or atleast i think its a tracking problem..

anyway, a few months ago i hit a pothole at 40mph which ruined one of my wheels and tyre and also knocked the tracking right out or atleast i think it did anyway.

ive been driving with it like that since the pothole and only decided to goto get it sorted today cause i had some free time. anyway, they got it up on the stand thing and check it all... he said it was out 3mm on one side and 2mm on the other.. i was quite shocked as that doesnt seem alot atall to me! i was expecting atleast 7mm on each side as the steering wheel is atleast 1/8th of the way round when driving in a straight line.

so anyway.. he sorted the tracking and showed me the lazers and everything to prove it was all lined up to the book (his manual thing) and yes, it was all lined up with itself and the rear wheels.

so i got the car out.. paid my £24.95 and went home.

tracking is actually worse and the steering wheel is actually further out than it was before!... so now im starting to think that either the guy did it wrong or that maybe there is another problem and that it isnt the tracking?

I got a month gaurntee on the tracking anyway so ill try another garage in the area tomorrow and see if they make it any better but ill specificaly stress how far out the steering wheel is (its a kwik fit)

so is there anything else it could be other than the tracking? maybe something bent etc?

yeah im afraid it could be a lot bent! if you hit the pot hole hard enough to trash a wheel then you've probably bent the bottom arm. maybe even the strut. also the anti roll bar if it has one. stering rack i would have thought should be ok. the hub carrier will be ok too as you have to really give it a whack to bend them. its easy to set up tracking on those laser rigs ( i used to use one ) but its the rest of the settings you need to know about like - camber, castor, king pin inclination. however you can sort of see if its bent if you park the car straight and level, wheels forward. look at good side and measure gaps in front and back of tyre to wheel arch then compare with suspect side. if it does look bent i think youd need strut and bottom arm for starters.
lets hope its just an incompetent spanner monkey. kwik fit you say? or is that where you are taking it next?
good luck!

well he didnt seems to speak very good english... but he was wearing a brake specialist badge so must atleast know where the wheels are...

i now the struts ok.. or atleast looks fine and the arm looks fine.. no visible dentage etc. fingers crossed it is just the idiot mechanic!...

oh, i also had my tracking done before at the same place.. it came back with the car pulling the otherway lol. kwik fit are usless lol

Hi,
Make sure the guys doing the tracking put the front wheels on swivel plates and the steering wheel is at the centre position and locked.
If the wheels aren't on the swivel plates you end up deforming the lower arm inner bushes whenthe track is adjusted, and if the wheel ain't locked it will move when track is adjusted..

ps. I agree Kwik Fit are crap, and expensive....

Thanks
Paul T

he did put it on the plates and did lock the wheel.. but i seem to remember that it was in the different position when he took the lock off... so maybe he didnt lock it properly...

ah well.. ill try tomorrow

Tracking has to be done with the rack centred, anything else and the ackerman angles will be all over the place.

Cheers

D

i used to get my tracking done anywere but was never really happy wit it, until one day i took teh plunsg went to local race/rally center shop place. was £50 for tracking there but i havee to say was worth everypenny. they was big print out with all before readings and after readings, they went for test drive before and after also., they even weighted car down to simulate half load on suspension and adjusted tyre pressures if out. and when it was done all the reading were explained. need to go there again. as me punto goes to left slightly

that sounds like a proper job! probably using much the same equipment that kwik fit has but they know how to use it and that theres more to wheel alignment than tracking.
just goes to show you get what you pay for. and in kwik fits case you get less than what you pay for. hehe.

well i took it back today and had them do it again free of charge... the car now pulls to the other side... cant really be bothered to take it back but i might try another kwik fit tomorrow (if they are open sundays?)... 3rd time lucky hey.

wonder if prodrive down 'ere would do tracking at least they'd do it properly

yeah was deffinatly a proper job they even improved my thrust angle oo-er acording to teh figures on the print off lol

I recently got the wheel alignment done on my integrale and it cost £70 by a company in Bournemouth who have a great 4 wheel laser machine that they said cost them 50K, you get full computerised prints of before and after including toe, camber, castor & thrust angle. It could be the best money I've ever spent the car tracks true and the handling has been a revelation, it was good before but its amazing now. I know its a different car being 4WD and fully adjustable all round it is very sensitive to different setups, but the process they do is exactly the same on a 2WD car as it is on 4WD and I will be using them once I get the Cinq's suspension changed.

You really should get the alignment checked every year or 12,000miles and after changing anything in the suspension, bushes, springs, shocks, track rod ends, anything that alters the suspension in anyway.

Aaron.

i think when i get my new wheels i'll find a place to do a proper job of the alignment

Bush, after the 2nd adjustment, it seems likely that something is amiss.

Here's what to do to try and find out the trouble

1. Get the car on a flat level surface
2. Handbrake on and front wheels pointing straight, disregard steering wheel.
3. Measure the gap from your tyre to the arch at three o'clock on the damaged side and compare it to the undamaged side and see if it's different, if the measurement is diferent then somethings up.

Liam

Was told by a friend who does cars - if you have power steering, the car must be running and wheel in the center to get "true" postition.