Just had torque bars on rear axles replaced, and drag link also. Do I need an alignment now? Thanks in advance
It depends on the type of torque bars. If you had just transverse ones done, they are perpendicular to the frame rails, they do not affect the alignments very much. The drag link only affects the steering linkage between the gear and steering arm. It has nothing to do with any steer axle alignment settings. The old drag link would make the steering sloppy. The only thing a new drag link can change is how the steering wheel is centered. Technically you do not need an alignment. If your tires are wearing nicely I would leave well-enough alone. If it has been more than two years since your last alignment and you want to cover all your bases, now would be a good time.
Alignments are relatively inexpensive, unless you just had one done why not do it. Much cheaper than a set of steer tires.
I would not hesitate one second.Get the alignment done and stop being a cheapo..I just had alot of front end work done and the whole rear end worked on.I tryed real hard to ''pinch the penny''.My machanic had to YELL AT ME to get this cheap job done.. Alignment was 150.00.Steers would be around 5-6 hundred a peice.I learned alot about this alignment and i will be in every 6 months to get it adjusted.These COW TRAILS we ride on will kill the steers and alignment.. I learned my lesson after the last 2 sets of steers and getting alignments done..Never Again,i hope....
The torque arms for the rear alignment, latterally, are part of the rear alignment, set with shims. You can check that with a tape measure, from the edge of the tire rim, look down the inside of the frame rail, measure both sides, it should be the same. The other torgue arms, are for setting the the angles of the rear ends, set with shims. That should have been checked when they replaced the torque arms, 90% of the torque arm bushings are replaceable, you do not need to replace the tube. The drag link does not change the alignment, in any way possibly the steering wheel position will move, and that is very rare. Just a thought!
Thanks for all the advice, its greatly appreciated. I routinely have my truck aligned, and I'm not a cheap ###. I put more money into my truck then my own pocket lots of times. Just wondering if it was a must do right away. Btw its the torque bars that are parallel with the rear ends Surprised by the amount of smart ##### on this site though..
