Car Pulling To Left

[wanzi]

Ok as most as most of you guys know recently i had to change my Lower Control Arm and Caster Rod, after getting a new set of tires, alignment and suspension check the car is starting to pull to the left (if I let go of the steering wheel it will just start going to the left) I was wondering what you guys think it is, it drives fine i took it to the midnight cruise with no dramas but its worrying me for the Buller cruise. Does anyone know of a good suspension specialist near Caulfield East? After a close examination I think I've tightened the LCA bolt too tight but it seems to be stuck now (It free spins, no amount of untightening or tightening makes it move) I'm currently getting another bolt from the guy I bought the LCA from but I just haven't had the time (as he lives in Frankston) although I dont think it will have a major influence on the steering will it?

Any input appreciated

EDIT: I have to keep the steering wheel slightly to the right for it to go straight

hey mate i got the same problem! the guy who did my wheel alignment had a look at it and said that my front left control arm needs to be adjusted, meaning that the front left wheel actually sits a cm or so further back than my front right. u can tell if this is ur problem by seeing how many fingers u can fit in between the tyre and ur guard on both wheels. if u can fit more fingers in one of them then like me u need to go to a suspension joint and have the control arm moved to position so the wheels r even.

btw woo hoo 100 posts

[JamesK]

hey mate i got the same problem! the guy who did my wheel alignment had a look at it and said that my front left control arm needs to be adjusted, meaning that the front left wheel actually sits a cm or so further back than my front right. u can tell if this is ur problem by seeing how many fingers u can fit in between the tyre and ur guard on both wheels. if u can fit more fingers in one of them then like me u need to go to a suspension joint and have the control arm moved to position so the wheels r even.

btw woo hoo 100 posts

Thats exactly what Vu did when he first saw my car, how much did it cost you to get fixed?

[wanzi]

Thats exactly what Vu did when he first saw my car, how much did it cost you to get fixed?

i actually havent got it fixed yet but i dont think it would cost that much cos its only changing the position of the control arm. should take a professional under an hour im guessing

[battery]

i have the same problem with my car, i dont think you can adjust the LCA.

i think adjusting the castor could solve this problem but i don't understand why the aligner didn't do it?

wheres the nisskid!!

[JamesK]

No stock suspension is not that adjustable maybe if I went aftermarket and got some Teins or something i might have been able to compensate for the damage but I just dont have the money, Vu is going to have to pull it out and get them as as straight as possible. Wanzi I wouldn't recommend you driving on them until you get if fixed your going to go through your tire like crazy

[atomaly]

i had the same issue the other day.... pulling to left.. (i was like shittt whats happened, cos i just got it serviced)

but mine was a slow leak from the valve of the left front tyre haha

Edited November 5, 2009 by atomaly

[femno]

IMO the alignment was rubbish! Toe always has the ability to be adjusted...having said that there is no reason for it to be 2mm out! If there was play in the ball joint then they should have picked that up and told you.

You've made a mistake not taking the car to Kents, they are automotive engineers...they would have been able to pinpoint the problem (bent bits in this case) and tell you what needs to be replaced and do it. Im sorry but you cannot shift a strut tower or bend the front of the chassis from hitting a gutter. I dont understand what Vu is going to 'pull out'. You havent had a 'heavy collision' so to speak.

Some other suspension links, the camber arm mount (unboltable), the subframe or the upright/kingpin assy must be bent.

Ideally, you would set up some string lines and see where exactly the front hubs are sitting in relation to the rest of the car....that would tell a few things.

[nisskid]

i have the same problem with my car, i dont think you can adjust the LCA.

i think adjusting the castor could solve this problem but i don't understand why the aligner didn't do it?

wheres the nisskid!!

stock suspension u have front toe adj, small amounts of rear camber adj, and rear toe adj (on HICAS models).

his alignment is to shit, no wonder it's pulling, yes the camber and caster are out which cant be adjusted stock, but the toe is out too which could easily be adjusted out, but hasnt. which makes me think the aligner was a knob.

generally ur caster and camber should be straight, up to half a degree out is alright and wont cause a lot of issues, but that kind of camber difference means something is f**ked, first thing to do if nothing else is obvious is try other suspension arms in, if ur getting the same result, something more serious is buggered, ur chassis could be bent, ur rad support could be pushed back, ur crossmember could be bent, UCA bracket, caster rod bracket etc etc.

if you cant see a noticeable issue, ur simply going to have to replace the parts and hope, if u know what ur doing it's a pretty small job, if u can find a wrecking car, and grab a whole front corner setup (LCA, hubs, UCA and caster rods etc) it can be fairly cheap too

Some comments the mechanic left after a comprehensive check:

Play in L/H Front King Pin

Play in L/H rear tie rod end and upper control arm joint

L/H ball joint rubber cover split

sounds pretty serious..........

king pin is a fairly big, only because it's part of the uprights assembly, but it's pretty ballsy and doesnt often fail, as much as pedders seem to say.

tie rod ends go all the time, they can be had for around $10 or something and are easy as piss to change.

UCA joint? not sure which one, there are a few, bushes sometimes go, but not a big problem.

lower ball joint cover being split isnt the end of the world, dont worry about it.

[JamesK]

IMO the alignment was rubbish! Toe always has the ability to be adjusted...having said that there is no reason for it to be 2mm out! If there was play in the ball joint then they should have picked that up and told you.

You've made a mistake not taking the car to Kents, they are automotive engineers...they would have been able to pinpoint the problem (bent bits in this case) and tell you what needs to be replaced and do it. Im sorry but you cannot shift a strut tower or bend the front of the chassis from hitting a gutter. I dont understand what Vu is going to 'pull out'. You havent had a 'heavy collision' so to speak.

Some other suspension links, the camber arm mount (unboltable), the subframe or the upright/kingpin assy must be bent.

Ideally, you would set up some string lines and see where exactly the front hubs are sitting in relation to the rest of the car....that would tell a few things.

Yea I see your point but when your a uni student living on your own and having to pay double the rent when your roommate moves out, your really left with no other alternative but to take the cheaper routes even if you dont want too

[JamesK]

stock suspension u have front toe adj, small amounts of rear camber adj, and rear toe adj (on HICAS models).

his alignment is to shit, no wonder it's pulling, yes the camber and caster are out which cant be adjusted stock, but the toe is out too which could easily be adjusted out, but hasnt. which makes me think the aligner was a knob.

generally ur caster and camber should be straight, up to half a degree out is alright and wont cause a lot of issues, but that kind of camber difference means something is f**ked, first thing to do if nothing else is obvious is try other suspension arms in, if ur getting the same result, something more serious is buggered, ur chassis could be bent, ur rad support could be pushed back, ur crossmember could be bent, UCA bracket, caster rod bracket etc etc.

if you cant see a noticeable issue, ur simply going to have to replace the parts and hope, if u know what ur doing it's a pretty small job, if u can find a wrecking car, and grab a whole front corner setup (LCA, hubs, UCA and caster rods etc) it can be fairly cheap too

king pin is a fairly big, only because it's part of the uprights assembly, but it's pretty ballsy and doesnt often fail, as much as pedders seem to say.

tie rod ends go all the time, they can be had for around $10 or something and are easy as piss to change.

UCA joint? not sure which one, there are a few, bushes sometimes go, but not a big problem.

lower ball joint cover being split isnt the end of the world, dont worry about it.

Thank you for your invaluable advice nisskid I'll definitely have a look into these things when I get my car back

[inark]

its obvious that the real reason is not mechanical at all...

i cant believe any one has not posted this up yet, it is that obvious... all of this pain and money could have been avoided had you all thought of the most simplest thing.

what is it?

your left arm is shorter then your right... while your right arm is extended at the standard distance. Because your left arm is shorter, for you to reach the wheel with the same amount of bend as your right, you unwhittingly pull the wheel to the left.

like seriously...

[JamesK]

Plus Vu said he could help and in my last dealings with him, he's someone I do trust and I've had good experiences with, its just my opinion but I don't think going to him was a "mistake"

[JamesK]

its obvious that the real reason is not mechanical at all...

i cant believe any one has not posted this up yet, it is that obvious... all of this pain and money could have been avoided had you all thought of the most simplest thing.

what is it?

your left arm is shorter then your right... while your right arm is extended at the standard distance. Because your left arm is shorter, for you to reach the wheel with the same amount of bend as your right, you unwhittingly pull the wheel to the left.

like seriously...

Man no offense but you should come on here rambling about the "obvious" when you dont know the whole story, most of the people responding to this know whats has happened with my car and are basing their opinion from what they know.

EDIT: I appreciate your input and I'm trying to look into everyone's suggestions but please don't one up people out of the blue, especially people like Nisskid, Paul, Femno, and the others who have have a very big reputation and these are people whom I respect

[inark]

no wonder i dont come on here much anymore... your all getting too serious.

[JamesK]

no wonder i dont come on here much anymore... your all getting too serious.

Sorry you feel that way, personally it is this community that I am going to miss if I do end up moving to Brisbane. Thanks for your input anyway

[SS8_Gohan]

dude, narkeh was being sarcastic!

anyways... i'm surprised Traction Tyres hasn't been mentioned, they WILL look after you as a SAU Vic member (make sure to mention that)

There's actually a bit of skill involved to getting a good alignment (and not to mention vast differences in equipment between places like TT and franchise store suspension). Once everything is said and done, take it to the boys at Traction Tyres, show em what's happened so far and what's been done and tell them to get it all back to normal. They have the best equipment and some of the best people. AND they don't charge the earth unlike some of 'big name' suspension places.

You'll be looked after as a SAU Vic member

[JamesK]

dude, narkeh was being sarcastic!

anyways... i'm surprised Traction Tyres hasn't been mentioned, they WILL look after you as a SAU Vic member (make sure to mention that)

There's actually a bit of skill involved to getting a good alignment (and not to mention vast differences in equipment between places like TT and franchise store suspension). Once everything is said and done, take it to the boys at Traction Tyres, show em what's happened so far and what's been done and tell them to get it all back to normal. They have the best equipment and some of the best people. AND they don't charge the earth unlike some of 'big name' suspension places.

You'll be looked after as a SAU Vic member

Oh was he? SORRY! hahah i've been studying for an exam for the past 72 hours so I'm not exactly in the best of states, I'll make sure to take my car there after the suspension has been fixed, thanks for the input

[battery]

anyways... i'm surprised Traction Tyres hasn't been mentioned

i dunno people rave about these guys but i've been there about 6 times and each time the car drive's differently, only once was i happy with it.

i would not recommend.

[nisskid]

no wonder i dont come on here much anymore... your all getting too serious.

i lold

[inark]

glad someone did