Should caster be the same on both sides?

Caster is the angle of your vehicle's steering pivot when looked at from the side. ... Your tire's caster should be the same on both sides of the vehicle; if it's not the same, then the vehicle will tend to pull to the side that is less positive. Toe is a measurement of how parallel your tires are to each other.

What is the effect of unequal caster?

So: Camber and caster will cause your vehicle to pull if they're uneven, but will cause little tire wear, while toe in won't cause your vehicle to pull, but can cause extremely fast tire wear. This is why your vehicle can pull and not wear out tires, or it can drive perfectly straight and destroy them in a hurry!

Do you want positive or negative caster?

Increasing the amount of positive caster will increase steering effort and straight line tracking, as well as improve high speed stability and cornering effectiveness. Positive caster also increases tire lean when cornering (almost like having more negative camber) as the steering angle is increased.

Does caster matter on alignment?

How Does Caster Affect Driving? Of all vehicle alignment adjustments, caster is probably the least known and understood, but you can rightly think of it as the unsung hero of proper alignment. If it weren't for caster, vehicles of all varieties would be drastically less stable and predictable.

What causes caster misalignment?

Caster misalignment can be caused by the same kind of problems that cause camber misalignment: a bent spindle, mislocated strut tower, bent strut, worn or collapsed control arm bushing, bent control arm, or a weak or broken spring.

How Caster Works

How do you tell if your caster is off?

Your car's caster works in the same way. When your car travels straight down the road with little handling on your part, that's due to your caster setting. If you're driving down a straight path but start pulling to one side, that's a sign your caster is off.

Does changing caster effect toe?

If they are toed out too much, the wear will start from the inside of the tire. This type of wear is called feathering. Caster, on the other hand, has no effect on how a tire wears, but it does play a role in handling and on center feel.

Do you adjust caster or camber first?

With front-end alignments, correct caster and camber adjustments first. Certain FWD vehicles do not offer caster adjustments, but correcting the camber may bring the caster within specs.

How do you adjust camber and castor?

Placing shims between the upper control arm shaft and the frame (arrows) will increase negative camber. Adding positive camber involves removing shims. Once you've established the camber, caster is the next angle to check. With the bubble gauge installed on the hub, turn the tire inboard 20 degrees and level the gauge.

How does negative caster affect handling?

Negative caster results in lighter and easier steering but reduced stability when driving in a straight line. Vehicles with negative caster do not handle as well. What is this? A symptom of negative caster is a sloppy or loose-feeling steering wheel (which is lot less common than a hard to turn wheel).

What can be caused by excessive negative caster?

Excessive positive caster increases low-speed steering effort and ride harshness or road shock. On the other hand, excessive negative caster reduces steering stability at higher speeds and may cause wander. It also reduces the ease with which the steering returns to center after turns.

Is it better to have toe in or toe out?

Generally the rule of thumb is that more toe-in increases understeer and more toe-out increases oversteer. However, with modern cars, especially race cars with independent front and rear suspensions, there is another effect on handling.

Does ride height affect caster?

Ride height can also affect caster. Spring sag or overloading a vehicle can alter ride height up to several inches, which can increase caster readings by up to a degree or more.

Does negative caster affect tire wear?

It does not affect tire wear, but caster does have an influence on the directional control of the steering. Caster angle settings allow manufacturers to balance steering effort, high speed stability, and front end cornering effectiveness.

What is a good caster angle?

Generally you want as much positive caster as you can reasonably get so long as the car is equipped with power steering. Positive caster angles run between 3 - 5° on modern vehicles. This gives a good mix of highway stability and steering feel.

Does changing caster change camber?

If Caster is 0 Deg, then Camber does not change when you steer the tires from right to left. But, Camber changes when the tires move to the left or right, anytime Caster has a value greater than 0. The higher the value, either + or -, the more Camber will change as you steer the tires away from Toe in Spec. Position.

Does changing caster affect camber?

Modern vehicles run a certain amount of positive caster with the steering axis tilted rearward toward the driver. While caster doesn't affect tire wear like camber, it does have a big impact on steering and handling. The higher the caster, the more stability a vehicle will have at higher speeds.

What should toe be set at during alignment?

Typical toe-in specs vary from one-thirty-second to one-eighth-inch, depending on the vehicle. Check a service manual for your car's acceptable range. The best tip-off to a toe problem is a saw-tooth wear pattern that's equal on both front tires.

Will a car pull to the side with more positive caster?

If you have too much positive caster, the vehicle will be harder to turn. However, just like with camber, vehicle pull is not caused by too much or too little caster, but by side to side imbalance.

Why does my car still pulls after alignment?

An aligned car can still "pull" to one side so the first thing to check is the air pressure in the tires. The car will pull to the side with the lower tire pressure due to the increased friction of the low tire. If this doesn't correct the pull, try swapping the front tires from side to side.

Is it normal for steering wheel to be slightly off center?

We here at Oxford Auto & Tire can answer that question quickly and easily: Your steering wheel is off-center when you're driving straight because your wheels aren't aligned correctly. This is one sign of a bad wheel alignment, and you might notice the steering wheel is crooked right after you've had the wheels aligned.

What do unbalanced wheels feel like?

Balancing also contributes to ride comfort: Imbalanced tires will wobble or hop up and down, which causes vibration. If a front tire isn't properly balanced you'll likely feel vibration in the steering wheel. If the problem is in the rear the tremor will be noticeable in the seat or floor.