Crooked steering wheel???

[MP3Performance]

First off I dont realy know if this is the section to ask, but since I have a MP3 I'll try here first.

My problem is that the steering wheel on my car is kinda crooked/off center when driving straight. I had the car almost a year and everything was ok with the steering until about a month ago. At first I thought it was only an aligment issue so went to the firestone auto and got their lifetime alignment package. Right after I left I still noticed the steering wheel was still crooked. I went back a week later to have them make sure everything was alingned and I told them to check the wheel, and they said it alignment was ok. I checked the wheel and it was still of center as before. I told them, and they said they might need to offset the steering to compinsate for the angel.

It seems this all started right after I installed the adj. endliks on my car (since the old ones were shot). I don't realy see how the swaybar could effect the steering, but wanted to make sure if anyone knows. Or maybe this was from somekind of pothole I might have hit? Also, when I let go of the wheel the car slowly creaps to the left, and the steering wheel seems to want to center itself out. The "crookedness" of the wheel is not bad, but just realy annoying.

If anyone has any suggestions or things I should check please let me know.

-Thanks

 

[mp3josh]

you need an alignment. It will fix your sterring wheel

 

[jadonP5]

how bad is it? i think there are other ways to adjust it, but you could always just take off the wheel and turn it one notch the other way and put it back on.

 

[MP3Performance]

you need an alignment. It will fix your sterring wheel

I already had the alignment done 2 times in the past 3 weeks. Either they have screwed up machines/technicians or its something else.

how bad is it? i think there are other ways to adjust it, but you could always just take off the wheel and turn it one notch the other way and put it back on.

It isnt very bad, just annoying. I have to hold the wheel as if I were turning slightly right. The middle arm on the steering wheel is off by around 1 to 2 inches. I thought about adjusting the steering wheel, but if I do that then when I would let go of it car would still turn to the left.

 

[L8R]

I have the same problem, but I changed steering wheels. Even after alignment, it is still crooked also. I might have to readjust it...

Bump

 

[mp3josh]

well there is a way to do it, but you have to be mechanically inclined. It has to do with removing the struts and realigning it that way. But a basic alignment should fix it. Go to a shop that only specializes in tire/suspension work.

-Josh

 

[jadonP5]

I have the same problem, but I changed steering wheels. Even after alignment, it is still crooked also. I might have to readjust it...

Bump

i think i got mine on one notch to the right...i have the same problem after i swapped wheels...too much trouble for such a small adjustment.

 

[toucci]

tell the alignment guy you want the steering wheel straightened. they're half-assing it if the wheel is crooked

 

[MP3Performance]

well there is a way to do it, but you have to be mechanically inclined. It has to do with removing the struts and realigning it that way. But a basic alignment should fix it. Go to a shop that only specializes in tire/suspension work.

-Josh

A can do basic/medium installs but I dont think I want to touch that by myself. The place I went to specializes is wheel and tire and basic maintnents.

tell the alignment guy you want the steering wheel straightened. they're half-assing it if the wheel is crooked

I told them the second time, but I sorta think they didn't care. I will probobly try going again over the weekend, but this time to another place and see what they say.

 

[L8R]

Bump

 

[TheMAN]

tell the alignment guy you want the steering wheel straightened. they're half-assing it if the wheel is crooked

exactly

 

[Tengo]

its called torque steer guys, FWD cars do that. and if the road isnt completely flat then it will do that, if the roads flat then it wont swerve off to the right, my certified mazda mechanic manager told me while we were in the car, i told him after the alignment that it was still swerveing off to the side, so he got in the car and told me its natural, and he took me to a back road that was flat and the wheel and car stayed straight.

 

[Tengo]

sorry guys i misread the thread, its STEERING wheel, i thought u guys were talking about the car it self like swerving off and s*** while u let go of the wheel and the car veers right while the steering wheel is still straight, sorry guys

 

[JoeManNorth]

What may have happen is that once you got your endlinks, or whatever you got changed they did not ajust them right to begin with. The car is fully aligned but to the ajustment of them endlinks. For example, if they had 4 turns on the left side and two on the right you're alighment shop probably tweeked a few other things to compensate for that and led to a crooked steering.

I may be way off... But i know alignments have many variables.

 

[zoomin MP3]

There's a thing called road crown. It's the slant of a street side to side for water run-off. Most roads while you drive on them should slant from left to right, with left being the high side. Some roads are flat, and still others go the opposite direction.

Some vehicle manuals automatically compensate for the slant, while others have to be guessed at. I'm not sure about our cars. If your wheel is crooked, that's the technicians fault. He's being lazy, or overcompensating.

Check the roads you drive on and see how severe the crown is. If your car is tuned exactly even on both sides, it will pull to the right on a normal road (normal is having a crown).

 

[MP3Performance]

I am 99 % sure the reason for the turning is not natural. I know exactly what you guys mean about the road not being perfectly staight, for water run off and such. But I know that a couple months ago it did not pull in any direction on a perfectly flat road. I tried driving on different roads, and it pulls to the left in all cases, sometimes more and sometimes less. And also, since it pulls only to the left it wouldn't be the crown of the road only, since most of the times they are slanted so water runs off to the right shoulder. This causes most people to compensate there wheel to the left, I always have the wheel to the right.

I am still very interested in how the endlinks could acting in this whole problem. If anyone has anymore info on the effects caused by endlinks please let me know. I measured the lenghts of the endlinks and they are pretty close, but not perfect (like a 1/2 cm). I will try to set them up perfectly even tomarrow and try to stop by for an alignment

Thanks to everyone who added there input and to anyone that is willing to share info.

 

[L8R]

Well, I took my car in today to a friend's shop and duh, I needed to get my rims rebalanced. After I did that however, I was looking at the tire and saw a HUGE bubble in it.... so I had to replace my tires :[

Im now broke but happy I found the problem. Good luck man.

 

[MP3Performance]

I have finally found the problem!!! But it is worse than what I had hoped for. There is a huge slash on the right front tire from the inside sidewall. It is right between the sidewall and the tread. I have no idea what it is from or how it happend. (Probobly pothole or something). So now I need to get 2 new tires ASAP. Probobly will go with Yokohama or Toyo. I am kinda pissed about this since I went two two wheel shops about this and nobody thought to check the tire.

 

[zoomzoom02]

Well, glad you found your problem. I have a similar problem, but mine is due to me avoiding an accident and curbing my front pass wheel at 50 MPH. It pulls like hell to the right (can switch lanes in 2 sec just letting go of wheel), and at 65+ MPH the steering wheel shakes left and right like crazy. I did this 3 years ago, and do not have the money to see what the problem is. I know something is bent as hell down there, but don't know what.

 

[L8R]

Good to hear you found your problem also! Same s*** as me...