tires not aligned?

[JohnCWms27]

I recently got some new tires and 17" MR7's on my 94 camry. I put them on but didnt get them aligned...im wondering if thats what is causing the following problem ......


Not every time, but sometimes after i hit a bump or sometimes when stopping quickly, the steering wheel turns about 25 degrees to the left. I can always control it, its not like im going into other lanes, but the steering wheel jerks quickly over the left.

When driving down the highway on a flat surface it usually stays straight, although sometimes it goes a bit to the left. Any ideas?

[Nick]

you shouldn't need an alignment after changing tires/rims, sounds more of a brake problem

and the slight left movement could be due to the slight crowning of roads, do you drive mostly in the left lane on the highways?

[Neon]

if you didn't do your alignment it will certainly do that.
even if you are running at a completely flat surfaced road, your car would also pull to either left or right.

well i put some 17's on mine and i did alignment and sometimes my car still pulls to the right LoL. i guess that's normal

[JohnCWms27]

yea i usually drive on the left lane, but I did this test while in the right lane...since it was veering to the left i didnt wanna be in the left lane (i dont particularly like visiting guardrails )

[karazy]

When a car is properly aligned it should run fairly straight on the highways and drift slightly to the right on singles.
It is not a bad idea to get an alignment anytime you invest alot money on new rubber. Some places will not honour the warranty if there is uneven wear.
In your case it could be a problem with both your brakes and suspension/steering. When a car pulls on braking, the opposite side is usually the culprit. The second problem is a bit tricky to pinpoint, but a good mech should inspect the complete frontend before doing an alignment. It saves you from having to get it done twice, before and after the repairs.

[cam2Xrunner]

Originally posted by karazy
When a car is properly aligned it should run fairly straight on the highways and drift slightly to the right on singles.
It is not a bad idea to get an alignment anytime you invest alot money on new rubber. Some places will not honour the warranty if there is uneven wear.
In your case it could be a problem with both your brakes and suspension/steering. When a car pulls on braking, the opposite side is usually the culprit. The second problem is a bit tricky to pinpoint, but a good mech should inspect the complete frontend before doing an alignment. It saves you from having to get it done twice, before and after the repairs.

It's actually supposed to have some slight pull to the left to adjust to the road crown. If you drive on a two way road with a road crown the car will naturally drift to the right. The alignment specs are set to make the car go left to adjust to the road crown. If you are on a flat freeway you should have some slight drifting the the left. And keep in mind that our camrys don't have any caster adjustments. Theres is only toe and camber adj(if you have camber bolts installed). The toe isn't what really causes pull as much as caster. An off camber can cause some pull as well. Usually what causes pulling is the tires.

[cam2Xrunner]

John, check your brake pads and see if the left rotors pads are more worn that the right sides. If it is then the problem might be the calipers. Also low profile directional tires will sometimes track to the left or right if they go over uneven pavent or something in the road. Its from having more grip than reg. tires.

[karazy]

It's actually supposed to have some slight pull to the left to adjust to the road crown. If you drive on a two way road with a road crown the car will naturally drift to the right. The alignment specs are set to make the car go left to adjust to the road crown. If you are on a flat freeway you should have some slight drifting the the left.

The safety engineers required the vehicle to drift,not pull, right so that if the vehicle is not being controlled properly( inattention, sleeping,etc...) it would head to the shoulder instead of creating a head on collision. The tires on gravel should scare the crap out of the driver and help him to remember to pay attention. If not, they will go to a fiery death on their own.

Anyway, while you have your car up, before you take your tire off to check the pads, give it a good shake/spin on both sides.
DON'T TRY THIS WHILE ON JACK ALONE!

[JohnCWms27]

i'll check the brake pads...that could be the problem. It does drift slightly to the left, but it only PULLS to the left occasionally when i hit the brakes quick...i'll take a look at it. Thanks guys