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Honda: How to Align Your Tires

You don't need fancy equipment and lifting machines to align your tires. A measuring tape, some chalk, and some professional know-how will do the trick to keeping your tires from unevenly wearing.

By William Henderson - March 17, 2015

This article applies to the Honda Civic/Del Sol (1992-2000), and Accord (1990-2002).

Your car can become unaligned due to a problem with your suspension and/or steering system. Common causes include spring sag and suspension war, which can happen after you hit a pothole, curb, as well as lowering or raising your car. When your car is out of alignment, your tires unevenly and more quickly wear out, which reduces fuel economy. Your car also may pull to one side as a result of being out of alignment. This guide will help you through the process of aligning your Civic's or Accord's tires.

Materials Needed

  • Chalk
  • 12" crescent wrench
  • A 2"x4" piece of wood (optional)
  • Tape measure
  • Straight edge or ruler<

Step 1 – Prepare to check alignment

Drive for five to ten minutes to get an idea of how your car handles on straights, and which side it pulls to the most. You'll want to know how your car handles before you align your tires, so you can compare it to how your car handles after the alignment. Park your car on a flat surface that has plenty of space behind it. You will need between 15 to 30 feet of clearance. Leave the car in neutral.

Step 2 – Measure between the ground and the tires

Using a straight edge or ruler, measure four inches up from the ground. Then, mark this height onto the front face of each rear tire with chalk. The front face is the tire tread that faces the front of your car.

Figure 1. Measure from the ground to four inches up the front face of the tire.

Step 3 – Measure the distance between the rear tires

Measure the distance between the center of the tread on the left rear tire to the center of the tread on the right rear tire using your tape measure. Also, be sure to measure this distance on the front face of the tire. Write down the distance between the rear tires for later reference. For this step, working with another person will come in handy in order to hold the end of the tape measure.

Figure 2. Measure the distance between the left and right rear tires.

Step 4 – Roll the car backward

Push the car backward until the mark you made in Step 2 now faces the rear of your car. Make sure the mark is still four inches above the ground. You may need to push the car forward and backward to achieve the correct measurement.

Step 5 – Measure the distance between the rear tires

Measure again the distance between the center of the tread on the left rear tire to the center of the tread on the right rear tire using your tape measure. Also, be sure to measure this distance on the front face of the tire. Write down the distance between the rear tires. If your car needs an alignment, this measured distance will not match the measurement you took in Step 3.

Step 6 – Adjust tie rod until the two measurements match

With your 12" crescent wrench, adjust the top and/or bottom nut of the tie road end. Turning the top nut will extend the tie rod, and turning the bottom nut will retract the tie rod. Continue until the distance between the rear tires matches the measurement you took in Step 3.

Figure 3. Use a 12" crescent wrench to adjust the tie rod ends.

Step 7 – Roll the car backward

Push the car backward until the mark you made in Step 2 again faces the front of your car. Make sure the mark is still four inches above the ground. You may need to push the car forward and backward to achieve the correct measurement.

Step 8 – Measure the distance between rear tires

One last time measure the distance between the center of the tread on the left rear tire to the center of the tread on the right rear tire using your tape measure. Also, be sure to measure this distance on the front face of the tire.Write down the distance between the rear tires. The distance should match the measurement you took in Step 5. If not, complete Steps 5 to 8 again until the measurements match.

Step 9 – Alight the front tires

Repeat Steps 2 to 8 to align your front tires. Then, test drive your car to make sure the tires are properly aligned. An alignment for the front and rear tires should take no more than an hour, but it depends on how many times you may need to retake some measurements.

Featured Video: Wheel Alignment

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