DIY alignment?
 

Hey everyone, hope all is well. My truck needs to be aligned (crooked steering wheel) so I was thinking of doing it myself. No suspension parts have been replaced other than shocks, so it should be somewhat close to where it should be. I was going to follow this, which I know only adjusts toe, does anyone have any advice or feedback on these trucks (mine is a 2x4 89)?

Thanks!

anyone? I understand the concept very well, I just want to make sure it can be applied to this truck, I just don't wanna make it worse of course.

Take it to a pro shop with a modern alignment machine (optical is the best). It'll be cheaper to buy adjustable camber cams before you go.

In stock form, where all do the adjustments take place on a 2x4? is it just the tie rod ends? Money is tight lately and every alignment shop wants $100 to do it around me. The steering wheel is straight and all, it just pulls ever so slightly, just enough to make me hold the steering wheel to the side.

Toe (tie rods) is the last thing to get adjusted. The hard part is caster/camber, and most alignment shops only offer solid bushings, like stock. Order a pair of aftermarket adjustable cam bushings. And no matter, what: make them give you your old bushings.

But now that I think about it, I've never had an aligment shop check ride height before doing the alignment, and that's one of the most critical measurements on a TIB/TTB suspension. You can check it yourself, and if it's off, you can probably fix it yourself before you go for the alignment. You might have to replace a spring, but it's better to do them in pairs.

https://www.supermotors.net/getfile/...rontwheels.jpg

Remember that tires are part of the suspension/steering systems, so crappy/worn-out/damaged/mismatched tires will cause poor handling & affect alignment.

Thanks, the tires have around 95% tread left, and they are starting to show un even wear. I'm getting them routated next week and all, but it needs to be fixed one way or another. After reading a little bit, I think that my sway bar (the skid plate under it actually) is bent in, I'm gonna check that out and see if that is causing something. The only thing in relation to suspension that I've changed is the shocks, keep in mind it did sit for 7 months tho (I drove it around the block about once every 2 or 3 months). Do you think that the sitting\new shocks would require an alignment anyways?

Shocks have no effect on alignment, unless they're damaged badly enough to stick. Sitting doesn't affect alignment, either, unless it's so long that alignment-related parts mechanically degrade (collapsed springs, rusted-through suspension parts, dry-rotted rubber bushings...).

But normal driving & age cause the aligment to change, so it has to be checked/reset occasionally. Firestone offers a lifetime alignment (cams & other parts not included), and I think it's worth it. I bought it ~6 years ago & had it reset last month.

Hmm, I might have to look into that, I'll look and see if the springs are sagging or not. I did get under it and saw that the sway bar is being hit by the skid plate, so I'll be pulling that off tonight to see if I can straighten it. I also checked out all the suspension stuff looks in good shape, but I know looks can be decieving. About 15 months ago when I got my grease gun I went through and greased everything, and nothing really took that much. Thats pretty much the extent of what I've done to suspension stuff in the last 4 years, before that, my grandfather took it in and had everything flushed every 2 years (and kept reciepts lol). I've only put 10,000 on it since I got it and I had new tires put on when I got it. It's been garaged but driven every few months..not quite sure where this dent came from, but I'll let you know how it works out.

i got in trouble last time i got into it with a guy trying to teach someone how to do a DIY toe adjustment :coffee:

Just take it somewhere you can trust, and be done with it

That's what I'm leaning towards but I want to check the spring ride height and straighten that skid plate before I take it in lol. I'm checking out the prices on springs and it seems that f150 4x4 and f250 2x4 and 4x4 are all the same springs. Could these work on my 2x4 f150? If they did what would be the benefits? Thanks

The alignment cost on these trucks is cheap! Mine is an '89.

It cost me $45 at an independent shop less than a week ago. Galpin Ford (the closest dealer) just sent me a card with a $42.95 alignment cost.

I figure I might save the cost of the alignment in gasoline and tire wear in under a year.

Not exactly. There are many interchangeable coil springs for '80-96 F-series & Bronco, but each set has a specific load rating that affects ride height & ride quality. After adding ~300# of bumper & winch to the front of my truck, I went junkyarding & got a set of coils from an F250 whose FGAWR was ~300# higher than my truck's, and that kept me at about the same ride height & quality.

https://www.supermotors.net/getfile/...ightbwinch.jpg . https://www.supermotors.net/getfile/...ckerpublic.jpg

Now, with bigger tires, a heavier winch, & a few hundred thousand hard miles on the used coils, I've had to add coil spacers to maintain tire clearance.

https://www.supermotors.net/getfile/...nail/re12k.jpg . https://www.supermotors.net/getfile/...oilspacer3.jpg

So for a basically stock truck, you should use basically stock coils. New, if the originals are collapsed, but I wouldn't go bigger/heavier.

Well I measured the height and it's within specs, less than 1\8 inch difference between the front two, as well as the rear two. I'm not sure how high they should be exactly, I can't help but think the front looks a little low to me. It's right at 31.5 inches (at the fender well), with stock sized tires that have good tread.

'92 F150 2WD rear ride height spec is either 185.8mm or 192.1mm, depending on spring PN; 4WD is 181.52mm or 186.08mm. I'm not sure where that measurement is taken, but I'm looking... It only applies to stock-size tires, though.

What about the front? This is awesome info by the way, thank you. I'm taking notes lol