Car people: Wheels need realigned...or worse?

Factual Questions
1

My car has recently taken to having a shudder in the steering wheel when I drive. It is more obvious at low speeds, with the steering wheel moving over an inch (up and down) with each revolution of the wheels. It also pulls to the left when I take my hands off the steering wheel.

So, it is merely a quick job of having the wheels realigned, or can there be a more serious problem? The car is only 2 years old, and still under warranty, but it doesn’t cover wear & tear (which realignment of wheels is under).

I have just left it in a local garage to be looked at, but as I know zero about cars other than how to drive them, I don’t want to be shafted when I go back, with them making up some dubious excuse about this and that being wrong.

If there was a more serious problem that would cause the steering wheel to jerk and shudder when driving, what would / could it be?

Thanks all.

2

Never mind. The (for once) honest garage phoned back to say it was my tyres, which need immediate replacement.
He said it was lucky I haven’t written the car off, the state they were in! He doesn’t stock the tyres and therefore no charge (from him).

I really need to learn something about looking after cars before I kill myself. :eek:

3

FYI a tyre specialist told me the other day that if you can feel vibrations through the steering wheel then there’s a problem with the front wheels, if you can feel it through the bodywork then it’s the back ones.

4

Yep, I had a look at them and they are totally bald. I dirve a Clio sport and apparently they are very rough on the front tyres. Back tyres still look brand new.
Lucky I didn’t get any ponts on my licence for this infraction.

Annoying thing is, none of the renault dealers stock the tyres for their own car!! Have been phoning around for about two hours now and only just got a set now! :mad:

5

You know, that’s one of the reasons for “rotating” one’s tires: to equalize the wear on all four tires. It also forces you to take a look atyour tires once in a while…

6

Just a couple of thoughts. Apparently, this vehicle is a prime candidate for tire rotation on a frequent, regular basis. If the fronts are bald, and the backs like new, my guess is they’ve probably never been rotated. Doing so on a regular basis will spread the wear around and make them all last longer. (Tires “age” even when the tread isn’t wearing down, which can lead to blowouts.)

The other thought is that it’s pretty bizarre that you can’t find tires for this vehicle. A couple quickie searches gave me a tire size of 195/50/R15 for a Clio Sport, which is a slightly narrower size than average, but not by much. Not having any idea what the NI in “Hillsborough, NI” stands for I can’t even guess what your area is like but, if all else fails, tires are available via the Internet and UPS.

7

The actual wheels on my car are 175 / 60 /14 , so the man at the garage says. And it is a very rare size around here, not carried in stock by many places.
But I found some and are having them fitted at 3.30, so I will be safe to drive home tonight, at least.

The NI is Northern Ireland, BTW. Probably a litle further away than you were thinking. :wink:

On the rotation thing: I had heard of it, but considering it took me about a half hour to work out how to open my bonnet to put water in the windscreen cleaner thing, I don’t think rotating the tyres is something I think of doing.

As I said, think I have to start learning something about cars very soon. :confused:

8

Around here, the places that specialize in selling tires, also rotate them for cheap or free. Ask around, maybe you’ll get a pleasant surprise!

9

NI-Northern Ireland? hmm, never heard of that state. Is it near Canada?

:wink:

10

Em…yeah, way up north.

Since this is GQ, here’s a follow-up question: How do you spell tyre (when its on a vehicle)? Is it tyre or tire? Or both?

11

Since this is GQ, here’s a follow-up question: How do you spell tyre (when its on a vehicle)? Is it tyre or tire? Or both?

In the British Isles, it’s tyre. In the U.S., it’s tire. I don’t know about Canada.

Just a note relating to the OP–steering wheel shimmy and vibration are not typical symptoms of misalignment. They are typical symptoms of certain tire problems and of loose steering/suspension parts.

12

So I just found out :wink:

While I’m being educated in stuff to do with cars, what is the symptoms shown when the car needs wheel realignment, so I’ll notice it when that happens?

God, I’m so wick when it comes to cars. I blame my dad!

13

Typical indicators of misalignment are uneven tire wear, pulling (the car does not go reasonably straight with hands off the steering wheel), and the vehicle not going straight ahead when the steering wheel is in the straight-ahead position. Some forms of improper tire wear are not obvious to the untrained, so it’s a good idea to have the tires visually inspected by a pro every so often.

A car can maintain good alignment for years, so it’s not always necessary to have routine alignments as maintenance. On the other hand, any car can have its alignment thrown out of whack at any moment, typically by hitting the curb (kerb?) or a pothole.

Wheel alignment adjustments are done to the hundredth of an inch and the quarter of a degree, which cannot be discerned with the naked eye. If you want to be certain that the alignment is right, the only way to know is to have measurements taken on an alignment machine. There will of course be a fee to do that.

A sensible thing to do is have an alignment done when new tires are installed, to maximize their life. And of course it should be considered if any of the symptoms mentioned above occur. It’s hard to make a strong case for doing alignments in the absence of those situations, but if you want the peace of mind and it fits your budget, you can have one done every year or two.

14

Typical indicators of misalignment are uneven tire wear, pulling (the car does not go reasonably straight with hands off the steering wheel), and the vehicle not going straight ahead when the steering wheel is in the straight-ahead position. Some forms of improper tire wear are not obvious to the untrained, so it’s a good idea to have the tires visually inspected by a pro every so often.

A car can maintain good alignment for years, so it’s not always necessary to have routine alignments as maintenance. On the other hand, any car can have its alignment thrown out of whack at any moment, typically by hitting the curb (kerb?) or a pothole.

Wheel alignment adjustments are done to the hundredth of an inch and the quarter of a degree, which cannot be discerned with the naked eye. If you want to be certain that the alignment is right, the only way to know is to have measurements taken on an alignment machine. There will of course be a fee to do that.

A sensible thing to do is have an alignment done when new tires are installed, to maximize their life. And of course it should be considered if any of the symptoms mentioned above occur. It’s hard to make a strong case for doing alignments in the absence of those situations, but if you want the peace of mind and it fits your budget, you can have one done every year or two.

Now, it is wise to rotate the tires regularly, as mentioned above. Starting off with four new ones, rotation is typically called for every 6,000-8,000 miles (10-13K km?). In this case, I assume you have new tires on the front only. The time to rotate them is after the fronts have worn enough to have somewhat less tread than the rears. After that the 6-8K miles schedule should be appropriate.

God, I’m so wick when it comes to cars. I blame my dad!

Well, none of us were born knowing this stuff, and not everyone is interested in it. If you don’t care much about learning and/or doing car stuff, find a good garage and let them help you.

15

Often times another tire size can be used, it may be 175/65 or 170/60. Check with the dude at the garage. Sometimes the off sizes are a heck of a lot cheaper.