Brad Christy

RJ,

I did a little test on my way in to work this morning, to test the "torque pull" theory. While cruising down the highway, I let off the throttle and coasted with my hand off the wheel. Still pulls to the left, with little, if any, difference.

I still think this all goes back to the fact that it is very likely it was curbed prior to my ownership. The question is what could be out in such a way so as to not show up on an alignment, but still affect tracking and tire wear the way it does.

Thanks. Brad.

geg

It seems to me that the rear beam is slightly curved (you mentioned hitting the curb), literally 1 - 1.5 degrees.
It is not possible to see with the eyes, but measurements will show. Check.
The camber is set based on the position of the rear wheels. The sight on the rear wheels when the beam is bent gives the wrong position of the front wheels.
I will say more, even a worn bushing (bushings) of the rear beam mounts give a similar effect.

PS: the camber-man has this diagram in front of his eyes, he can adjust the position of the front wheels a little more to the right than the computer requires. The value of the offset can also be suggested by the diagram.

donbrew

The alignment can't change caster, right side damage might mean the right strut mount got pushed back., that would produce a left drift. It takes a body pull to adjust.
The alignment can't change camber unless an offset bolt is installed, it does change a little when the toe is changed.
The only spec that a normal alignment can change is toe, there are no other adjustable angles from the factory.
Outside tire wear on one side only indicates camber. Inside wear on one side would indicate hub. if it was both side toe is indicated.
We did have one report that a axle was not properly installed, maybe check the right axle is fully seated in the trans. Don't push/pull the axle, it is supposed to move; push/pull on the can part

PulpFriction

Occam's razor - the simplest explanation is the most probable.

Fix the rear misalignment. That's body shop work, not alignment shop work. Even if it doesn't make a difference, and it's hard to beleive it won't at least you've fixed something.

With only a driver in the car, the driver side wheels likely have more weight and dominate, and the other side tends to scrub. If you want to experiment further, take passenger for a ride, preferably one heavier than you. Might make it worse, migght make it better.

In front, you can make limited adjustments with the "camber bolts" that the modders use to correct for the effect of lowering springs.

Lonwane

I'm with Geg, the rear beam is bent.
The numbers on your alignment sheet are the verification.
Fortunately it's an easy repair.
Mine was done in the backyard with the car on jackstands.

donbrew

The rear toe can be adjusted with offset shims if the tech is not lazy. I guess you would need to pay for a ""4 wheel alignment".

Brad Christy

So the shop I took it too seems to have their minds made up and they are telling me it's the motor mounts. They had it on a lift and showed me that the rubber inserts in the motor mounts are softening and disintegrating. The engine does rock quite a bit when you throttle it with the brakes on. I'm still not convinced that this would cause it to pull just cruising down the highway, especially while coasting. It does pull the wheel to the right when the throttle/brake test is done in reverse, though, as well as if you accelerate in reverse.

I'm inclined to believe the strut could be pushed back, but how to check that...?

I'm taking the car back to the shop that did the suspension work , to have a closer look at the strut and potentially shim the rear toe issue. It's also developed a roar up front, relative to speed. I don't thing it the tire, but it could be a wheel bearing. It seems to be on the right side, so, if that's it, I don't think it would be causing the left pull, especially considering the pull has been present since day one, and the roar just started. The roar could also be the half-shaft that was recently installed, I suppose. We'll see.

Thanks. Brad.

Brad Christy

Lonwane,

What was the "easy repair"?

Thanks. Brad.

donbrew

Replaced the beam. A competent alignment shop can use offset shims for rear alignments, not many are "competent" enough.
Roar dependent on speed will be the hubs/bearings if it is not present when stopped. Could be the cause of pull.

Brad Christy

Donbrew,

The shop I am taking it to says they can do the shim install for the rear alignment. He says it's a PITA, but doable.

The roar is speed dependent and not present when stopped. The pull was present before the roar onset and has not increased with the increase in presence of the roar. I'm assuming at this point, that this is a separate, independent issue.

I still have a hard time investing faith in this being a rear alignment issue, even if I can see how it is a contributing factor. It's not so much that the car veers left, the wheel actively pulls left of straight, in addition to the car pulling left when the wheel is held straight. I'm no mechanic, and certainly not an alignment tech, but this all leads me to the front end in my mind. It makes sense that a bent frame at the strut hardpoints could be the culprit, but wouldn't that show up in an alignment reading?

Thanks. Brad.