Bring your
car, van, SUV, truck or fleet vehicles to our service, repair and maintenance shop for Upper and
Lower Ball Joint Wear: If the suspension ball joints are worn it will
cause the spindle to wonder causing the steering wheel to shake. Ball
joints are a normal service item and need to be inspected regularly.
Inspect lower ball joints and tie rod ends for excessive wear. Ask your ASE Certified Technician about the severity of worn Tie Rods, Ball Joints and
other front-end safety.
Our Technicians will check the Idler Arm and Tie Rod
Ends. The idler arm, pitman arm and tie rod ends are normal service items
and need to be inspected at normal service intervals. To inspect the idler
arm, pitman arm and tie rod ends, can manually be checked by turning the
steering wheel slightly (jog) back and forth. If excess movement is
observed from any of the steering components replacement is required.
Suspension
DID YOU KNOW?
It's easy to take your
suspension system for granted, but normal wear and tear
can affect your handling and safety. A worn suspension part
starts a chain reaction that stresses other parts and causes
them and your tires to wear prematurely. Let us help you
take care of your suspension.
What are Ball Joints all about?
Ball joints are a part of your vehicle's suspension system that connect
the steering knuckles to the control arms. A ball joint is essentially a
flexible ball and socket that allows the suspension to move and, at the
same time, the wheels to steer. Cars and trucks will have multiple ball
joint assemblies depending on their type of suspension system. Like any
other suspension component, ball joints will eventually wear out and
become loose. Excessive play in the joint can affect wheel alignment and
tire wear. Loose joints can also cause suspension noise (typically a
"clunking" sound when going over a bump). If a ball joint fails, the
suspension can collapse, causing a loss of control of the vehicle.
What common symptoms indicate you may need to replace the Ball Joints?
● Clunking noise from front tires.
● Steering wheel shakes.
● Car moves to the right or left, esp. going
over the bumps.
● Vehicle tires have abnormal wear.
What is a Tie Rod End all about?
A cars steering wheel is connected to the steering gear that helps the
steering wheel turn the wheels. The steering gear is connected to the
wheels via the tie rod ends. The job of the tie rod end is to ensure the
wheels are aligned. It provides the adjustment for wheel alignment that
keeps the tires from wearing out on the inner and outer edges. If they
wear out, the wheels will lose alignment and you may find that the tires
and steering wheels are shaking when you drive the car.
What common symptoms indicate you may need to replace the Tie Rod End? ●
Excessive tire wear.
● Car pulling to the left or right.
● Steering wheel shakes.
● Vehicle cannot be aligned.
Steering
Systems
The
primary function of your cars suspension and steering systems is to allow
the wheels to move independently of the car, while keeping it "suspended"
and stable. Any play or uncontrolled motion in these systems results in a
deterioration of handling and accelerated tire wear. Vehicle alignment is
closely tied to the condition of the suspension and steering systems.
Worn or loose components affect the ability to control the toe angle, and
may result in a loss of directional stability and accelerated tire wear.
The main components of a
Conventional system are:
1.
Steering Gear Box
2.
Center Link
3.
Pitman Arm
4. Idler
Arm
5. Tie
Rods
The main
components of a Rack and Pinion steering system are:
6. Rack
and Pinion Assembly
7.
Bellows Boots
8. Tie
Rods
Suspension System
Worn or loose components affect the suspension systems ability to control
motion and alignment angles, resulting in a deterioration of vehicle
handling and stability, and accelerated tire wear. The main components of
the suspension system are:
9.
Control Arms
10. Ball
Joints
11.
Springs (Coil or Leaf)
12.
Shock Absorbers
13.
Struts
Suspension System Service
Sparks Tire & Auto | St. Charles, MO.
Suspension systems should continue to operate effectively for many years
and tens of thousands of miles/kilometers, holding your tires' foot print
on the road. Eventually components do wear out, but how long that takes
depends a lot on how you drive.
As you can imagine, if most of your driving is on smooth Missouri
highways, your vehicle shock absorbers will last a lot longer than if you
do most of your driving on bumpy St. Charles roads or hauling heavy loads.
In addition to just wearing out, upgraded shock suspension components can
be damaged in an accident or by a hard impact, like hitting a pothole, a
curb or a rock in the road.
Because the life span of shocks can vary so widely, your vehicle
manufacturer recommends periodic inspections. During a car inspection at
SparksTire & Auto, your St. Charles service technician will check for
worn, broken or missing suspension parts. If the inspection reveals any
problems, take care of this important safety and handling work. When you
replace your shocks, it's usually a good idea to replace all four at the
same time. That'll give you even handling at all four corners of the
vehicle.
If you have special road handling needs like improved cornering or towing
or hauling requirements in St. Charles, your Sparks Tire & Auto service
advisor can recommend an upgraded shock or strut to get you what you want.
At Sparks Tire & Auto, we have been providing quality auto repair in St.
Charles for -1966 years.
