Thread: Wheel Alignment and car still pulls badly to the right

Had a wheel alignment done at dealership. Said I needed parts but should be fine for now. Car was pulling badly to the right and still does. The steering tightened but still pulls which puts a strain on the wrist. Mechanic said I should replace struts but then again, they will say anything to get you to spend. Car has 120K. Where is a good place for a wheel alignment?

well what parts do you need????

I would guess ti rods, because I bet your steering wheel in cocked to the side and the toe is far out to cause the pull.

and screw dealerships for that stuff, find a local shop that will do it.

how would struts make the car pull? unless its bent or something.

i find it hard to believe that a dealer would do an alignment and let it leave the shop pulling to one side.(did you pay for this work?) most shops will test the front end to make sure its all tight, if its got bad parts they wont do the alignment unless the parts are replaced.

you cold have bad tie rods, bad lca's, ball joints, even a bad tire could make it pull.

I will take it back or better yet find a dedicated shop.

Originally Posted by Iceman6669

I have had every alignment shop tell me that struts do affect your alignment. They also say that you have to have an alignment done after you change your struts.

i see that being true only if you have slotted struts,(caster and camber adjustment) mine are just 2 holes, that bolt up to the knuckle, no adjustment can me made to it. (you need to pound the bolts in too.)

Originally Posted by WhatNext

It could be a tire gone bad. An easy and quick check is to swap the front tires (left to right). If after the swap, it pulls the other way then its the tire.

I rotate the tires regularly...this is my last rotation before a new set installed around December.

Originally Posted by scottydoggs

i see that being true only if you have slotted struts,(caster and camber adjustment) mine are just 2 holes, that bolt up to the knuckle, no adjustment can me made to it. (you need to pound the bolts in too.)

i know that this is true. BUT every time that my struts have been off (on the GT and the GTP) the alignment was way off. how? idk. but i have a camer kit on em now anyway so it really doesn't matter. but even with the one way two bolt design it would alter the alignment.

I just got a quote on tie rods, ball joints and struts with new springs~$1000...no labor just parts. Hopefully this will solve the pull to the right.

holy crap thats alot of money.


buy the stuff yourself and do it yourself for almost half that cost

had the same issue in my explorer. it turned out that the brakes needed to be bled. the right front caliper was dragging causing constant friction against the rotor.

Originally Posted by Burgundyman

I just got a quote on tie rods, ball joints and struts with new springs~$1000...no labor just parts. Hopefully this will solve the pull to the right.

f that price, buy it yourself and install it,

tie rods 30 each
new lca's, comes with new ball joint and new bushings, 100 each
new quick struts are like a 100 each aint they?

swap out the parts take it in for an alignment. its just nuts and bolts, take before pics so you cant f it up, bag all your parts, bolts ect.

im sure they will want another 500 to install it all to, save yourself!!!!!!

Originally Posted by Burgundyman

I just got a quote on tie rods, ball joints and struts with new springs~$1000...no labor just parts. Hopefully this will solve the pull to the right.

You are getting ripped on that deal. Order all of the parts off of Rockauto for much less then take it to a shop or do it yourself. I could do all of that work in a day easy.

Monro Quick Struts $80 x2, Timken bearings $90 x2, Dorman control arms $45 x2, Moog tie rods $35 x2 = ~$500 in parts.

A grand for parts/labor is a good deal.

Originally Posted by OH4CompG

My GS does the same thing. I've literally replaced almost everything in the front end. Only things I haven't touched are axles, bearings, and struts, and it still pulls right.

This is also my worry and advised by mechanic.

try swapping tires? did they even check air preasure?

did you get spec #s from the alignment?

Originally Posted by redlinepontiac

try swapping tires? did they even check air preasure?

did you get spec #s from the alignment?

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Air pressure is good. I had recently rotated tires front to back, I could swap left front with right front.