mb12345

Hi guys,

My '97 ES300 (64K miles) had worn out front tires and used to drift to the left. So I put on 2 new Michelin MXV4+ on the front (the rear has Pirelli 4000, which are now discontinued), balanced all wheels and did a 4-wheel alignement. I bought the tires and did the alignment at Town Fair Tire. The car would still drift to the left. I took it back to them and they did the alignment a second time. They found the alignment to be correct. But the car still drifts to the left. I have to keep my steering wheel slightly tilted to the right in order to drive straight.

Should I take my car to some other place for the alignment? How can I know whether they indeed correctly performed the alignment. They have given me a computer printout from both the alignments, but I can't make out much from it. Can something else cause the car to drift to the left? I don't have any suspension problem in my car. Please advice.

Thanks in advance !

Kohinoor

iTrader: (22)

control arm could be bent

amf1932

Try switching your front tires. Left front to right front, and right front to left front. If this drifting continues in the same direction then check to see whether there is a dragging wheel that could be caused by a bad wheel bearing. If all this fails, take the car to a different wheel alignment company and get a 4-wheel alignment.

RA40

iTrader: (6)

In addition to the wheel bearing, may be the brake pad is touching the rotor causing drag.
The tire pressure okay? Otherwise it may be some other suspension component that is worn.

Do you have the printout of the before and final adjustments?

Toe, caster, camber...

I've seen guys dial in the specs but while tightening, it drifts a bit out and they don't bother to re-adjust it.

mb12345

Yes, I have the print-outs and here is what it reads (Just posting the front wheels info, let me know if you need to know the rear wheels info)

FIRST ALIGNMENT:

Front Left
Actual Before Specified Range
Camber -0.6 -0.5 -1.4 0.1
Caster 1.6 1.6 1.6 3.1
Toe 0 -1/16in -1/16in 1/16in

Front Right
Actual Before Specified Range
Camber -0.5 -0.6 -1.4 0.1
Caster 2.1 2.1 1.6 3.1
Toe 0 1/16in -1/16in 1/16in

=====================================================

SECOND ALIGNMENT:

Front Left
Actual Before Specified Range
Camber -0.5 -0.5 -1.4 0.1
Caster 1.9 1.9 1.6 3.1
Toe 0 0 -1/16in 1/16in

Front Right
Actual Before Specified Range
Camber -0.5 -0.6 -1.4 0.1
Caster 2.1 2.1 1.6 3.1
Toe 0 0 -1/16in 1/16in


The second alignment was done about 2 hours after the first one. I drove about 30 miles in between.

MKLEX

the same thing happend to me

front left:
camber : -1.0°,-0.9° (-1.4° to 0.1°)
caster: 2.0°, 1.9° (1.6° to 0.1°)
toe: -0.05°, -0.01° (-0.10° to 0.10°)

front:
cross camber: actual:-0.5° , before:-0.4°
cross caster: actual:0.0°, before: 0.0°
total toe: actual:-0.11°, before: -0.02

rear left:
camber: -0.7°, -0.7°
toe: 0.22°, 0.15°

rear right:
camber: -0.6°, -0.6°
toe: 0.22°, 0.17°

rear:
cross camber: actual: 0.0°, before: -0.1°
total toe: actual: 0.44°, before: 0.32°

It was still pulling to the left side

I changed the tires, later rotors and break pads.
still was pulling, but less.

Lexusfreak

Have all suspension components checked & see if all is well.....could be a number of things.....perhaps a tie rod as well. The 2 Pirelli tires should be replaced sooner rather than later also.......it's not wise to have 2 different types of tires on the car, especially in bad weather & one needs to make an emergency lane change or something.

RA40

iTrader: (6)

MB12345-
They did a 4 wheel align? The front specs look good so it may be something in the rear causing the drifting.

MKlex

- toe has the front of the tire pointed outward. .22" in the rear is IMO on the high side. Too much toe causes the tire to scrub and in the long run causes more wear. Toe 1/16 / .06" front and 1/12 / .08" rear is a better tolerance if they can get that. I'd take it back and have it adjusted.

Suspension parts wear so getting balanced spec's isn't always possible but telling them the car is pulling they can compensate within reason.

BruteSBC

have a dealership do the alignment, on the front -.5* toe and camber is a good idear.

StopTech

Sometimes if tire wear is in a certain direction, it will push the car that way. Even with a straight alignment the car will still drift in a direction. Switching tires or rotating tires might fix the problem.

Kohinoor

iTrader: (22)

^ hahahahaha badass avatar! the ariel atom rocks!! i want one

MKLEX

so, i should have a dealer check one more time the aligment?

they will tell me it is within tolerance, ("IS GOOD")

BruteSBC

just tell them that you want the alignment PERFECT, not within spec. and ask for a before and after printout.

mike