Castro

Hey just wondering I had my car realigned at firestone last week because I had new struts put in. The guy seemed to not touch my tie rods and just adjusted my the angles on the strut. The car goes nice and straight but when I put my steering wheel dead straight the car goes to the right which is annoying.

Is this because he didn't adjust my tie rods at all? I mean its annoying that I just paid 70 bucks and the steering wheel isn't perfectly straight.

Gord's Green Z28

Take it back. The steering wheel is supposed to be straight. I asked Midas one time if they adjust the steering wheel to center. He looked at me with a shocked look and said "of course we do. No alignment job is correct without the steering wheel being centered."

shoebox

Exactly. It's part of the alignment at any decent shop.

'86 350

Any halfway decent shop centers the steering wheel on a car. Not sure what that shop was thinking, but I'd take it back and get them to do it again. Ask them to see a printout too.

Castro

thanks guys I figured as much. he gave me a print out but it didn't show before and after from what i looked at.

i know the tie rods weren't touched cause i chalked there position.

RE AND CHERYL

Even though he might not have touched the tie rod ends, it's pulling to the right because the caster isn't right. Caster is the angle that the spindals tilt forward or lay back. If one is significantly off from the other it will pull.

Castor and camber are only minimally adjustable in the 3rd gen cars and many times you CAN'T get it right on. Beleive it or not the alignment can also be within specs and the car still pull.

GreenDemon

He also could have aligned it with the steering wheel slightly off- or he could have felt that it was "close enough" and moved the wheel to show the measurements were in spec. You never know. Just take it back and tell him the steering wheel isn't straight and it pulls, either he knows he was halfassing it and you'll get it fixed or you'll at least you'll get some sort of explanation as to why it's off (possible bent suspension parts or tire problems?). It shouldn't be too hard to figure out if they're bsing you or they just didn't think you'd be that concerned if it was off a little.

Castro

well the car isn't pulling its just that when the car is going straight the steering wheel is slightly turned. Car goes straight but the steering wheel is slightly off which is annoying to me, lol. Im calling up on monday I'll let you know what happens. thanks everyone!

respectirocz

if your steering wheel is held straight and it pulls to the right, then the car is pulling
doesnt matter if it drives straight with the steering wheel cocked

MasterEvilAce

you got new struts.. even if the tie-rods were perfectly fine.. if the caster (i believe it is) is really bad.. you'll possibly still get a pull.

I recently ran into this problem. I aligned a truck that had some new suspension **** put in (Nissan Frontier i believe it was).. Something was screwed so I couldn't get the caster perfect (wouldn't adjust anymore, beyond a certain point), but everything else was perfect. The car still had a bit of a pull to the left.. although NOWHERE near as bad as it had when it came in.


-- Edit: oh, someone already said this Just something to look at. Get a print out, and make sure they atleast try to adjust it the best they can

dhirocz

I used to work at Firestone. I quit. Lemme fill you guys in on something...

FIRESTONE trains FRAUDS.

They give out the answers to their own tests to say the mechanics are 'firestone certified'. Most they hired in my area werent even ASE certified so they were giving out this BS certification so customers would feel better. In reality most were backyard parts changers. I've seen horrifying things from mechanics at Firestone. The managers arent too smart either. My old man worked at a partner store and also witnessed plenty of things.

The steering wheel is supposed to be centered and secured in place prior to the alignment after the car is driven onto the alignment rack. It is secured by a spring loaded perch that sits on the drivers seat and cradles the bottom of the steering wheel. 4thgen Camaro alignments there are easy since the computer only has a 2 wheel alignment for caster and toe. Camber is unadjustable from the factory. When the car goes out of spec it is usually from worn struts/springs/bushings/balljoints assuming everything is stock. This requires a special tool (in my case I just used a prybar) to move the lower control arm in and out of the K-member. Most in my area are even clueless to this and are afraid to work on my car since it has eibachs. Word of advice... DONT TELL THEM THE SUSPENSION ISNT STOCK if it isnt. They will avoid it like the plague unless they are hard up for cash. Most of them complain of not having the right tool, and on lowered cars, sometimes you have to slot the holes on the k-member for the front LCA bolt to allow enough adjustment for proper alignment.

Bottom line, if the wheels arent straight when the steering wheel is they messed up. If it pulls or not. Also means the alignment wasnt staying true while the toe was being adjusted and the other side was probably moving during the alignment. Take it back ASAP and always request a before/after printout. Make sure the service writer writes it on the ticket.

I wouldnt deal with them anymore but unfortunately I have a lifetime alignment. They gave me a bogus alignment once and ate up some tires on a road trip in a few hundred miles, and tried blaming it on ME. They told me it was my fault since it was 9000 miles since my last alignment, and they recommend checks every 6000. Actually the locknut was loose. Gooyear runflats too... damn that pissed me off. And I told them I used to work for the company and he was full of it. The whole company is screwy. Be careful.

Needless to say, I got 2 new tires If it doesnt appear right or in spec, dont accept the techs word for it unless no adjustments are possible (like the F-body in some cases) Dont settle for less and dont be afraid to ask for a specific tech to work on your car if you find one who knows his stuff or if you find one you can trust.

respectirocz

in my opinion and in my experiance you will find very few people with the knowledge, working somewhere other than a dealership

simply put, if u know what ur doing, you can make alot more money working for a dealership, if you dont know what you are doing, you become a glorified parts changer

Castro

OK guys I just got back from firestone. The guy put the car back up on the lift and connected the alignment machine. He also put the steering wheel straight and then connected the spring loaded pirch which sat on my drives seat as dhirocz mentioned above. He then showed me the machine and only one camber was like .oo1 off so he adjusted that and said that wasn't going to make the difference.

I looked at the computer reading everything else was on tolerance and in the green. But still got the car back on the road and it goes straight but the steering wheel is slightly tilted same as before.

Guess I am going to have to live with it. Again seems like no adjustments were made to the tie rods up on the lift. My guess is they just don't want to mess with the tie rods and rather just adjust the camber and toe etc.

If the tie rods aren't perfect then the steering wheel isn't going to be perfect either imo. My car has 74k on it btw. Reason for the alignment was a new set of front tires and new z28 springs and struts.

MasterEvilAce

the tierods *ARE* the toe adjustment.

dhirocz

If the tie rods or balljoints have any play and the tech didnt check for this, that could cause a pull. If the tierod ends have excessive play, it could also cause the alignment to change during driving, causing twitchiness and pull.

You sure your tierod ends and balljoints are in good shape?