What You Can Do Yourself

When it comes to the performance of your vehicle, proper wheel alignment plays a big role. Proper alignment allows the wheels of your vehicle to meet the road at an ideal angle so that the wheels are working with each other, instead of against. To maintain proper alignment, it’s best to have your vehicle regularly serviced by your local automotive professional, but there are other, DIY methods you can do to ensure your vehicle stays aligned in between services. Before your next drive, make sure you think about these alignment maintenance tips!

Proper Tire PSI

Outside of maintaining the quality and health of your tires, having proper tire PSI will also give you the opportunity to maintain proper alignment of your vehicle. When the tire is over or under-inflated, your vehicle may show the signs of wheel misalignment, even if that isn’t the case. If you ever suspect wheel misalignment, make sure you check the tire PSI first. Although ideal PSI is in between 30-35, you’ll want to review the owner’s manual to see what’s best for your vehicle.

Lighten The Load

Before your next drive, think about taking out some of the heavier items in your vehicle’s trunk. The added weight could mess with the vehicle’s chassis height (the riding height of your vehicle) and cause the back end of the vehicle to sink. This could really hurt your vehicle’s alignment, especially if you are consistently driving in this position over time. If your vehicle is already in this position, make sure to remove the unneeded items from your trunk and visit our shop for a realignment service!

Watch The Roads

Although “pay attention to the road” isn’t really groundbreaking advice, what we mean by this is just watching out for any potholes and debris. These things can wreck your vehicle’s alignment, especially if you hit them at higher speeds. If you can safely avoid these road hazards, please do so. If you cannot avoid these things without putting yourself or other drivers in danger, make sure to check your vehicle afterward for any visible damage. Then, look out for any signs of misalignment. If you do notice signs, then you’ll need a wheel alignment service.

Although these tips are simple to implement, they go a long way to ensuring your vehicle isn’t suffering from misalignment during your next service visit!