4 Wheel Alignment specs

[curlyks2]

Then you just need a fitter who knows what to adjust to get the desired result... I gave up trying to tell him when he said "thats close enough" for about the 5th time

Yeah - on my previous car I got "it's within tolerance" (both wheels visibly pointing in different directions), so promptly changed garage.
Ck.

[CR500Dom]

Lots of people still getting confused here

National Tyres "4wheel alignment" is really 4 wheel tracking
Lots of places advertise 4 wheel alignment but they think that means tracking.

Most of the tyre shops Have no Idea what Camber and Castor are let alone how to adjust it

Most cars can be Tracked front and rear, some have camber adjustment on the front but normally only due to manufacturing tolerances.

The S2 and Quattros have Adjustable Toe (Tracking) on all 4 wheels, Adjustable Camber on all 4 wheels and limited Castor adjustment.

A proper 4 wheel alignment rig does all measurements on each wheel independantly but at the same time. Then you just need a fitter who knows what to adjust to get the desired result.

I gave up trying to tell him when he said "thats close enough" for about the 5th time Told him to push the buttons on the computer while I did the adjustments

Buy a Camber guage from Demon Thieves or Pace, set yourself up on a flat patch and do it your self, it really isnt that hard

Hope this clears up any confusion
Just ask them if they do a Full suspension geometry check rather than 4 wheel tracking
Cheers
Dom

[Baldy]

I've used thistlethwaites in Bolton in the past and they havea BEAR computerised 4wheel alignment rig that checks camber, caster and tracking gives printouts and all that kinda stuff its the sort of thing all the normal fast fit places and garages can only dream of. its much better tha nthe usual hang a spirit level with laser pointer on it types of alignment

[WabTheKing]

i can hand on heart recomend any garage that uses Quick Trak
as it was manufactured by mottram engineering (me!)

no seriously tho it is one of the leading wheel alignment systems

[Ski]

I had mine done at Tim's and it was a top job. I have heard the "national" garages have the best equipment and do the best job.

[Jamo]

just had a 4wheel alignment done on mine a 4 wheel aligns the front and rear wheels for castor, camber and toe it sets the steering wheel straight and sets the centre andle of the steering

hope this helps

Where did you get that done mate? i'm in Brum and i am searching for a local place to get it done.

Thanks

[sal_s2]

just had a 4wheel alignment done on mine a 4 wheel aligns the front and rear wheels for castor, camber and toe it sets the steering wheel straight and sets the centre andle of the steering

hope this helps

Matt, where did you have yours done? I'm not far from you and would like to be able to get mine done locally.
Thanks

[S2 Ant]

The equipment needed to do a 4 wheel alignment is different from 2wd hence why only some places can do it.

Its effectively 4 front wheels from that point of view in that you get all the same adjustment on the back as you do the front.

Other cars ie FWD only need the front doing as the rears on there cars simply dont have the parts there for adjusting, the wheels are just there, if things arent straight then they have ot change the parts.

ALl 4 wheels are aligned together as the laser that goes from left to right, also lines along front to back as well, so they are tracked as a whole.

[dan_b]

It's a good question Jamo. What I don't understand is why there should be any technical difference between a garage who can do a 2-wheel alignment and a 4-wheel alignment? Surely it's the same equipment, and the same adjustments to make?

when people here recommend places for 4-wheel alignment, does that mean they actually do all 4 wheels in one go, or are they doing one axle at a time?

Why then does having quattro mean that our cars need 4-wheel alignment when other cars don't? Don't other cars also have 4 wheels that all need aligning too? Example is any RWD car, surely you've got to align all of these too? If not, why not?

Tyres are crucial to any car's handling. Uneven wear across an axle pair can cause strange pulling behavior as the overall size of each wheel will be different.

[scouser_75]

Yup. You guys are spot on. I had loads of trouble with "pulling" on the car and spent a fair bit on alignment. In the end it turned out that there was not much wrong with the allignment - the problem lay in the fact that one of my tyres was heavier than the rest of em

[Ski]

Im no expert but here goes...

"Can somebody explain exactly what a 4 wheel alignment is and why the Audi S2 requires it?"

changes the camber or toe in/out settings on all 4 wheels so they point straight. S2 needs it as its 4x4 car.

"Also whats the difference between a 4 wheel alignment and the standard alignment available at garages."

standard aligns only front wheels?

Ive herd national does the best alignments.

Im probably totally wrong so please correct me

[MattS2avant]

just had a 4wheel alignment done on mine a 4 wheel aligns the front and rear wheels for castor, camber and toe it sets the steering wheel straight and sets the centre andle of the steering

hope this helps

[Jamo]

4 Wheel Alignment specs

This subject has been banded about the forum, but i can't find any definitive definitions..

Can somebody explain exactly what a 4 wheel alignment is and why the Audi S2 requires it?

Also whats the difference between a 4 wheel alignment and the standard alignment available at garages.

Thanks

[4WheelDrifter]

IIRC I've got Toe Out the front and Toe In on the back of my cq20v. It seems to make it turn in quicker, combined with a steeper castor than my S2. It catches me out going from one to the other. Very different handling between the two.

[quattroTurbo]

Those look similar to the Ur quattro settings, which also toes out at the back slightly. Typically safe Audi settings. Using 1.0 to 1.5 degrees negative camber on the front works rather well - also on FWD Audis.