Wheel alignment and MOT

I

ihadablackdog

Senior member
Please forgive the mechanically impotent question, but is wheel tracking part of an MOT test?

Last time a garage tried to adjust my tracking, they said they couldn’t cos it was rusted...is track control rod the name?

Car going into a new (to me) garage tomorrow for it’s MOT and I’d like to ask them to look, but don’t want to draw attention to it if they might use the mot as a reason for me to get them changed?

Someone on here told me a while back that some garages fix this with heating the area without needing to replace parts?
 
i dont think poor wheel alignment is a reason for a failure - but the symptoms of it (ie tyres worn heavily on the shoulders) might be. Are your tyres all ok?

but no, i dont believe they check the wheel alignment as part of the test. Though, if you ask them to have a look at the alignment and they cant adjust it because its so rusty, they might well be more inclined to see what else is rusty. though, unless its structural chassis rust, even that would probably just go down as an advisory.
 
Don't think tracking is an issue for the MOT, but it can cause uneven wear on the tyres which if bad enough can be a fail.
 
Ha! Too slow! But at least we gave basically the same answer.

I'd be inclined to get the MOT certificate passed, then ask them.
 
Hi I had New tyres put on my Z4 Recently!!! I asked for the tracking to be done,they called me in to tell me they couldn't do it as had issues undoing Stuff.they couldn't even shift it with heat.So I decided to have New put on Tie rods Track rod ends.Will save your tyres long run.😎👍
 
Ditto, get the MOT done and then if you have uneven tyre ware get the alignment done, some garages don't do it maybe the rust issue was just an excuse. I'd take it somewhere that specifically does wheel alignment and geometry set ups.
Had mine done end of last year 4 wheel alignment £50.00 with before and after print out. You'd be surprised how much they slip out of the tolerances over time. :driving:
 
be prepared for the possibility of not having a car for a few days. if the bolts have rusted solid, even with the best will in the world, an alignment guy may shear a bolt. a liberal dose of penetrating fluid the night before attempting an alignment would probably be a good idea.

https://www.wd40.com/products/penetrating-oil/
 
Thanks. The tyres aren’t worn so think it’ll get past that, but agree it’s probably best to keep quiet until after.

It was Kwik Fit that had the problem, they they had done it fine previously. I know they have a bad rep but my branch have always been good to me and done stuff with no charge...although I don’t do mechanical stuff (can strip a pc in seconds, just no confidence with cars) so perhaps they lied but I’m inclined to believe them.

Will I am.123 said:
Hi I had New tyres put on my Z4 Recently!!! I asked for the tracking to be done,they called me in to tell me they couldn't do it as had issues undoing Stuff.they couldn't even shift it with heat.So I decided to have New put on Tie rods Track rod ends.Will save your tyres long run.😎👍
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How much was this, was it front and back?
 
brillomaster said:
be prepared for the possibility of not having a car for a few days. if the bolts have rusted solid, even with the best will in the world, an alignment guy may shear a bolt. a liberal dose of penetrating fluid the night before attempting an alignment would probably be a good idea.

https://www.wd40.com/products/penetrating-oil/
Click to expand...

Yeah, that would be a pain.

When it went to kwik fit they did use penetrating oil and I went back several times for them to try again so I think they gave it a good go.
 
Track rod adjuster is stupid design. It has a slot which allows the rod end to rust.
DIY i wrapped a wet rag around the ball joint and used a plumbers gas burner to warm the tie rod end after soaking in oil.
It did come free.
 
flybobbie said:
Track rod adjuster is stupid design. It has a slot which allows the rod end to rust.
DIY i wrapped a wet rag around the ball joint and used a plumbers gas burner to warm the tie rod end after soaking in oil.
It did come free.
Click to expand...

That’s beyond me. What are the parts called?

Track rod adjuster??
Tie rod end??

and both are on all 4 corners?

(I did say I am mechanically impotent)
 
Correct wheel alignment is both a safety and performance issue.

It’s not within the time / budget alignment for the MOT tester to measure the wheel alignment.

They may fail the car if such things as a badly worn / asymmetrical tread wear highlights a possible issue, but they will just normally just fail it on the condition of the tyre.

You need to find a garage that does ‘4 wheel alignment’.

Errors could stem from many parts of both front and rear suspension/ steering components.

Often at that age bushes / linkages need to be replaced in that process.

If the car is a keeper you won’t regret it :thumbsup:
 
Ed.Straker said:
Correct wheel alignment is both a safety and performance issue.

It’s not within the time / budget alignment for the MOT tester to measure the wheel alignment.

They may fail the car if such things as a badly worn / asymmetrical tread wear highlights a possible issue, but they will just normally just fail it on the condition of the tyre.

You need to find a garage that does ‘4 wheel alignment’.

Errors could stem from many parts of both front and rear suspension/ steering components.

Often at that age bushes / linkages need to be replaced in that process.

If the car is a keeper you won’t regret it :thumbsup:
Click to expand...

True. I agree it should be correct and I need to get the work done, just wondering where I stood for tomorrow and wether to ask them to check. My tyres are fine.

How much are we looking at? (that is like how long is a piece of string, but £200, £500, £1k etc as a rough guide).
 
I’ve had 4 ten year old cars done over the last few years..cheapest was around £80 where it just needed a minor tweak and the bushes were all good, the worst was £350 where two trailing arm bushes were seized solid and had to be replaced plus a couple of front steering bushes.
 
Not too bad I guess.

My trouble is getting a garage to quote honestly on what needs doing and not ripping me off, but I guess that’s the risk I take for not being mechanically minded.

The garage I’m going to tomorrow is just round the corner from work. Never been before, but they could fit the mot in this week and being close to work saved the ball ache of lifts to/from etc.

There is a garage more local to my home that has good feedback from several people and I think they are open on Saturdays so might be worth checking them out, although I like the convenience of being close to work, so perhaps more research on this one.
 
ihadablackdog said:
There is a garage more local to my home that has good feedback from several people and I think they are open on Saturdays so might be worth checking them out, although I like the convenience of being close to work, so perhaps more research on this one.
Click to expand...

This is what I would, go to one that is recommended by people I know.
 
I once made the mistake of asking quik fit to do a wheel alignment. They came back to me saying they can all bar 1 of the adjustments which is main dealer only. The offered to do what they could and charge me for it. I said what’s the point as I will have to pay BMW to do it anyway and they kept trying to convince me! Eventually he understood that there is no point paying twice and I will just go to BMW.
 
ori said:
I once made the mistake of asking quik fit to do a wheel alignment. They came back to me saying they can all bar 1 of the adjustments which is main dealer only. The offered to do what they could and charge me for it. I said what’s the point as I will have to pay BMW to do it anyway and they kept trying to convince me! Eventually he understood that there is no point paying twice and I will just go to BMW.
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What did BMW charge?

Passed its mot yesterday with no problems so that’s good.

Next step will be to go to the local garage for them to look.
 
ori said:
I once made the mistake of asking quik fit to do a wheel alignment. They came back to me saying they can all bar 1 of the adjustments which is main dealer only. The offered to do what they could and charge me for it. I said what’s the point as I will have to pay BMW to do it anyway and they kept trying to convince me! Eventually he understood that there is no point paying twice and I will just go to BMW.
Click to expand...
Kwik Fit have done wheel alignment on my cars, using Hunter equipment, for more than a decade. I keep the printouts and check the wear on the tyres regularly. Since I do quite a lot of quick driving, I'm also sensitive to the feel of tyre/wheel/steering performance.

During this time, Kwik Fit's work has been very good. It may be, of course, that the branch I use does this work well and others don't, but I doubt that, because big organisations like Kwik Fit tend to provide a systematised product.

I also take advantage of the scheme they have of alignment contracts: 'pay once and have 'free' alignments for two years'. This means £120 and up to 8 alignments. Living under the local fascist regime of The People's Democratic Socialist Paradise of Leicester, where 'car' and 'driver' are very dirty words and road maintenance is done only for cyclists, wheel re-alignment for cars is often necessary.

As for "main dealer only" adjustment, this is a mystery. BMW do an annual 100-item+ inspection with video report on my 35iS, including measurement at 3 points across each tyre, and have never mentioned an adjustment that only they can, should or want to make. They have commented, however, on how even the tyre wear is.
 
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