Hi all,

My front wheels are out of alignment - if the steering wheel is perfectly straight then the car veers to the left a little bit.

I had my wheels aligned and the garage advised that it looks like I still have the original track rods and they recommend replacing them if the wheels went out of alignment again.

It only took a week or so for the wheels to go back out of alignment.

Garage has given me a quote, just wondering if this seems like the most likely fix?

Also is it an MOT issue? MOT due in a few weeks.

2005 1.6l petrol Focus.

Hi,

Not an MOT issue, alignment isn't tested.

On the Mk2 Focus, the usual reason for losing wheel alignment is worn bushes on the lower arms (wishbones). Those are an MOT issue when they get bad enough.

Update: passed MOT today with no advisories. 103k miles on the clock. Very happy.

My take on alignment (usually toe)

As said, not an MOT issue BUT if wrong will cause tyre wear (can be expensive).

If correct but steering wheel out of alignment then may not cause wear but is a little unnerving.

AND (*) if you get it checked for free, it will always need adjustment

If track rods have been changed or tyre wear is in evidence then likely does need doing.

Track rods can have different dimensions so even using the "same number of turns" trick it will likely not be correct.

Techs will likely tell you that, due to state of roads/potholes it should be checked every few months so go back to (*)

However I have noticed that, on the Kwik Fit 4 wheel laser kit, they always want to set it exactly, spot on rather than just accepting the tolerance zones which are shown as acceptable.

Please tell me I'm wrong and being too cynical or missing something?

Ill definitely get it looked at, it's definitely not ideal. Track rods are still original and I had to change front tyres as the inside was way more worn down than the outside or middle