Steering drifting left

[apc01]

The steering on my 100 series is pulling very slightly to the left to the point constant right hand pressure is needed to correct it. It brakes in a straight line and no obvious tyre wear.

I am tempted to gave the wheels aligned but the garage reckons it is best to align all 4 wheels which costs more than double just the front ones.

The car has done this for as long as I can remember.

Could this be simply due to the camber of the road? Do I really need all 4 wheels aligned if I decide to do it?

Thanks.

 

[frank rabbets]

Most likely the camber of the road if there is no significant tyre wear. Even with correct wheel alignment the outside edge of the kerb side tyre will wear slightly more than the other front tyre.

You can find a clear stretch of empty straight road and drive slowly down it and note how much the steering wheel is off centre. Then drive down the same stretch of road on the wrong side and the steering wheel should be off centre by the same amount but in the other direction. Mine is about 2 inches either way at the rim on a medium camber road.

The rear wheels are not adjustable but they may use them as a reference but cannot charge for their adjustment.

Four wheel alignment is possible on some cars but the 100 only requires front wheel alignment.

 

[apc01]

Most likely the camber of the road if there is no significant tyre wear. Even with correct wheel alignment the outside edge of the kerb side tyre will wear slightly more than the other front tyre.

You can find a clear stretch of empty straight road and drive slowly down it and note how much the steering wheel is off centre. Then drive down the same stretch of road on the wrong side and the steering wheel should be off centre by the same amount but in the other direction. Mine is about 2 inches either way at the rim on a medium camber road.

The rear wheels are not adjustable but they may use them as a reference but cannot charge for their adjustment.

Four wheel alignment is possible on some cars but the 100 only requires front wheel alignment.

Thanks very much for your advice - I will go off and carry out some tests. Good to know only front wheel alignment is required as well.

 

[uHu]

Mine pulls slightly to the left if I drive on the wrong (left) side of the road, because of the camber. LHD here.
Otherwise, the tyres can trick you if they are worn on one side. Try swapping left to right to see if it pulls the other way (OK for a short test even if they are rotation directed), and you can also try back to front.
Tyres without blocks, the more street type ("slicks with grooves"), are more sensitive to uneven wear and to road conditions than a tyre with flexing blocks and sipings (like winter tyres).

 

[frank rabbets]

Yes you do notice a difference when you replace a badly worn set with a new set. The wear steer creeps up on you whereas there is a sudden change when you replace.

I usually rotate diagonally. That way the most worn tyre i.e. kerb tyre goes to the least stressed position.

 

[clivehorridge]

All of he above, but it's possibly worth checking rubber suspension mountings, front and rear, and steering joints before you run it in for alignment checks. (Maybe there's no rubber at the front, Im not familiar with IFS on the 100 )

 

[Brian the Sn@il]

mine had the steering wheel to the left while driving straight.
I had the local garage to align the front wheels, all lovely now £29 well spent

 

[uHu]

mine had the steering wheel to the left while driving straight.
I had the local garage to align the front wheels, all lovely now £29 well spent

Did you also get the steering angle sensor for the AHC zero'ed?

 

[frank rabbets]

I doubt whether any garages in UK have heard of that uHu .

 

[apc01]

I had my wheels balanced by my usual garage who are generally excellent.

Checked my tyres this morning and noticed that there is a lot of scrubbing type wear on the outer edge of the front offside tyre. I also noticed that there appears to be bits of rubber missing in little evenly spaced patches around the tyre.

The car does not pull to the left as much now and to the extent it does could probably be attributed to camber.

I dont want to wreck an expensive tyre obviously - what could be causing this outer edge front nearside tyre wear?

 

[clivehorridge]

Track alignment which is adjustable or Castor alignment which (probably) isn't (I don't know the IFS system very well).

I would start by checking for worn bushes/pivots and the like.

When only one tyre is showing these symptoms, it's often a problem with just one side (i.e. a worn or loose bush/pivot).

JMHO...

 

[frank rabbets]

Tracking. Castor and camber are adjustable on the 100 but would have to be severely out to cause tyre wear.

 

[apc01]

Is it true that only the front wheels are adjustable on the 100 series?

If the tracking, castor or camber are out, will it cause the car to drift to one side as well as potential tyre wear?

Thanks.

 

[frank rabbets]

The 100 has a solid rear axle on solid mounts so there is no adjustment.

Incorrect tracking will not cause the car to pull.

Castor and camber would have to be MILES out to cause the car to pull.

Different tyres right/left on the front axle may cause pulling. The test is to swop them and see if it does it the other way.

 

[Shayne]

Check rear trailing arm and panhard rod bushes my 90 has IFS and that was the cause of very odd tyre wear .

 

[Pedders01]

Is it true that only the front wheels are adjustable on the 100 series?

If the tracking, castor or camber are out, will it cause the car to drift to one side as well as potential tyre wear?

Thanks.

Yes, this is correct. BUT, to do the alignment properly you would be referencing the thrust angle of the rear axle, so would need to know what it is. Without that, you may find despite adjustment, that your steering wheel is not centered.

Tracking (toe angle) out, inaccurate castor, or possibly very wrong camber as well as the rear axle thrust angle can all conspire to cause a drift to one side. As mentioned above though, so can tyres! If swapping front to back changes what happens, then there is a good chance the tyres are the culprit.

Without a proper readout from a machine, difficult to say much more. If you have a printout, post it up and i can give you a view on it.

The good news is, camber, castor as well as toe are all adjustable.

Have you checked the condition of all your suspension bushes? If these are badly worn, then in effect, your alignment will be wrong.

 

[apc01]

Yes, this is correct. BUT, to do the alignment properly you would be referencing the thrust angle of the rear axle, so would need to know what it is. Without that, you may find despite adjustment, that your steering wheel is not centered.

Tracking (toe angle) out, inaccurate castor, or possibly very wrong camber as well as the rear axle thrust angle can all conspire to cause a drift to one side. As mentioned above though, so can tyres! If swapping front to back changes what happens, then there is a good chance the tyres are the culprit.

Without a proper readout from a machine, difficult to say much more. If you have a printout, post it up and i can give you a view on it.

The good news is, camber, castor as well as toe are all adjustable.

Have you checked the condition of all your suspension bushes? If these are badly worn, then in effect, your alignment will be wrong.

Thanks for all the advice and info everyone.

Also noticed this morning that the car is over-steering on right hand turns. Not sure if that ties in with the other symptoms.

Also when the steering wheel is centred it steers right.

Found a place this morning that specialises in wheel alignment and has brand new state of the art gear installed 2 months ago. They say the whole process takes 2 hours, so I assume that represents a thorough job even if it does cost £49. So I may well do that.

 

[Shayne]

Oversteer would indicate rear wheel steering which ties in with worn rear bushes and as Pedders offer the rear needs to be right to set the front up .

 

[Pedders01]

Thanks for all the advice and info everyone.

Also noticed this morning that the car is over-steering on right hand turns. Not sure if that ties in with the other symptoms.

Also when the steering wheel is centred it steers right.

Found a place this morning that specialises in wheel alignment and has brand new state of the art gear installed 2 months ago. They say the whole process takes 2 hours, so I assume that represents a thorough job even if it does cost £49. So I may well do that.

Thats a good price if its done properly. Try to make sure you get a printout.

As Shayne said, the oversteer issue would suggest a possible issue with the location of the rear axle. Id strongly suggest you identify this issue prior to your alignment.

 

[300kk]

Hi
New to the forum, so please be gentle!

I have a 2014 Invincible, which pulls to the left, needing constant gentle right steering. I have had the tracking done twice recently, first attempt made absolutely no difference, the second made a small difference. There is no uneven tyre wear, no juddering or pulling on braking. Steering wheel rotates freely with no noises. Fairly recent MOT and service at main dealer identified no problems eg worn bushes.

When I bought the car it had the OEMs on the back and brand new, cheapo ?'mud and snow' tyres on the front. I replaced the rear tyres with all-seasons, thinking that the cheap front tyres would wear soon enough and I would replace them with all-seasons, but, 20,000 miles later, they haven't! Is it possible that the difference in tyres in contributing to the problem? What else could be causing the problem?