Auto Repair Tip: Driving Straight

As a driver, it’s hard to know what you’ll encounter on the roads in Walled Lake. But when a local auto repair shop performs a wheel alignment on your car, you’ll get better gas mileage, more controlled handling, and have a safer drive.

Suspension connects your vehicle to its wheels and provides an even, safe drive over bumpy roads. Your vehicle’s suspension can bend over time from collisions with curbs and potholes. When these parts alter shape, your wheels become crooked and your car will pull to one side or the other, causing your tires to wear quickly and unevenly.

Camber is the angle of the wheel (measured in degrees) when viewed from the front side of the vehicle. When a pair of wheels has their leading edges pointed slightly towards each other, the wheel pair is considered to have a “toe-in” or a negative camber. If the top of the wheels are leaning out from the center of the car, then the camber is “toe-out” or positive. Extreme camber angles can wear out tires unevenly, reduce cornering performance, and affect gas mileage.

Misaligned wheels cause tires to “scrub” or skid along the road at odd angles, wearing them down and decreasing their lifespan. Misaligned wheels cause your tires to work against each other, resulting in lower fuel economy. Safety also becomes an issue as misaligned wheels impact the handling of the car.

Your vehicle’s suspension has adjustable components that allow our auto repair technicians, the best in Walled Lake, to fix the wheel’s camber. We use special equipment to make sure that when you leave our shop, your wheels are straight.

As an auto repair shop, we recommend you have an alignment once a year. If you notice that you have to frequently fight the steering wheel to keep a straight path, stop by or call us right away at (248) 668-1200 to have your alignment corrected!