Steering pulling to the left...
Discussion
So the steering on my old merc R129 pulls a bit to the left.
Its been computer aligned and the bloke says its within tolerance, virtually spot on even.
So if the steering is set up ok, what would be the usual suspects to look at next ? I know the front tyres are old, but the tread is good. The cars had recent front springs and lower wishbones.
Id have thought the MOT would throw up any worn linkage problems ?
Cheers
Its been computer aligned and the bloke says its within tolerance, virtually spot on even.
So if the steering is set up ok, what would be the usual suspects to look at next ? I know the front tyres are old, but the tread is good. The cars had recent front springs and lower wishbones.
Id have thought the MOT would throw up any worn linkage problems ?
Cheers
Amused2death said:
Tyre pressures?
Natural camber of the road?
It won't be brakes as if the calipers were partially seized to pull the car to the left, when you brake the car would pull to the right first.Natural camber of the road?
To add tyre wear, if you had a new tyre on one side & old one on the other it could also do it.
I had new rear tires put on yesterday at my usual tire fitting garage.
They did a 4 wheel alignment around 6 months, and approx. 500 miles ago as I mentioned ( I do around 1000 miles per year in this car ).
They checked it again yesterday and said it needs 2 adjustments on the front and 1 on the rear at £31 per adjustment. (£93 to get your tracking done these days....)
I said not now, as I'll be back in March for new matching front tires so well get it done then.
How the tracking goes off in 3 points in a car that's driven 500 miles and not hit any pot holes etc. seems a bit weird. I wonder if its something to do with the skill of the operator in setting up the machine ? You get a nice colour print out of the results.
Anyway.... so new fronts and re-alignment soon then I'll see if that improves the problem
Its just one of my pet hates when the car steering pulls
They did a 4 wheel alignment around 6 months, and approx. 500 miles ago as I mentioned ( I do around 1000 miles per year in this car ).
They checked it again yesterday and said it needs 2 adjustments on the front and 1 on the rear at £31 per adjustment. (£93 to get your tracking done these days....)
I said not now, as I'll be back in March for new matching front tires so well get it done then.
How the tracking goes off in 3 points in a car that's driven 500 miles and not hit any pot holes etc. seems a bit weird. I wonder if its something to do with the skill of the operator in setting up the machine ? You get a nice colour print out of the results.
Anyway.... so new fronts and re-alignment soon then I'll see if that improves the problem
Its just one of my pet hates when the car steering pulls
pcn1 said:
They did a 4 wheel alignment around 6 months, and approx. 500 miles ago
How the tracking goes off in 3 points in a car that's driven 500 miles and not hit any pot holes etc. seems a bit weird.
It can't move unless there is either damage or wear, if it were me, I would be getting under it now to see if there is something out of sorts now before letting uneven tyre wear set in.How the tracking goes off in 3 points in a car that's driven 500 miles and not hit any pot holes etc. seems a bit weird.
Panamax said:
E-bmw said:
It won't be brakes as if the calipers were partially seized to pull the car to the left, when you brake the car would pull to the right first.
I've never heard that one before.Any car I've driven with a knackered calliper just pulls one direction.
Brake caliper on the front right (for arguments sake) is seized partially on, car pulls to the right when driving normally.
Brake caliper on the right is seized partially on, when you brake, the caliper on the left brakes more than the one that is seized so the car pulls to the left.
That is the only way I have ever had a stiff/seized caliper react before.
The challenge is that there are many aspects of the car which can impact how it steers, including:
- tyre type and pressure and tread depth variation across the axle.
- centre of pull for each tyre (marked on a tyre when new by a line around the circumference).
- Wear in suspension components, including ball joints and bushes, allowing the wheel(s) to change alignment when the car's moving*.
- Geometry setup which favours the car steering left - the left-side camber on the left lane of most UK roads will amplify any tendency to steer left.
- Brakes, as previously mentioned.
- tyre type and pressure and tread depth variation across the axle.
- centre of pull for each tyre (marked on a tyre when new by a line around the circumference).
- Wear in suspension components, including ball joints and bushes, allowing the wheel(s) to change alignment when the car's moving*.
- Geometry setup which favours the car steering left - the left-side camber on the left lane of most UK roads will amplify any tendency to steer left.
- Brakes, as previously mentioned.
- I suspect the issue with a fair few geometry jobs is that the operator doesn't check the car thoroughly for wear in components and correct any by replacing the relevant parts before doing the geometry. What you then end up with is a car that's roughly correct in geometry terms when it's static but where the worn components allow the geometry to change as soon as loads are placed on the wheels in the fore-aft and other dimensions.
E-bmw said:
Brake caliper on the front right (for arguments sake) is seized partially on, car pulls to the right when driving normally.
No, you won't be driving "normally" at all if the calliper is partially seized-on. The heat generated will expand and grossly overheat the disc and also expand the metal in the calliper and the combined effect causes the whole lot to jam on harder and harder.If the calliper is seized out of contact with the disc the car will dive one way under braking.
Panamax said:
E-bmw said:
Brake caliper on the front right (for arguments sake) is seized partially on, car pulls to the right when driving normally.
No, you won't be driving "normally" at all if the calliper is partially seized-on. The heat generated will expand and grossly overheat the disc and also expand the metal in the calliper and the combined effect causes the whole lot to jam on harder and harder.If the calliper is seized out of contact with the disc the car will dive one way under braking.
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