Car won't stop pulling right!?!
 

Hey guys, I recently had two front tyres replaced for registration (in Australia)

The first set of tyres, one had a faulty wall and it kepty pulling right so I had that replaced.

I've had the wheels balanced 3 times and like 3 or so wheel alignments (3 different places) done (yeah I know, so many).

It still keeps pulling right! It didn't do it before I got the tyres replaced, and I checked, both tyres are level now (with the fauly one, I could hold a straight rod over the top and roll one wheel under the rod resting on the other).

Can anyone suggest something I could check or point a mechanic in the right direction so I don't get charged through the nose :(

background: relatively stock power wise, wouldnt be much under 300hp, stock suspension, wheels had no problems driving straight before my tyres were replaced.

Thanks!/rant

Lets start off with some forces. It's not balance. So you can save time/frustration there. What do you mean faulty wall?

Its likely conicity. Tendency of an assembly to pull (lateral force) one direction because its slightly cone shaped.

http://classic.artsautomotive.com/Conicity3.jpg

Right now you could have both tires inputting a right force. Swap left front with right front. What happens? Or swap front to rear. What happens then?

One tire could be enough, combined with road crown to cause a pull. And the Evo's track width does not help you. It naturally likes road ruts and will track into them.

Find a shop with a Hunter 9700 with Straight Track. It can read the laterial forces and position the wheels with forces opposing each other (will track straight).

Thanks for your reply!

I'll try some wheel rotations tonight and see what happens.

Otherwise I'm not sure where around here has those machines. I'll call around if the rotations don't help.

Check the tire pressure?

Rotate the tires new tires from left to right and see if the pull changes. If it does, then you know it's the tires.

If not, then move to suspension.

Never underestimate exacting tire pressure. I just learned a tough lesson there and got tripped up by a faulty gauge I never cross tested carefully.

also some shops just go within the Mitsubishi spec for the alignment which allows for a decent differential. Demand the numbers of the work before you agree to another alignment, and tell them what numbers you want.

hunter's booth at SEMA was crazy. They even somehow checked braking balance just by rolling the car onto the unit.

u cant demand and tell them what alignment specs u want if ur car doesnt have the necessary hardware to get it there.


first thing i would do is rotate the tires, about the easiest test u can do free of charge. unless u charge yourself hourly rates... :rolleyes:

update,

rotated the wheels when I got home last night, car now pulls badly to the left.

Must be the tyres still. I got new tyres from this place a few weeks ago, drove the car home, pulled hard right. Turns out faulty tyre had it replaced. Now they've given me another one.

I have no problems with this place's service but seriously, two faulty tyres!!

Is this common?

Oh well, I shall go back tomorow.

It is strange that there were 2 faulty tires. Maybe go with a different brand?

I guess so. I'm just short on cash at the moment, $120 per tyre is better than 200+ right now for me.

No warranty? :confused: Idk about since it's in australia

I don't follow that comment. Of course you can ask for your alignment specs from a shop with decent gear. Obviously you can't ask for negative 4 degrees of camber if you can't get to that. But you can ask for exactly 0 toe, or .08, or whatever, and then ask for the printout of what they got at each wheel for the various settings. Most OEM specs are within ranges. Just shop for something more exacting next time so you are empowering yourself with the exact settings and proof of them somehow.

This is why I started doing my own alignments years ago. No just about right alignments.

Yup, maybe tire pressures is even easier and often forgotten.

Are the tires symmetrical or asymmetric? If symmetrical you can flip the tires on the wheel. That will put an opposing force in the pull and straighten out the car.

My $hitbox pulls slightly to the right too... even after swapping the wheels and an alignment. Came to the conclusion it's a combination of my tires and the crown in the roads around where I live.

Depending on your mileage, you should check and see if you have worn bushings as well. Suspensions only consist of a handful of parts and many people forget to check the bushings.