Wheel Alignment in Austin, Round Rock, Pflugerville and Georgetown

What would happen if you gave an Olympic long-distance runner two different types of athletic shoes to run his next race? Chances are his performance would suffer. The same can be said about your car’s driving potential if its wheel alignment isn’t correctly positioned. When vehicle alignment is not proportioned correctly, they can cause two major problems:

Misaligned Wheels Are Expensive

Driving in a vehicle without proper alignment is an expensive enterprise. Not only does flawed alignment decrease gas mileage and tire life, but it also adds stress to your vehicle, including steering equipment and overall structural damage. Ideally, your vehicle’s wheels should be perpendicular to the ground and parallel to each other. Adjusting the angles of the wheels so that they meet these criteria is how our service professionals ensure your vehicle is properly aligned. In the long run, this service saves you money.

Misaligned Wheels Are Dangerous

Driving in a vehicle without proper alignment is a dangerous idea. A car that is out of alignment can pull or drift away from a straight road, resulting in a possibly fatal situation. Excessive tire wear — another result of bad car alignment — often leads to poor tire traction and even blow-outs, with potentially disastrous consequences. For your own safety, let our alignment experts make sure you’re driving smoothly and safely.

How Do Tires Get Out of Balance?

Your vehicle’s alignment can be impacted by a variety of factors. An obvious indication that you require our computerized alignment service is a major or minor collision that results in physical damage to your vehicle’s frame. Steering problems or the presence of uneven wear patterns on your tires are clear signs that demand immediate attention. But alignment problems don’t only occur by collisions and accidents; problems can arise by something as small as driving over a pothole, or grazing over a curb.

Wheel Misalignment Symptoms

If you know what to look for, it should be clear if your wheels are out of alignement. If you experience the following symptoms while driving, you probably require our computerized alignment services.

Difficult Steering

The angle of a car’s steering pivot is called caster, which can be seen from the side of the vehicle and measured in degrees. Caster alignment plays a large role in evaluating the “feel” of steering and the stability of high-speed transportation. Three to five degrees of positive caster is typical for most vehicles, and lower angles for heavier vehicles are used to keep steering comfortable. A faulty caster angle will cause loose or difficult steering, which leads to tire wear, suspension damage, and unsafe driving.

Pulling While Driving

In wheel suspension, camber is the angle of the wheel in relation to a vertical direction as seen from the front or rear of the car. A negative camber measurement occurs when the top of the wheel leans toward the car; a positive measurement points the wheel away from the car. An ideal camber angle assures optimal tire efficiency, proper steering control, and a precautionary “anti-roll” directive that engineers have adapted into vehicle designs to negate the effects of a body roll. A faulty camber angle works against these safety precautions while creating pulling and tire wear.

Crooked Steering

Like camber and caster, toe is measured by degrees and is another basic aspect of suspension tuning. When a pair of wheels are placed with their front edges pointed toward each other, the pair is defined as “toe-ins.” If the front edges point away from each other, the pair is defined as “toe-outs.” If your tires have the wrong toe, it causes tire wear and prevents your car from easily driving in a straight line.

Benefits of Proper Wheel Alignment and Balancing

After you schedule your appointment for our computerized car wheel alignment, our expert team will get your car properly aligned. You will experience:

  • Tires that last longer
  • Easier steering
  • Improved gas mileage
  • A smoother ride
  • Safer and more secure driving

Visit the Wheel Alignment Experts

Protect the investment you’ve made in your car. More importantly, do what you can to protect yourself and your passengers. If you have any reason to doubt your car’s alignment, don’t wait until it’s too late. Make an appointment today with the experts at Pampered Auto Care.