DIY - TOE alignment - Total toe vs. Cross toe. (Or how do I get the steering wheel centered)

Ok so I Have an ART Laser alignment system.

https://www.pegasusautoracing.com/productdetails.asp?RecID=1783

I have enjoyed using the system as its easy to use once you get the hang of it.

So I can set the total toe where I want it. 

Note I have Greased 12"x12" Plelxi glass plates so the wheels will move while I'm adjusting them.

(I've had to replace the outer tie rod ends on two vehicles now and got the toe where I want it and it drives straight down the road. (although I know camber caster pull and road crown have the most to do with vehicle pull)

The Problem is how do I set the cross toe and Have the steering wheel centered relative to the toe setting?

I could just set the toe

and drive it

rotate one in and the other out

drive it again until I get the steering wheel centered.....

But this is labor intensive and seems like the HARD Way to do it.

Is there an easy way to do this that I am missing?

(Note: I will also accept donations for a full Hunter alignment system  LOL)

pk386 said:

I could just set the toe

and drive it

rotate one in and the other out

drive it again until I get the steering wheel centered.....

That's what I have always done on my home alignments.

Assuming your rear toe is adjustable, do you set it first? I use about a 4' piece of 1x1 square tube to reference the rear rim, and measure the distance from the square tube to the rocker panel and make it them same on both sides while setting rear toe. Rear toe drives the thrust angle of the chassis; you want to make sure the rear is pointing true for the front to work.

For a time, I had an older John Bean 4-head alignment machine, but I found it took longer to use it than it took using my old-school methods. Potentially more accurate, but more time.

The only thing about getting the steering wheel straight is making sure it's sitting straight and stays straight while you perform the alignment. If you do that and it's still not straight going down the road then it's probably pointing to something else being wrong like thrust angle, unequal caster or camber, or tire issues. Are you using something to hold it? Without some kind of holding setup it's almost impossible to keep it from moving while you make your adjustments.

When I did alignments that was first thing after pressure correction.

 The device I used was spring loaded, A pad set on the seat and two rubber coated pins against the steering wheel

I know it sounds kind of funny, but when initially setting my alignment (note: my car has a square stance with virtually equal track widths front and rear), I just lock the steering wheel straight and then make my adjustments by "looking down the front wheel" toward the rear wheel. When looking in a line along the front wheel (you can use a straightedge to do this), I align it until it begins to block out the view of the rear wheel. Then I do the other side.

Seriously, this method gets me near-perfect zero-toe alignment (for rally)....verified by multiple post-setup alignments on real racks and/or using measuring plates. 

But once you get there, you can adjust relative toe by simply adjusting each side equally.

I have a set of Paco Moto/Flyin Miata hub stands with the laser.  Just today I did yet another alignment on the race car and it didn’t take all that long, it has certainly paid for itself as I can align about half of the cars I own with it.  Getting the toe right is tape measures, but getting the thrust angle right uses the laser pointing at the rear stands and it made a big difference today after the camber adjuatment I made. 

SkinnyG said:

pk386 said:

I could just set the toe

and drive it

rotate one in and the other out

drive it again until I get the steering wheel centered.....

That's what I have always done on my home alignments.

Yea the two vehicles I've done The vehicle would  track straight. But the steering wheel was off center. I guess I just need to allocate more time for the back and forth.

Vigo said:

The only thing about getting the steering wheel straight is making sure it's sitting straight and stays straight while you perform the alignment. If you do that and it's still not straight going down the road then it's probably pointing to something else being wrong like thrust angle, unequal caster or camber, or tire issues. Are you using something to hold it? Without some kind of holding setup it's almost impossible to keep it from moving while you make your adjustments.

Yea I take a sissor jack, wrap a towel around it and place it between the drivers seat and the steering wheel.
again the total toe is 100 percent spot on. just the toe relative to the center line (or center of the vehicle is off)

Car would drive straight.... but the Steering wheel would be clocked 5° or 10° 

Well, i can't say why it isn't working on the first try with your setup but like SkinnyG i always end up doing 1-3 fine tuning runs on my home alignments for the same reason. Sometimes i get it the first try, sometimes it takes 3. But, if you're using a set of a ramps and not putting the full F-You on the jam nuts between sessions it goes pretty quick just rolling up those ramps and making the adjustment. You don't need turn plates for that step so using the ramps saves a lot of time. 

Step 1) Ensure the wheel nuts are torqued

Don't ask me why........