignment is as low-tech as it gets. (which is why it's not uncommon to have to bring a car back after an alignment due to the steering wheel being slightly off-center.