Color image forming apparatus and color misalignment adjusting method

According to a color image forming apparatus, a plurality of detection patterns respectively corresponding to a plurality of colors are formed from a plurality of photosensitive body units respectively corresponding to the plurality of colors onto a transfer member in a sub-scanning direction of the transfer member, intervals between detection patterns adjacent to each other in the sub-scanning direction among the plurality of formed detection patterns are detected, and adjustment of color misalignment is performed based on the detected intervals. The plurality of detection patterns have the same size and the same shape. In this color image forming apparatus, the adjustment of color misalignment is performed using at least two types of data of detection images having different intervals as data of detection images including the plurality of detection patterns.