Alignment Help... - Corolland: the Toyota Corolla Forums

I have a problem with the alignment on the steering wheel on my 94 corolla.. I brought it to the auto shop last week and they still can't fix it right.. They fixed the outer toe and inner.. I brought it to the shop again this morning and for some reason they can't fix the steering wheel aligned right..

I try to position the steering straight but the car wonders off to the left and I have to turn a bit to the left to make the car run straight.. Before I had to turn it to the right a bit.. I'm sick and tired of them messing it up all the time.. I want to fix the steering wheel alignment myself to position the steering wheel straight but I don't know where to start.. Need help please on DIY.. thanks

I have a problem with the alignment on the steering wheel on my 94 corolla.. I brought it to the auto shop last week and they still can't fix it right.. They fixed the outer toe and inner.. I brought it to the shop again this morning and for some reason they can't fix the steering wheel aligned right..

I try to position the steering straight but the car wonders off to the left and I have to turn a bit to the left to make the car run straight.. Before I had to turn it to the right a bit.. I'm sick and tired of them messing it up all the time.. I want to fix the steering wheel alignment myself to position the steering wheel straight but I don't know where to start.. Need help please on DIY.. thanks

Take it to another shop. You can try to align the steering wheel yourself, but it is non-trivial. Not simply, pull the wheel off, center, and tighten it down. If you did that, not only will you screw up the steering even more, but also mess up or damage the clock-spring underneath. To straighten the wheel - you turn the wheel straight and adjust the alignment to the tie-rod ends. Something you can do yourself, but unless you have alignment equipment at home, you still have to bring it to a shop to be aligned. Not sure what you mean by fixing the inner and outer toe? If that is what they told you, then they shouldn't even be touching the car to begin with.

Dan_H

I hope they are also checking camber and caster.

If the alignement is in spec, I'd start by checking the following..

2) Tire pressures.

2) Dragging brakes.

A simple test is to feel whether both front wheels are the same temperature after driving the car. If one is noticeably warmer, the brake may be dragging.

3) Worn wheel bearings or steering slop.

Raise the car on a jack see if you can rock the wheels back and fourth. Don't try to turn the front wheels a lot. You just want to see if there is play in the hub, control arms, or pivots.

Good point about checking those - though if the shop was halfway decent, they should have checked all of those before they did the alignment job. A good shop will not align a car unless everthing else is sound for alignment. If tires are excessively worn, tire pressures uneven, has suspension/ steering/brake issues, etc. they will not even attempt an alignment - usually coming out and telling the owner that X has to be fixed before they can align it.

Bikeman982

Correct me if I am wrong, but isn't there a slight detent on the steering mechanism that keeps it pointed straight when exactly centered and requires a slight pressure to take off-center??

True- the wheels have to be aligned correctly and the air pressure balanced as well as correct toe-in and toe-out (caster and camber).

Brakes dragging (too tight or sticking) can also affect steering.

could be 'dog tracking' make sure they check the REAR alignment as well!

Bikeman982

Rear wheel tire pressure can also affect front end steering.

Thanks for the input.. I'll just bring it to another shop and I'll check the air pressure to all tires

What about tire pull has that been ruled out? Unfortunately the shops insist you need alignment in those situations without ever checking for tire pull first, even when told there is pull with one tire and that alignment is perfect they may refuse to believe it in wanting the $80 for alignment. A tire rotation from front to back will tell you if a tire is pulling since it doesnt steer the car sideways after its mounted on the rear like it does when on the front.

I hope they put the steering wheel into "dead center" possition and secure it before they start the alignment

Bikeman982

Definitely check all the tire air pressure (you have to have the same type tire on the same axle).

You can do a basic alignment yourself by putting the car on a straight and level surface.

Get precise measurements of the aligning of the top of the tires and the bottom.

Also measure the alignment from front wheel to back wheels.

Shops do the same, only they use specialized equipment and get it even closer.

You can watch it done on a car and see just what they align to have a good idea about what it entails.