Reduce Tire Wear
Improper alignment is a major cause of premature tire wear. Over the years, a properly aligned vehicle can add thousands of miles to tire life. Most tires are replaced prematurely due to adverse wear.
Better Gas Mileage: Gas mileage increases as rolling resistance decreases. Total Alignment sets all four wheels parallel, which along with proper inflation, minimizes rolling resistance.
Improve Handling: Does your car pull to one side? Do you constantly have to move the steering wheel to keep your car traveling straight ahead? Many handling problems can be corrected by Total Alignment service. With all the vehicle components aligned properly, road shock is more efficiently absorbed for a smoother ride.
Safer Driving: A suspension system inspection is part of the alignment procedure. This allows worn parts to be detected before they cause costly problems.
The suspension system has two basic functions – to keep the car’s wheels in firm contact with the road and to provide a comfortable ride for the passengers. A lot of the system’s work is done by the springs. Under normal conditions, the springs support the body of the car evenly by compressing and rebounding with every up and down movement. This up and down movement, however, causes bouncing and swaying after each bump and is very uncomfortable to the passenger. These undesirable effects are reduced by the shock absorbers.
Common Problems:
Shocks and struts can wear out and affect handling. If your car bounces excessively over bumps and leans hard in corners, your shocks could be worn.
Ball Joints: Ball joints wear and can cause your car to wander while driving down the road. This is dangerous as they can separate and cause you to lose control.
Pay attention to how your car handles. If you notice the ride deteriorating, bring your car in to be checked.
Ball joints should be checked when your car is inspected, or have our technicians check them at least twice a year. An auto suspension system includes:
- Ball Joints
- Struts
- Springs (coil or leaf)
- Shock Absorbers
- Control Arms
- Belts & Hoses
Every car has a water pump, a power-steering pump and various accessories, all of which are powered by rubber drive belts. Belts and hoses have the shortest lifespan. These components often crack, leak, or fray due to their constant exposure to heat, vibration, and other harmful chemicals. If not replaced and maintained, it could spell disaster for your vehicle. A leaking hose or a cracked belt will cause you more trouble than an overdue oil change ever will.
If your car has individual belts and one of them breaks, then you will lose the function of whatever part that belt was powering, such as the alternator, power-steering pump or water pump. If the serpentine belt breaks, all of these parts will stop functioning. Engine damage may result from overheating. Our ASE certified technicians will search for clear indications of cracking, softening or frayed belts.
Drive Belts: Drive belts transfer mechanical power between the engine and several other components through different gears and pulleys. These gears and pulleys have different sizes so that the power they would generate will be enough to run the components they are connected to. Some of these components include the following:
- Water pump
- Alternator
- Air Conditioning Compressor
- Radiator Cooling Fan
- Power Steering Pump
Some vehicles require a single serpentine belt to power these accessories. Hoses are made of flexible rubber compounds to absorb vibrations between the engine and radiator, or in the case of heater hoses, the engine and body’s firewall. Designed to hold coolant under high pressure, hoses are also subjected to fluctuating extremes of heat and cold, dirt, oils and sludge. The following are types of you should have checked at regular intervals.
Fuel hose that sends gasoline from the gas tank to the engine.
Radiator hose which delivers coolant to engine
Power steering hose that connects power steering pump to steering equipment
Heater hose which provides coolant to heater core
