Nice Wheels, Shame about the Tyre Wear

So you've got a lowered, sporty or performance car and want to get the alignment checked? You need an Absolute Alignment Approved Centre. 

Google “lowered car wheel alignment” and you’ll find plenty of people asking where they can get this “simple” job done. It’s been quite a problem in the past, with much of the older equipment unable to cope because of poor wheel clearance or line-of-sight data transmission masked by spoilers. With the modded market booming, it was a problem for many drivers - not to mention the potential road safety implications.

Modern vehicle alignment systems can overcome the technical difficulties, with Absolute Alignment’s Bluetooth Pro and Bluetooth 3D leading the way at the many Absolute Alignment Approved centres around the country. Thanks to constant innovation, the performance and modified car market has a new option.

So just how do you go about aligning a performance car? Absolute Alignment solves the problem by using Bluetooth communication between the alignment heads and the base unit, neatly avoiding the problems encountered by “laser” aligners. Here’s what to look out for when booking your road burner in for alignment.

The problem – nice wheels, no clearance

The solution – Absolute Alignment 

The solution starts with the wheel clamps, the bits that hang the measuring heads onto your wheels. A specialist performance centre will have an attachment that does not clamp over the top of the tyre because of insufficient clearance. Metal-to-metal clamping must be avoided, as we’ve seen many workshops damaging expensive aluminium wheels. Absolute Alignment’s Pro Clamps avoid all the pitfalls, and are standard issue with its popular Bluetooth Pro wheel aligner.

HOT TIP: When  booking your pride and joy in for wheel alignment, just check they have no metal-to-metal contact.

The traditional problem for garages now is that their measuring heads can’t see past the front valance. Handily the Bluetooth Pro handles this and your AAA Centre will simply rotate them to look under it. Our software is clever enough to take the re-positioning of the heads into account. 

HOT TIP: Check your chosen wheel alignment centre can handle performance cars without having to strip bodywork off

Thanks to modern technology, what was previously a difficult operation often involving the removal of body panels is now as quick and easy as with any everyday hatchback. The system has been used and approved by many major race teams, including Power Maxed Racing who use it to set up the suspension of the works Vauxhall Astra racers in the BTCC. 

Some of our centres are equipped with the very latest “3D” alignment system. Unlike many other manufacturers, the Absolute Alignment system does not rely on a tower placed at the front of the vehicle, many of which can't handle lowered or performance cars. Instead we use sensors attached to the side of the ramp which cleverly look underneath the car so the technician can quickly check and adjust the alignment.  

So there we have it – a previously difficult job made simple by modern technology. Thanks to Absolute Alignment and Bluetooth you can make sure that you Stay Safe, Stay Legal and Save Money even if you have a lowered, competition or performance car. 

Check out our list of Absolute Alignment Approved Centres and also our Motorsport Centres for the ultimate in suspension tech. If you're a garage wanting to take on more performance cars, check out our Virtual Showroom at www.absolutealignment.co.uk

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