steering wheel not straight

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steering wheel not straight

Post by qprdude »

Had a road tyre moved from rear offside to front nearside today and noticed the steering wheel was a couple of degrees out of straight. What have they done?
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Re: steering wheel not straight

Post by SaabC5 »

Are your tyres directional? If they are (and most are these days) thats not gonna work. Front to back on same side only. [-X
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Re: steering wheel not straight

Post by qprdude »

Shouldn't make any difference. It was the tyre that was changed, not the tyre and rim. The outside of the tyre on the back, just becomes the inside when fitted on the front. The direction doesn't change.
I've now booked it in to have all four wheels re-balanced and the alignment done at a local tyre fitter who I have used before . If I ever return to the place that swapped the tyres and did the balancing, it will be as a ghost as it certainly won't be in this lifetime.
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Re: steering wheel not straight

Post by osx »

Did you check the pressures?
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Re: steering wheel not straight

Post by qprdude »

Yes. Pressures are spot on. Doubt if pressures would make the car shake like a jelly, or put the steering wheel out of alignment though. I've never had wheel alignment done when changing tyres, but the local guy assures me that it will sort the steering wheel being off centre. Time will tell. It's booked in for 10 am tomorrow. I just don't understand how the steering wheel got that way in the first place.
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Re: steering wheel not straight

Post by sparksie »

Careful.
This sounds very like a delaminating tyre.
On softly suspended cars, these can escape detection when they're on the back, until they pop.
On the front they produce the symptoms you describe, often with a strong pull to the OPPOSITE side from the bad tyre!
The tyre place should have spotted this, if that's the problem.
Given they dismounted the tyre and refitted it, it's just possible it hasn't seated properly on the rim, but again that's something they should have noticed!
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Re: steering wheel not straight

Post by osx »

qprdude wrote:Yes. Pressures are spot on. Doubt if pressures would make the car shake like a jelly, or put the steering wheel out of alignment though. I've never had wheel alignment done when changing tyres, but the local guy assures me that it will sort the steering wheel being off centre. Time will tell. It's booked in for 10 am tomorrow. I just don't understand how the steering wheel got that way in the first place.
You didn't mention anything about shaking. I can assure you that if the pressures are different the steering will be out of alignment (easy thing to check if you don't believe me :) )
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Re: steering wheel not straight

Post by Peter.N. »

I would concur.
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Re: steering wheel not straight

Post by qprdude »

Well I've trawled the internet and can't come up with a definitive answer. Wrong tyre pressures CAN cause misalignment, but not WILL cause it.
I've not heard of this before. I have to admit, in my younger days, when money was no object, I've run cars with pressures well out and never once had the steering wheel so noticeably out of true.
I'm not saying the alignment was correct, just that it didn't put the steering wheel out. I have to doubt that a tyre fitting garage, no matter how poor, are going to get such a basic thing as pressures so wrong as to cause this, but I'm off to the local place in a few minutes, so I will see what happens. I will ask them about the pressures while I'm there.
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Re: steering wheel not straight

Post by SaabC5 »

I'm still going with the tyre being on the wrong side of the vehicle. If it was not important which side the tyre was on the vehicle why would the manufacturers stamp inside and outside on the tyre wall? Also when they fit 4 tyres they go to great lengths to make sure the tyres are on the correct side of the vehicle. I understand what you are saying about the tyre still rotating in the same direction but the camber of the vehicle is the opposite direction on the other side, meaning when the tyre was on the right hand side more weight is on the inside of the tyre; swap it the left hand side and more weight is now on the right hand side of the tyre which was previously worn on the other side. Just my thoughts..
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Re: steering wheel not straight

Post by qprdude »

This is something else I have never looked at.I learn something new every day. However, the cheapo Federal supersteels on the front axle ARE directional but there is no "outside" or "inside" on the tyre wall. The cheapo tyres on the rear axle DO have "outside" on the tyre walls. (Yes, I know, but I couldn't afford premiums at this time, until finances recover, and I will be driving accordingly)
I have now been to the local tyrefitter and had everything checked. The pressures were all as specified, but the balancing was wildly out. The alignment was found to be out, but not by a great amount. The figures are largely meaningless to me, but I noticed that one of the figures highlighted in red was for the nearside rear camber and that tyre was worn on the inside of the tread pattern.
The current measurements show the "steer ahead"to now be 0.00 and the steering wheel straight. But it's not! I took the car for a run along the bypass and the steering wheel is still out of true.
There is now absolutely no vibration so at least one thing is sorted. I don't have time to go back with the car as I am snowed under with projects and I'm off to London on Friday, with a full load and SWMBO riding shotgun. Is there any way that the steering wheel misalignment can be rectified? It's only a degree or so out, but with the fixed centre on the X7, it draws the attention all the time. 8-[
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Re: steering wheel not straight

Post by wurlycorner »

Steering wheel alignment is not measured, it's purely a visual thing.

Adjusting the roadwheel alignment can set the steering wheel wonky if they don't bother to check it.

To get the steering wheel back true, the roadwheel alignment needs to be re-adjusted. Basically now the roadwheel alignment is correct, you adjust each side by an equal amount, to bring the steering wheel back square. The place that did your alignment should have checked this, but probably thought the amount they'd adjusted was so minor, it wouldn't throw it out.

Take it back to them when you can and tell them the steering wheel alignment has been out since they adjusted the roadwheel alignment and they should sort it for you.
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qprdude
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Re: steering wheel not straight

Post by qprdude »

Cheers Ian. The problem is, the steering wheel was out when they started, and its still out! The other thing is, I'm off down to Surrey this weekend and time is short. I can't get it back to them before I go, and it will be another 3-4 weeks and possibly 1500 miles before I get back. I'm losing the will to live.
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Sometimes the change doesn't work.
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