Car tyre tracking

[archiesdad]

4 wheel alignment is(was) a bonus on my Honda, camber/toe/castor all adjusted and it felt like a different car, it had been in Honda's tolerance but that was so vague that getting set up by a pro who knew what was right was chalk and cheese, I get it checked annually just in case a speed bump has upset something, well worth the cost considering the price of tyres and fuel.
Unashamed bump.
http://www.pro-grip.org.uk/Home.html

[DSJR]

Honda's and the old Triumph/Rover derivatives all had four-wheel tracking and yes, having it done turnned a skittish car into a stable one, as well as evening up tyre wear.

I remember once, after a year's very happy motoring with a Peugeot 306 (well rated at the time), it's MOT and service dealer (Peugeot dealer in Wellingborough!) told us it needed track rods to be replaced (no vagueness or bad handling up to this point). After this had been done, the steering wheel was mis-aligned and the ride and handling went out the window. I took the car back, got the wheel straightened and had the tracking checked and re-adjusted elsewhere, but the handling was never as good and the front went "soft." I wonder to this day if the front struts were "swapped" for a pair of more worn ones at the time, but could never prove it - the 306 did seem to go soft at the front after 40K miles or so I understand..... We changed the car soon after and eventually settled on our now old family Focus, which ate its two front springs after four years or so.

[goraman]

Most newer cars on well maintained roads,not bumping parking blocks and curbs will go 1 year before really needing an alignment.
An older car on a bumpy road my need one every 6 months.
It will affect handling,breaking and tire ware.

The best way to get an idea if your car needs it is to get out on a straight road and see if the car will track straight with out correcting the wheel, it should if anything ideally move to the shoulder of the road just slightly not into on coming traffic if adjusted properly. Here in the U.S. they adjust for a sleeping driver,so if you fall asleep the car will slowly drift off the shoulder and not into oncoming traffic,the amount it takes do do this is very small and has saved many lives.
Like said before look at your tires once and a while for uneven ware or separations.

[Ali Tait]

That's not a prerequisite as tracking is done by magnified light beaming on to measurement panels. You simply need a decent mechanic who knows what he or she is doing.

But yes, it is worth doing. A whole lot of vehicle parameters are improved by correct tracking; handling, tyre wear, turn in, grip etc etc. Easily worth £30 in my opinion.

It is if you want it done properly IMHO, including castor, camber etc all of which can affect handling and tyre wear.