How hard is it to set a steering wheel straight?!

Horizon81

Bit of a rant!! I noticed that my steering wheel was off centre when driving straight ahead. The car tracked fine, perfectly straight but steering wheel was off to the left a little. Took it to my main dealer to get alignment checked and steering wheel set straight but when I got the car back the wheel is over to the right when going straight ahead! Took it back again and they adjusted it again but it's still slightly off to the right when the car is going straight ahead. How hard can it be to set it up perfectly?! Call me pedantic but I like my steering wheel to point perfectly straight ahead when I'm driving perfectly straight.

The service guy said it was down to the road but I'm not stupid (I know about camber) and have driven it on several roads and I know that the wheel is still off centre when driving straight ahead. I shall be taking it back again but if they get it wrong again I'll have to find a specialist.

From googling, it seems to be quite a common problem, usually down to inept mehcanics, which is a surprise because this dealer has always been good.

Hammyman

On most roads you will need to steer slightly right of center because of the camber of the road. Certainly on 99% of the roads around here, the only way to have the steering wheel straight when driving down a straight road is to have it set incorrectly.

paddedjohn

did the garage use the 4 wheel laser tracking system or just the front wheel one?

SailorSam

It shouldn't be hard to adjust, depends on which car it is but covering the middle of your wheel is probably a plastic trim, under that you'll probably see a big nut maybe inch and half and secured with tabs, remove that and pull the wheel from the spline and re-position.

Scooby_Doo.

SailorSam wrote: »

It shouldn't be hard to adjust, depends on which car it is but covering the middle of your wheel is probably a plastic trim or an airbag, under that you'll probably see a big nut maybe inch and half and secured with tabs, remove that and pull the wheel from the spline and re-position.

Not seen a car like that for some time.

SailorSam

Just shows you the last time i had to fix my steering, you'll be telling me next they've stopped making gas mantles.

Horizon81

Hammyman wrote: »

On most roads you will need to steer slightly right of center because of the camber of the road. Certainly on 99% of the roads around here, the only way to have the steering wheel straight when driving down a straight road is to have it set incorrectly.

You're saying the camber of the road throws you off to the left 99% of the time?
Maybe 10% but I'd say 99% is a bit excessive.

Dippypud

SailorSam wrote: »

Just shows you the last time i had to fix my steering, you'll be telling me next they've stopped making gas mantles.

No, you can still buy gas mantles, (they use them in gas lit caravans), but then I don't suppose you 'do' caravaning.:p:D;)
Also used on Tilley lamps!! remember them...

only_mee

use https://www.alignmycar.co.uk i trust no-one else.

Mankysteve

Horizon81 wrote: »

You're saying the camber of the road throws you off to the left 99% of the time?
Maybe 10% but I'd say 99% is a bit excessive.

Nope he right. Camber of 99% of roads are always to the left and your car will all ways want to move to the left.

Neglecting torque steer and adverse camber.

pendulum

Horizon81 wrote: »

The service guy said it was down to the road but I'm not stupid (I know about camber) and have driven it on several roads and I know that the wheel is still off centre when driving straight ahead.

???
Why would driving it on several roads prove the service guy wrong? Almost all roads are angled for drainage...

It's normal to have the steering wheel pointing right slightly when driving straight along. Is this the direction it is pointing in?

When I went to reinstall mine, I didn't get the steering wheel back on in exactly the same position as it was in before, and driving the car afterwards felt wrong. But I soon got used to it. It's like driving with a new pair of shoes on, it takes time to readjust before things feel 'right' again, even if it's just a small change.

If it's only a little "wrong" then you really need to live with it. It's impossible to have it dead right all the time anyway. It cannot remain pointing dead straight whilst driving on a genuinely flat carpark on to a normal (angled) road for example.