Ruts and ditch edges are the farm pickup's potholes
A pickup that works the fields does not see many potholes. It sees something with the same effect: hard-packed ruts, the lip where a field road drops onto pavement, and the edges of ditches and canal banks that a wheel catches at an angle.
A single hard drop off an edge, or a wheel jammed against a rut wall, can shift the alignment slightly. The truck still drives. It might pull a little toward the ditch side, or the steering wheel might sit a little off center. A driver who does this every day adjusts without noticing, because the change is small and it happened on a road that never felt smooth anyway.
Watch the paved miles
The place to notice it is back on pavement. A truck that wanders, pulls or has a crooked steering wheel on a straight, level paved road is telling you something the field roads hide.
Look at the front tires too:
- Wear on the inside or outside shoulder of one front tire.
- Tread that feels smooth when you run a hand one way across it and rough the other way.
- Front tires wearing at very different rates.
Any of those, after a season of rough use, is a reason to check.
Tires and alignment go together
Rough-road work is also hard on tires, and new ones should never go onto a truck that is out of alignment, because the wear starts on the first day. Align at the same visit as new tires.
If the truck clunks or wanders over bumps, the cause may be worn parts rather than settings, which is suspension repair. A vibration rather than a pull is usually tire and wheel balancing. Both are here. The national alignment page explains what the check measures.
About this store
The Yuma store carries all nine Purcell tire categories, including light truck tires, and is managed by Sean Quintanilla.
See the national car and light truck alignment page for all 40 locations.