Signs of tyres Misalignment

It’s not always easy to detect if a car’s wheels are misaligned, especially as this can occur gradually over a prolonged period of time.

It’s not always easy to detect if a car’s wheels are misaligned, especially as this can occur gradually over a prolonged period of time. However, some of the key signs that the car’s wheels are not correctly aligned are as follows:

• Uneven tyre wear on the fronts or the rears – tyres suffering from misalignment often show signs of excessive wear on either the inside or outside edges. It is not always easy to visibly see the tyre wear. However, by carefully running your hands over the tyre it is possible to detect if the rubber has worn unevenly or excessively. This should be done with extreme caution as fine wires from the tyre carcass may protrude from the rubber.

• The car pulls to one side – When driving a misaligned car along a straight flat road, you may find that you need to compensate through the steering wheel to keep the car driving straight as the car drifts to one side, especially under braking.

• A crooked steering wheel – Even when the car is driving straight ahead the steering wheel is not straight or level.