How Does Bad Alignment Affect My Car?

When you think of poor tire alignment, what comes to mind? The first thing is probably a car that drifts slightly to one side. While that’s definitely one symptom, bad alignment affects your car in all kinds of ways that can impact your vehicle, your safety, and your wallet. Here’s how each part of your car is affected by improper alignment:

Tires

Your tires experience uneven wear when they are not properly aligned. This will require you to replace particular tires that would have lasted longer, which can be expensive. But it’s more than that — uneven wear can actually compromise your safety. For instance, when improper alignment places too much pressure on one tire, it can cause a blowout. This is obviously incredibly dangerous and can result in an accident. Proper alignment prevents unnecessary tire wear, but it can also save your life.

Suspension

Poor alignment doesn’t just place pressure on your tires — it also strains your car’s suspension, which damages the suspension components over time. This type of damage requires expensive repairs in most cases. It’s much wiser to pay for regular alignments than to wait for there to be a problem — your wallet will thank you. 

Steering

Misalignment will almost certainly cause problems with steering. When tires aren’t aligned correctly, it creates tire drag. Tire drag makes it more difficult to steer. For instance, you might have to fight your car to turn, your car may drift, or you could have to hold your steering wheel at an odd angle at all times. This increases your chances of getting in an accident, as the car is not responding appropriately and you’re not driving as you normally do. Misalignment completely changes the way your car handles, which is not safe.

Brakes

When your car is in proper alignment, your wheels turn and travel in the same direction. So when your vehicle is misaligned, your tires’ movement is off, which can cause uneven braking. And those problems with your suspension we mentioned earlier? That strain on your suspension can harm your braking ability. Brake performance is obviously incredibly important to your safety, so know that problems with your alignment can cause problems with your brakes.

Fuel Economy

Want to save money at the pump? Make sure your car is properly aligned! The tire drag created by bad alignment causes your car to need to work harder to get where it needs to be, which requires your car to consume more fuel. So poor alignment means you end up with an empty gas tank sooner.

Are you overdue for an alignment check? Make an appointment now to have your tires aligned by the expert technicians at Auto Correct.