Date:         Thu, 07 Dec 1995 13:50:00 -0800 (PST)
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         "Maher, Steve (SD-MS)" <SMAHER@PO2.GI.COM>
Subject:      RE: '73 Bad Tyre Wear


>I have had an eye on my front tyres for a while now, they are wearing
>away on the outside. I have had the tracking done twice now to no avail.
>Is there something else that would cause this wear?
>Also when the tyres were new they made a squealing noise when going around
>a corner, even at low speed.
>Is the place where I get my tracking done missing something out?
>At this rate I will be spending more money on rubber than fuel :(

Possibly worn ball joints or tie rod ends?

Or, here's a real wild one:
Take a look at all four wheels. Not tires, WHEELS-- the metal part. DO
they all match? I bought a nearly-junked mustang once, that proved to be
impossible to align, even after a front-end rebuild. Finally looked at
the metal wheels, and found they were three different widths and offsets
(Ford made many different sizes over the years that bolt up to this car).

Even mismatched wheels won't necessarily goof up your alignment-- most
machines are designed for cars that have, say, wide wheels on the back and
narrower ones on the front. But if you have narrow ones on the right front
and left rear, and wide ones on the left front and right rear, the alignment
machine will freak. Or, worse, it won't register any error, but simply tell
the mechanic to crank the adjustments WAY over to compensate for (what seems
to be) a very-badly-aligned car.

Identical wheels on all for is definitely the way to go, especially for a
bus. If you wanted a hot rod, you shoulda bought a 'vette.

Steve Maher   smaher@gi.com