1 / 23

Wheel Alignment Fundamentals

Wheel Alignment Fundamentals. Chapter 67. Objectives. Describe each wheel alignment angle Tell which alignment angles cause wear or pull. Introduction. Correct wheel alignment Allows vehicle to run straight on the highway Little steering effort Minimal tire wear

ginger
Download Presentation

Wheel Alignment Fundamentals

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Wheel Alignment Fundamentals Chapter 67

  2. Objectives • Describe each wheel alignment angle • Tell which alignment angles cause wear or pull

  3. Introduction • Correct wheel alignment • Allows vehicle to run straight on the highway • Little steering effort • Minimal tire wear • This chapter deals with principles of different wheel alignment angles

  4. Wheel Alignment Angles • Five wheel alignment angles • Toe • Camber • Caster • Steering axis inclination (SAI) • Turning radius

  5. Toe • Comparison of distances between fronts and rears of a pair of tires • Alignment angle most responsible for tire wear • Toe-in: tires closer together at the front • Every 1/16" of toe-in results in 11 feet per mile scuff • Tires move sideways for 11 feet out of every mile • Toe-out: tires further apart at the front

  6. Toe (cont'd.) • Causes of incorrect toe • Improper adjustment • Bent steering linkage • Change in caster or camber adjustment • Looseness in steering linkage due to wear • Change in toe on one side of the vehicle • Will be split through steering linkage with the wheel on the other side • Front toe: adjustable on all vehicles • Rear toe adjustable on some

  7. Camber • Camber: inward or outward tilt of tire at top • Adjustable on most vehicles • Positive camber: tire tilts out • Negative camber: tire tilts in • Inside and outside edges of tread on cambered tire have different radii • Rotate at different speeds • Camber angle • Controlled by position of control arms or struts • Camber roll: tire tends to roll in a circle

  8. Caster • Caster: forward or rearward tilt of the spindle support arm • Positive caster: top tilted to the rear • Lead point in front of true vertical • Negative caster: steering axis tilts forward • Moving the point of load behind the wheel • Sometimes adjustable on front wheels • Front wheels have different caster settings • Vehicle will pull toward the side with the most negative caster

  9. Steering Axis Inclination • Amount the spindle support arm leans in at top • Not a tire wearing angle • Three functions • After a turn, SAI helps vehicle return to straight • SAI keeps vehicle going straight down the road • Allows car to have less positive caster • Included angle • Combination of SAI and camber • Some cars with large SAI wear outsides of tires

  10. Scrub Radius • Factor of steering axis inclination • Pivot point for front tire’s footprint • Distance at the road surface between centerline of true vertical and steering axis pivot centerline • More scrub radius makes it harder to steer • Positive camber reduces scrub radius

  11. Scrub Radius (cont'd.) • Causes of incorrect scrub radius • Lower profile tires and offset wheel rims • Tires and wheels too tall installed on RWD vehicle • Bent front suspension member • Damage to frame at crossmember

  12. Turning Radius • When turning: outside wheel must travel in wider arc than inside wheel • Turning radius: alignment angle that controls arc traveled • Also called Ackermann angle • Tires toe out during turn • Steering arms are angled inward or outward

  13. Tracking • Wheel base: distance between front and rear tires • Track: side-to-side distance between axle’s tires • All four wheels should form an exact rectangle • Tracking is off: car tries to steer to the side • Front wheels try to follow direction of rear wheels • Dog tracking: rear axle out of line to the right • Causes steering to be aimed to the right

  14. Set-Back • Amount that one front wheel is behind front wheel on other side • Measured in degrees • Negative angle • Wheel on left side is set back • Cause vehicle to steer to left • Cause brake pull

  15. Special Handling Characteristics • Slip angle: during a turn for a tire to continue turning in the same direction • Amount of slip angle depends on: • Weight exerted vertically on the tire • Tire pressure and wheel alignment setting • Positive camber • Understeer: vehicle does not respond to movement of steering wheel during hard turn • Oversteer: vehicle turns too far in response to steering wheel movement

More Related