peteharvey

When driving straight on a typical road that is slightly cambered to the right, should the steering wheel be slightly offset to the left [for compensation]?

mmarshall

A number of factors will determine that, such as toe in the wheel-alignment, differences in tire pressure or traction between the four tires, different brands or types of tires mixed on the car, steering wheel not set properly at the last wheel alignment, front-vs.-rear (thrust-angle) wheel alignment set incorrectly, malfunctioning 4-wheel-steering system not calibrated correctly (for those vehicles equipped with that device), and load inside the car distributed unevenly to one side. But, all else equal, and everything on the car otherwise correct, on a crowned road, yes, it will be normal for the steering wheel to be canted a little towards the inside of the lane. That is because gravity will try to pull the vehicle down and out to the edge of the road while you are driving, and the steering-angle of the wheels has to be slightly towards the centerline of he road to overcome that tendency. Roads can be crowned for a number of different reasons, but the most common reason is for drainage in heavy rain....to allow water to run off the side of the road rather than ponding in the lanes, which could lead not only to flooding but hydroplaning of the tires, which can be dangerous.

peteharvey

Ok, thanks mmarshall.
Because I just had a wheel alignment done yesterday, but the steering wheels seems offset to the center-line on a straight road.
I guess it must compensate for the camber.

mmarshall

Yes, if the road is crowned, then, more than likely, there will be some inward-cant in the steering wheel. If you know for a fact, however, that the road is level (not crowned), and everything else on the car (tires, PSIs, alignment, etc...) checks out correctly, and the steering wheel is still canted, then you may have to take the car back to the technician who did the alignment and have him or her set the steering wheel correctly. Many shops use a specially-designed brace to secure the steering wheel while the job is being done (with the brace, they have to be very careful on wood steering wheels not to damage them), but I'm not enough of an expert on exactly how that mechanism is set up and how the alignment is done with it.