Back to all

Line Them Up: Wheel Alignment Service at Charlie's Fast Lube Jackson

November 21, 2021

Hello Jackson! Let's talk about alignment. One of the most important parts of preventive maintenance for your vehicle is keeping the wheels in alignment. Poor alignment causes your tires to wear unevenly, which can significantly reduce their lifespan. This means you will have to replace them more often, which can be costly for drivers in Jackson.

It can even damage your suspension system, which is costly to repair. But even more importantly, uneven tread wear can lead to blowouts on the road, a dangerous and potentially deadly safety risk for Jackson drivers and their passengers.

It may not take an accident or bad driving habits to “knock” your tires out of alignment. Tires can go out of alignment with just everyday Missouri driving. Jackson road hazards, pot holes, uneven or gravel roads, and even the bumps and bounces of normal Jackson roads and surface streets can gradually put your vehicle tires out of alignment.

So it's good auto advice to have your vehicle's alignment inspected periodically. Your vehicle's owner's manual will have recommendations on how often you should get an alignment check: usually every year or two. But if you think your vehicle tires might be out of alignment, you should bring your vehicle into Charlie's Fast Lube Jackson now.

When you bring your vehicle in for an alignment, your technician at Charlie's Fast Lube Jackson will start by inspecting the steering and suspension systems. If something is broken or damaged there, it will need to be fixed in order to get good alignment of the wheels.

If all looks good in the steering and suspension departments, the vehicle will then be put on an alignment rack where an initial alignment reading is taken. The wheels can then be aligned to the vehicle manufacturer's specifications. The ideal alignment for any vehicle is set by its engineers and may vary from vehicle to vehicle.

There are three types of adjustments that may have to be made to correctly align a vehicle's tires. The first is called “toe.” This refers to tires that are out of alignment because they point inward or outward at the front of the tire. Think of a person who is pigeon-toed or splay-footed, and you get the idea.

The second adjustment is the camber. This adjustment affects the angle at which the tires meet the road. Think of a solid building in contrast to the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

The last adjustment is the castor. This adjustment measures the angle of the tire in relation to the front axles. So, a piece of auto advice that just might be good for life as well: keep everything in alignment, and you'll be able to steer where you want to go. Drive safely.

 Charlie's Fast Lube Jackson
1901 E. Jackson Blvd.
Jackson, Missouri 63755
575-243-2226
http://www.charliesfastlubejackson.com

Need Service?

Request a Quote

More articles from Charlie's Fast Lube Jackson

How Much Does It Cost? (Variations in Vehicle Repair Costs)

January 4, 2026

Ever wonder why it costs so much more to fix a similar problem in two different vehicles? Let's say you now own an SUV and before that, you owned a car. Your SUV's air conditioning system needs a new evaporator, but the cost for the new one is way more than you remember it was for your car. How... More

The Edible Engine

December 28, 2025

You may have had a friend whose vehicle was the victim of hungry rodents. After all, mice, rats and squirrelseven rabbitshave been known to gnaw on wires in engine compartments, causing vehicle electrical systems to go haywire. They can disable a vehicle completely and be very expensive to fix.... More

It's Brake Time (Brake Calipers)

December 21, 2025

Race car drivers have demonstrated the advantages of disc brakes, so most modern vehicles use them. Sometimes just the front wheels have disc brakes, but many vehicles now have them all the way around. A major component of the disc brake is called a caliper. It works by squeezing brake pads ag... More