How to Make a cheap DIY alignment tool
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 23 ต.ค. 2021
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Slotted Angle ⇾ amzn.to/3pnVGOl
Tape Measure Pack ⇾ amzn.to/3pnW3IJ
Manufactured Tool ⇾ amzn.to/3mMbqJn
I found a better way to preform a front end alignment at home. In this video we will go over how to make a cheap DIY alignment tool and how to set it up, so you can get the best alignment possible. This method will save you money, time, and really allow you to dial in your front end alignment.
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#howto #alignment #Diy
You should have measured the distance between the two tape measures and make sure that it was the same on both sides so it would be square. Because if a 1/16 of an inch makes a difference, then your tapes having different gaps would definitely affect your outcome
Never had confidence with scribing tire and measuring. Never wanted to spend money on tools sold by manufacturers. So this is going to to be my new method for sure. Thanks.
I used fishing line going front to back equal distance from center of wheel tided to jack stands. I measured from rim to line with caliper and figured amount of toe in by figuring difference between center to center of the tire to rim to rim. Your toe-in measurement will be proportionally smaller by the center tire mesurement is to the rim. Make sure your rims are straight by lifting the tire and spin the tire using something like a rod attached to a jack stand. Now simply subtract the front meaurement from the back. Three other things. Level ground, steering wheel tied straight ahead and I used two plactic place mats from the dollar store to allow the the front wheels to move. Wiggle the wheels after each adjustment to make sure of proper measurment. If you have independent rear suspension do the same for rear. Tools, fishing line, tape measure, four dollar store place mats, claiper or fine scale measuring ruler, calculator or smart phone. If your front and rear wheels are different width set your string equal distance from the center line of the car. The distance between the line has to be the same front and rear and equal from center of the wheels front and rear. Idea is to get to parallel lines to the center of the vehicle. Most cases toe is all you need or can set on most cars.
Thank you. I have been using a straight edge to make marks on the driveway but I like your way better, I will try it next time. Wish Harbor Freight made a cheap setup. Would be nice to gauge off the rim instead because the tires aren't always perfect and the raised letters get in the way.
For those who are interested to 4 wheel for I.F.S. front end use a string at centerline of front and rear wheels to check. With string tight around both tires you can see if they are out if one side of your front tires are not touching the string
thanks for sharing the wisdom!
Another problem is that tires are far from perfect. I have tried this and found that as the tire is rotated, the dimension changes because of variations in the sidewall rubber. To be accurate it must be done from the wheels, as a shop would do it.
I would make sure to put even tire pressure in both tires to make this method more accurate .. but I would try this method in the future 👍🏾
Do I have to take my x3 BMW to Bmw for a wheel alignment? I have done them myself on other cars unless there’s something special with the BMW some computer things are resetting it’s a 2015 X3.
Might be a good point to remember to equate tyre pressure
Here’s my comment….while I like the idea overall, some considerations….first of all tires and wheels almost always have runout….so my preference would be to determine where the runout is….using a dial indicator….or something as simple as spinning the wheel and marking the high spot (wobble) on both tires and clock your placement of the cross bar in the middle of runout (splitting the difference on both sides.) Also on your jeep, and my Honda crv (had a wreck and bent front end parts, which I fixed…hence my need for a cheap alignment), you could also of utilized the slot in your wheels, and used one of your bungee or ratchet straps, through that slot in the wheel just to grab your slotted angle at the mid point and held it that way. Also, toe adjustments are usually given in degrees of angle, and 1 degree of angle, is 1” at 57.3 (or 57 1/4” works too) inches from the pivot point of your wheel, so if your car calls for 1/8” toed in, (2) 6ft pieces of rigid angle held on like your slotted angle, you could measure out front @ 24” and out at 57.25” and get a pretty precise toe adjustment. Not sure your really short angle is all that precise, since if you extrapolated your measurements out even 57” out front, your adjustment would be within spec. Also I would go drive your Jeep, and pull it in, again and set up your toe alignment setup again and see if it was truly repeatable, meaning did your adjustments still match what you set on the video….I’m thinking since if there is any tire/wheel runout, it might be off perhaps a decent amount, but again I like the easy idea for attaching the bar to the wheel, and that it measure toe with the suspension loaded. Nice video.
How long was the angle pieces?? Thanks for the videos!!
Muchas gracias por compartir, una pregunta; si tienen diferente medida atras y adelante las ruedas, suponiendo esten abiertas del frente(o sea midan mas que atras), ¿como decides cuanto cerrar cada rueda, pues puede estar mas abierta una que la otra, respecto al centro entre ruedas: ejemplo, si tienes una diferencia de 3/8" mas en el frente, le cerrarias 1/4" a una, y 1/8" a la otra?? o como se reparte?, ayudame a entender por favor, quisiera alinear mi caravan, pues le veo mas salida la rueda izquierda que la derecha...gracias! saludos desde Aguascalientes México
Another question: how do you know which tire (right or left) to adjust, and by how much?
How you know what weel needed adjusted???
The only problem I see with this method is it doesn't include individual wheel alignment from side to side using the rear tires as a reference. So yes the tires will have a good toe adjustment between the front tires but may not be in alignment with all four tires.
Whe using bungy cords wear eye protection. I know someone who lost an eye stretching a cord over a roof rack. It's a fairly common injury
Where is the link to the alternative tool?
You seem to be just completely guessing which side is out with this method and you could very easily end up with a parallelagram with the correct measurements but not running parallel to the vehicle on the road.
I see that your adjusting the driver side.. but what about the passenger side?