t-rex grrr
Member
Thanks, Jeff. I'll keep that in mind the next time I get an alignment.
Need Opinions! 4runner veers to the right and it's annoying!
- Thread starter t-rex grrr
- Start date
Thanks, Jeff. I'll keep that in mind the next time I get an alignment.
gm350reratliff
New member
This^^
Your alignment shop may have to raise the caster on the right side to get it to go straight. In fact, I would have them raise caster on both sides but keep the right side caster higher than the left. I would start with .25° incriments and go from there.
Your thrust angle looks great so I would rule that out. What your experiencing is somewhat common on vehicles that do not have caster compensation for road crown "built in". The tech should drive, analyze, align, drive, analyze, repeat if necessary.
t-rex grrr
Member
Funny that you mentioned this. Just before I got new parts, my caster was actually set to 3.5 and I still experienced veering. The reason why I went back to 2.6 was to prevent the tires from rubbing the inner bottom of the fender flare during turns and compressed turns - I'm running 295/70/17 Toyo MTs
toyo
Member
One of the easiest ways to test if a caliper is sticking is to use a infrared temp gun. Go drive the car, try NOT to do a lot of braking. Stop and test the braking surface of the rotors. Compare the braking surface of the 2 front rotors. Take your temp reading at the same distance away from the rotor on each side. Anything over a 20 degree difference is not very good. Just my .02.
t-rex grrr
Member
Makes sense, thanks. I just ordered a temp gun, so hopefully it'll be here by this weekend.
Slowgoat
New member
Great tip!
That is great thinking.
I learn something here almost every day.
Thanks!
:cheers:
A caliper wont cause pulling or if it does, it wont for long because you will burn through a set of pads.
Are you sure you cross rotated your front tires?
The caster is low, but equal on sides so that wont cause a pull it will cause it to wander. It shouldn't wander on flat roads, but should follow the crown of the road. For instance, if you are in the left lane of a 3 wide highway, the road should crown to the left. It should pull just as hard to the left in that situation as it does when you are in the right lane and it pulls right.
Thrust angle is not your problem.
Looking at your alignment specs I would guess it is your tires, if there is a problem at all. It could be that you are just not accustomed to the set up.
Are you sure you cross rotated your front tires?
The caster is low, but equal on sides so that wont cause a pull it will cause it to wander. It shouldn't wander on flat roads, but should follow the crown of the road. For instance, if you are in the left lane of a 3 wide highway, the road should crown to the left. It should pull just as hard to the left in that situation as it does when you are in the right lane and it pulls right.
Thrust angle is not your problem.
Looking at your alignment specs I would guess it is your tires, if there is a problem at all. It could be that you are just not accustomed to the set up.
t-rex grrr
Member
Cross rotated the tires the first time I noticed this problem, but that didn't help. Also, the car has never pulled left. Maybe the alignment shop's machine is mis-calibrated?
gm350reratliff
New member
It is possible. If the turn plates are hanging up due to lack of maintenance or if the tech left them locked while he did the caster sweep, then the numbers could be off. Another possibility is that the tech could've left the heads locked or have a head not moving freely when they did the caster sweep.
t-rex grrr
Member
Hmm...I did take it to two different shops and neither could figure out the issue. I'm honestly so stumped over this.
gm350reratliff
New member
While it is frustrating, it's sort of a common thing. You just need a shop that will work with you and understand what is going on and how to adjust it right. Just because all the angles are in spec, even dead center of the range, doesn't mean it will drive straight, barring any mechanical issues. Like I said earlier, the tech should drive, analyze, align, drive, analyze, re-align if necessary, and repeat. Of course all of that will more than likely be cutting into his pay but it's a chance to win a customer for life.
t-rex grrr
Member
Thanks!
What do you guys think about the specs?
I think your caster is way too low. Your car will be a lot less twitchy and road crown sensitive with it closer to 4deg. Your caster setting isn't far off from all the guys who don't run UCAs and complain a ton because their truck is hard to keep centered. I run 3.6 and mine feels really good.
I think you should find a shop that will be willing to turn that setting up. You should be able to hit at least 3.6deg because you have UCAs.
t-rex grrr
Member
I've tried that. I went up to 3.5 on both sides, but the car would still wander to right. It's as if something catches and just pulls the steering wheel a little when I let go. Additionally, the higher caster made my tires rub the inner part of my flares. It actually almost ripped it off after leaving the alignment shop.
What's your mpg? If you're below 15-16 average on a V8 that will tell you if something is binding like a bearing or caliper.
t-rex grrr
Member
I do have a v8 and I think I get around 13, but that's with a lot of city driving. Also, my tires are heavy, I have a bumper, sliders, and I carry a little weight in the back, so that can all attribute to the crappy mpg. Bearings are brand new as of 2 weeks ago, and the veer happened before and after having them replaced. Just got my temp reading gun, but I haven't picked up a battery yet...I really don't think I have a binding caliper b/c I'm pretty sure I would know by now, but I'll still check it out.
gshadow325
New member
How smooth is turning the steering wheel? Steering shady shaft worn?
Have you jacked up the front two wheels off the truck and try and turn the wheels and see if they spin freely? Pull the tires to look at pads to check for un even wear? Touch the wheels after a drive to see if one side is hotter than the other? Driver side should be cooler than passenger side of you had a binding caliper.
Have you jacked up the front two wheels off the truck and try and turn the wheels and see if they spin freely? Pull the tires to look at pads to check for un even wear? Touch the wheels after a drive to see if one side is hotter than the other? Driver side should be cooler than passenger side of you had a binding caliper.
gshadow325
New member
Could be a binding rear parking brake shoe or caliper too.
