Toe Out Alignment
18th Oct 2022
Cars can last a lifetime if you treat them right, and the key to prolonging their lifespan is regular maintenance and repair. For instance, a regular family-car tire will last70,000 miles, but once it reaches its limit, it must be replaced. The same goes for all car parts, including wheels.
However, you can maximize the potential of your wheels and tires with the help of acar wheel balancer. Read on to learn more about wheel alignment, specifically toe-out.
What Is Wheel Alignment?
Even though it’s often neglected, wheel alignment is a crucial part of regular car maintenance. Its goal is to ensure you have control of your vehicle at all times. In essence, the procedure returns your wheels back to their initial adjustment. In other words, it aligns the wheels to the patterns stated in the vehicle’s manufacturer specifications.
Wheel alignment eliminates chances for malfunction, prolongs the life of your tires, and improves the riding experience. For optimal results, you should align your wheels at every oil change or every time you pass 6,000 miles.
Toe Out vs Toe In Alignment
Every car has special manufacturer specifications. Simply put - what works for one vehicle might not work for the other. So, when aligning your wheels, you must pay special attention to manufacturer specifications. This includes the three alignment configuration patterns – camber, caster, and toe. Your car must have the same patterns at all times to perform with ease.
Toe is also known as tracking. It stands for the distance between the back and the front of your wheels. To understand the concept better, imagine drawing two lines; one from the left wheel’s front to the right wheel’s front and another between their backs.
When the fronts of your wheels are bent toward each other more than the rears, that’s called a toe-in. In other words, if the line between the fronts of the wheel is shorter than the one between the backs. Toe-out is when the rears are closer than the fronts of the wheel or when the imaginary line between the back of the wheels is shorter than the one between the fronts.
Toe-in is also known as positive alignment, while toe-out is known as negative alignment. When the toe is zero, the wheels are parallel. Toe alignment is important because it ensures that all your wheels drive in the same direction.
Why Is a Car Wheel Balancer Important?
Remember – wheel alignment is a regular part of car maintenance. If you don’t do it, you are endangering not only your car’s health but also your own safety. So, besides toe alignment, pay special attention to the caster and camber as well. All three configuration patterns are needed for maintaining your vehicle the right way.
Car wheel balancers play an important role in all of this because they return the vehicle back to its original configuration. For instance, the toe settings in your car might change as you drive it. And multiple factors influence this change, including driving speed. So, drivers need balancers, and they are the only way to return your car to its normal state.
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Looking for high-quality vehicle equipment?Visit JMC Automotive Equipment - a widely acknowledged shop for all types of automotive tools and equipment! We pride ourselves in offering affordable, high-quality products. Our team has helped countless auto shops and individual car owners!
With us, you can rest assured your car gets the treatment it deserves. From wheel balancers to paint booths, we have everything you need!