Car Pulling to one side. - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

cheeba · 08-17-2009, 07:50 PM

Hey guys,

I did a search but couldn't find a good answer and I am at a loss. Someone ran me into a curb a few months ago and I lost two of my wheels. I replaced all my wheels and tires, got an alignment, but now my car keeps pulling to the left when I drive (not braking). The shop said they had to "slot" my struts in order to get an alignment but my alignment is good and that's not causing it to pull.

If it's not the alignment, and I've checked the tire pressure, what could possibly be the problem? I have brand new rims and tires (balanced). Please offer any suggestions. It's really annoying.

Thanks guys!

titleist · 08-17-2009, 08:06 PM

Rotate Your Tires Side To Side To See If This Changes Anything.

***JohnGD*** · 08-17-2009, 08:36 PM

Sure, rotate the tire is usually the first thing you do. If the pull changes then you know.

Otherwise could be brake pull, wheel bearing, and other things in the driveline.

cheeba · 08-17-2009, 08:46 PM

Thanks guys. I forgot to mention. We tried rotating the tires and the car still pulled to the same direction. They are directional tires if that makes a difference.

***JohnGD*** · 08-17-2009, 09:06 PM

The next common thing is to check brake pull. many of these inexpensive Aisin brake calipers like to stick, particularly the anchor pin with the rubber bushing.

Quote:

Originally Posted by cheeba

Thanks guys. I forgot to mention. We tried rotating the tires and the car still pulled to the same direction. They are directional tires if that makes a difference.

cheeba · 08-18-2009, 09:23 AM

Guys,

Quick question before I head to the mechanic. For those of you who say it might be brake pull, can that happen even when you are not braking? If so, the fact that it is pulling to the left, is one wheel more suspect than the next?

titleist · 08-18-2009, 10:12 AM

if it is a brake pull, one of your rims will be way hotter after 10 minutes of driving than the others. it will pull when you are not on the brakes, but won't pull if you are on the brakes. if it was brake pull, you car would feel a lack of power and you gas mileage would be crap.

Plbiohazard · 08-18-2009, 03:48 PM

One other problem that you might have is you bent your control arm i have the same problem

***ASG14*** · 08-18-2009, 04:22 PM

"The shop said they had to "slot" my struts in order to get an alignment but my alignment is good and that's not causing it to pull."

Thats your answer. Your suspension, some part of it, is bent. So these people saying brake pull and rotating the tires didn't read your whole post. If they had to "slot" something, it;s becaust something is bent. that has NOTHING to do with the brakes or wheels.

Good chance it's the same issues as the poster above me. You may even have a bent strut, or other other stuff.

cheeba · 08-18-2009, 07:46 PM

ASG14,

That makes sense. Now the question is, if my control arm or strut etc is bent, can they be straightened or do I need to replace things? I didn't make it to the shop today but will head there tomorrow.

***ASG14*** · 08-18-2009, 07:57 PM

Once a suspension piece is bent, it pretty much has to be replaced. Well, doesn't "have" to, but it;s a good idea to.

If it;s the strut (again, may be several bent things), you need to replace them in pairs (i.e., both front ones or both back).

And the reason it;s not the brakes is simple. If it has been a few months like that, with the brakes rubbing, you'd have no brake pads left and likely smell them burning.

Don;t go back to the shop that did the alignment. I don't trust them. If in fact there is something bent, they are supposed to tell you and not do the alignment till it;s fixed. It;s best to get it done right the 1st time.

cheeba · 08-18-2009, 08:26 PM

Thanks for the great advice. Sounds like a solid plan. I will look for a different shop and have them take a look. I hope it's not my struts as I have Tokico Blues and am not sure I will be able to find replacements (not to mention they are kinda expensive!).

***JohnGD*** · 08-18-2009, 08:32 PM

Right. Some of us completely missed the daylights.

If you have bent components from the accident then you can get pulls too. At least some parts still weren't straightened out.

Quote:

Originally Posted by cheeba

Hey guys,

I did a search but couldn't find a good answer and I am at a loss. Someone ran me into a curb a few months ago and I lost two of my wheels. I replaced all my wheels and tires, got an alignment, but now my car keeps pulling to the left when I drive (not braking). The shop said they had to "slot" my struts in order to get an alignment but my alignment is good and that's not causing it to pull.

Thanks guys!

cheeba · 09-17-2009, 08:29 AM

Update:

After going back and forth between my mechanic, alignment shop and tire shop, everyone hates me now and am tired of pointing the finger at each other

Alignment is fine, but they told me that my car just doesn't like directional tires since it didn't come with them and that's what's causing it to pull. It sounds a bit like bull, but at the moment, I've already spent too much time trying to figure this out. I just don't want it to happen again.

Has anyone ever heard of this?

I have a i4 2000 Toyota Camry with 17" and Kumho Ecsta ASX directional tires.

skewe · 09-17-2009, 04:57 PM

Never heard of that.

I had a 93 and I ran into the curb.

Alignment was out.
Had to get alignment done twice and it does not pull anymore.. 2nd time was free