Pre-Alignment Steering Suspension Inspection

by Larry Carley c2004

We all know how important it is to inspect the steering and suspension before doing an alignment, so why are so many technicians skipping this essential step?

Not long ago I was in a local tire store (which shall remain nameless to protect the guilty) to have a flat tire fixed on my daughter's car. It was a busy weekday afternoon so I had to wait about an hour before they could take care of me. While sitting in the customer waiting room, I could observe the technicians as they worked in the service bays.

One of the bays was a dedicated alignment bay with an optical alignment system. This is one that uses reflective targets hung on the wheels to identify their location. Four high-resolution digital cameras mounted on a frame detect the position of the reflectors and calculate the alignment angles.

The neat thing about this setup is that the targets require no calibration. You just roll the vehicle back and forth about a foot or so and you're ready to read the alignment angles. The values are displayed on a large color monitor, making it very easy for even a beginner alignment technician to check alignment - maybe too easy.

The young man who was doing the alignments appeared to be about 20 years old. In less than an hour, I watched him hustle four vehicles through the alignment bay.

To the casual observer he appeared to be doing a great job. He'd drive the car onto the rack, jump out and hang the targets on all four wheels, roll the car back and forth so the machine would detect their location, check the readings on the monitor, then disappear under the car for a couple of minutes to make some sort of adjustments. Then he'd remove the targets, pull the car out and pull the next one in. I'm sure his boss was pleased with his productivity.

But what was he missing in his haste to get the alignments done? Probably some worn tie rod ends, ball joints, maybe some bad shocks and struts, some bad control arm bushings or maybe a worn or leaky steering rack. Not once did I see him check ride height or bounce a fender to see if the dampers were getting weak. Nor did I see him do anything that even remotely resembled a pre-alignment inspection.

The vehicles I watched him align were a mixture of old and new, but all received the same 10-minute quickie alignment. It appeared that the only screen he was using on the alignment machine was the one that showed front toe. Toe obviously has the greatest impact on tire wear, but camber can too. And what about rear toe and its affect on thrust angle and directional stability? As far as I could tell he paid no attention to camber or rear toe. As for caster, SAI, thrust angle, toe out on turns, setback or any other checks, forget it. It would probably take him too long.

My guess is that he skipped the pre-alignment inspection and other alignment checks because his main job was to generate alignment income for his boss. This particular tire store doesn't do shocks, struts, suspension or steering repairs, brake jobs or any other service work. They just sell, mount and service tires.

Are the tire customers who are paying for this type of alignment getting their money's worth? No way. Checking and adjusting toe and letting everything else go is NOT the way to do alignments.

Worn or damaged parts cannot hold the wheels in accurate alignment. Worn or damaged parts need to be identified and replaced. That requires a pre-alignment inspection and checking all the alignment angles (front and rear toe, front and rear camber, caster, SAI, thrust angle) and measuring ride height. Overlooked problems can affect steering and handling, tire wear, and may even be a potential safety hazard.

A worn tie rod or ball joint that pulls apart can have serious consequences if the failure occurs at highway speeds. Even something as simple as worn shocks or struts can contribute to increased tire wear, sloppy handling, loss of traction (including braking traction on rough roads) and a poor overall ride.

Maybe the tire store guy saw no reason to do a pre-alignment inspection or other alignment checks. Maybe he was just doing what his boss told him to do. Even so, there's no excuse for skipping these checks if the customer is paying for a complete alignment, even a front-only alignment. And there's no excuse for not telling a customer their vehicle needs repairs even if the shop doesn't do that kind of work.

If you're going to do alignments, do the job right. Give the customer their money's worth. Do a thorough pre-alignment inspection. Check for worn, loose or damaged parts. Measure the ride height. Check the condition of the dampers. Verify all of the alignment angles including camber, caster, SAI and toe-out on turns to detect hidden damage that may not be obvious. And don't let the vehicle go if it has a problem and obviously needs repairs.

The profit margin on steering and suspension work is lot better than on alignments alone, so don't be too quick to skip that all-important pre-alignment inspection.

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Pre-Alignment Steering Suspension Inspection

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