Alignment Question

[Weasel]

almost a full degree of difference towards the better for tire life!

[omodos]

never got mine done, what is the actual process of getting alignment?do the wheels come off?

[X Foomph]

Originally Posted by omodos

never got mine done, what is the actual process of getting alignment?do the wheels come off?

No, quite the contrary. The wheels are (must be) fitted on the vehicle with specific aligning tools which are clamped onto all 4 rims, once levelled they send signals forwards onto receivers (connected to a computer) which indicate settings such as toe in, camber etc. The mechanic then manually changes settings to where they should be. Computers are used to come up with required & final values.
That's about all I know, I think weasel could probably take over here and give you a better insight.
This was the report that I recvd just recently after fitting new rims & tyres : Wheel Alighnment Data. 16.10....pdf you'll note before and after plus factory alignment settings in the 3 columns.
If you havn't done an alignment for some time you should at least do a visual on the insides of the rears.
Hope this helps

[omodos]

thanks fella will do a visual first and then take it from there, I run the risk of losing my fiancee if I carry on my obsession with the x5, I take more care of it than I do her she says! hmmm again thanks

[omodos]

Darn, my rear 19" Tires are bald on the inside (about 1.5 inches towards centre of tire)but no wires exposed, would you recommend I get the wheels aligned and then and then hope for the best?do I need to align the front at the same time?and does anyone have the optimum measurements for 19" turnanzas?

I noticed the rear wheels were toed in but thought it normal, pretty dum cos I should have realised that all the traction was being focused on the areas of the tires that is now worn....

[Weasel]

The rear tires are going to be towed in a bit normally, And Foomph seems to have covered the alignment details pretty well

And the front and rear whels are all aligned at the same time.

And if your fiance doesn't understand the love for the X5, get her one to drive around! Then she will fall in love with it as well. After all fiance is just one letter away from finance... and does roughly translate to "expensive girlfriend"

[omodos]

thanks for that, wot if my front tires are wearing evenly, can I just get the rears done as they are the problem?or will sorting the rears have an effect on the front too?

[Weasel]

It is always done at the same time, and wouldn't make a difference in price anyways... And the rears can have indirect affects on the front via thrust angle.

[fiber46is]

Seems that many think that you need to get alignment when going e.g. from 17" to 19" wheels, that's not the case.
Usually you should keep the tire diameter same or to be exact, the length of tire circle the same, and by doing that you don't need the alignment.

But, when you change the width of the tire, then the alignment gets more important. And even more when you change the size, width AND tire profile e.g. from 235/65/17 to 315/35/20. Taller tire is more flexible than thin tire and therfore due to incorrect alignment you will see the uneven tire wear faster in wide&thin tire.

Here is a good writing of wheel alignment http://www.familycar.com/alignment.htm

[mikerx5]

i went from a 17" to 20" as well and while i was getting some service done my tech mentioned the fronts are not wearing correctly and asked if i was getting some vibration when breaking at high speeds ( I am ). Well, it's winter here in RI and it's time to get these off - do I need another alignment when i put the stock set up back on? Or does one cover both setups?