The crooked steering wheel
The most common reason people book an alignment is a steering wheel that sits off-center on a straight road, and it is a good reason.
It is also worth understanding what it means. The wheels are pointing straight, because the vehicle is going straight. The steering wheel is not centered relative to them, which happens when the adjustments on each side were not balanced against each other. A vehicle can track perfectly well in that state, which is why some people live with it for years.
What makes it worth correcting is what often comes with it. A steering wheel that moved usually moved because something else did: an impact, a worn component, or previous work. The crooked wheel is the visible part of a change, and the invisible part is usually costing tires.
What the adjustment can and cannot fix
Alignment sets the angles the wheels sit at. It corrects pulling, wandering, uneven tire wear and an off-center steering wheel.
It does not fix a worn or bent part. A vehicle that will not stay aligned has something moving under load, and that is suspension work, done at this store, with the alignment afterwards rather than before.
It also does not fix a vibration. A shake at a particular speed is balance.
When to book it
The national alignment page lists the occasions. What helps most when you call is describing which of them applies to you.
"It pulls right," "the steering wheel is crooked" and "the inside edges are down" point at different angles, and knowing which before the vehicle arrives saves time at this end. If you hit something and can say roughly when, that is worth more than any of them.
About this store
The Idaho Falls consumer store handles cars and light trucks and is managed by Adam Word. It carries passenger, light truck, trailer and UTV and ATV tires.
Heavy truck and trailer alignment is at the Purcell commercial store on Andco Dr.
See the national car and light truck alignment page for all 40 locations.