Failure to center the rack before doing an alignment
will cause the length of the tie rod arms to be
different (the link between the end of the rack and
the steering arm on the vertical link).
This causes no problems as long as you do not actually
turn the steering wheel, on a perfectly flat, level
road.
As you turn the wheel however, or encounter any bumps
that deflect the suspension, the difference in tie rod
lengths will cause the front wheels to assume
different steering angles than designed. The amount
depends on how different the lengths are. This will be
most apparent at higher speeds, and when only one
wheel hits a bump. Expect the car to behave
differently when turning left than right.
If you discover that yours is not centered, you can
adjust the tie rods equal number of turns on each side
to maintain the toe-in (but mark them first!).
Spitfire alignment is dead simple; I used to do mine
in the pits with string and crescent wrenches, I've
even eyeballed them a couple of times with good
results. Of course, I find that a racecar is more
forgiving in some ways, ie tire wear is of far less
concern.
Carter Shore
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