C63 W204 pulling to the left

[Harjc63]

Hi all,

Looking for some help please.

My C63 w204 2012 is pulling to the left.

Tracking has all been done, steering is in line. I have taken it to three different places and they can't seem to workout what is wrong with it.

I have PS4s on the front and P Zeros on the back.

Could it be a rim problem?

Any ideas?

Thanks!

 

[Smiley]

Was the tracking out when you had it checked the first time? If it was then it may be that the n/s tyre has worn unevenly and the car will still pull to the left even after the tracking has been adjusted. Have you tried switching the two front wheels over - if they are directional then try swapping the rears to the front.
And assume that you would not have got this far without checking that the tyre pressures are correct and you don't have a binding brake caliper.

 

[Fastcar155]

Hi , Further to what Smiley has suggested have you checked that the tie rods ends are equal on both sides of the steering.

I really clouted both the front and rear near side wheels in a pothole ( rear tyre burst ) recently and had a new rear tyre fitted.

Drove the car for a couple of days and then it was four wheel tracked.The tracking was miles out but the car drove perfectly.This garage have tracked the car three times on previous occasions.

It took the technician two hours to track the car up to Mercedes specification.

I know you took the car to three different garages but in my experience tracking is a skilled job.

People with far more experience than I will no doubt be able to provide more help.

PS From memory your car can have extra bots fitted on the front suspension to help tracking.

 

[Harjc63]

Was the tracking out when you had it checked the first time? If it was then it may be that the n/s tyre has worn unevenly and the car will still pull to the left even after the tracking has been adjusted. Have you tried switching the two front wheels over - if they are directional then try swapping the rears to the front.
And assume that you would not have got this far without checking that the tyre pressures are correct and you don't have a binding brake caliper.

Hey thanks for the advice. I will swaps the wheels over and try that. Didn't even think of that!

Thank you!

 

[Harjc63]

Hi , Further to what Smiley has suggested have you checked that the tie rods ends are equal on both sides of the steering.

I really clouted both the front and rear near side wheels in a pothole ( rear tyre burst ) recently and had a new rear tyre fitted.

Drove the car for a couple of days and then it was four wheel tracked.The tracking was miles out but the car drove perfectly.This garage have tracked the car three times on previous occasions.

It took the technician two hours to track the car up to Mercedes specification.

I know you took the car to three different garages but in my experience tracking is a skilled job.

People with far more experience than I will no doubt be able to provide more help.

PS From memory your car can have extra bots fitted on the front suspension to help tracking.

I don't think the tie rods have been checked. Something I need to take back and get looked at properly.

What garage did you take your car?

 

[ALFAitalia]

How much is it pulling to the left?.....violently as soon as you let go of the wheel? (not normal and you have an issue).....or a very gentle run down the camber with your hands off the wheel..(normal for most cars and easily checked by finding an empty long straight peace of country road and seeing if it runs off the camber to the right when driving on the wrong side of the road.)

 

[Harjc63]

How much is it pulling to the left?.....violently as soon as you let go of the wheel? (not normal and you have an issue).....or a very gentle run down the camber with your hands off the wheel..(normal for most cars and easily checked by finding an empty long straight peace of country road and seeing if it runs off the camber to the right when driving on the wrong side of the road.)

It is not violent very slowly it moves over to the left... It could need a new camber.

 

[ALFAitalia]

I take it that its not always done it?.....or its pulling more than it did for you to post this. Slight pull to the left is normal on most cars (more pronounced on rear drive cars).....just a combination or steering geometry and gravity pulling the car slowly down the slope of the camber......but it should not be noticeable with both hands on the wheel.

 

[Fastcar155]

I don't think the tie rods have been checked. Something I need to take back and get looked at properly.

What garage did you take your car?

Hi , it's in Worcester !

 

[BlackC55]

A small "pull" on a cambered road is quite normal. Get an experienced tech to drive it and they will be able to tell if its normal.

 

[Harjc63]

Hi , it's in Worcester !

Too far for me I'm in East London

 

[Harjc63]

I take it that its not always done it?.....or its pulling more than it did for you to post this. Slight pull to the left is normal on most cars (more pronounced on rear drive cars).....just a combination or steering geometry and gravity pulling the car slowly down the slope of the camber......but it should not be noticeable with both hands on the wheel.

Was the tracking out when you had it checked the first time? If it was then it may be that the n/s tyre has worn unevenly and the car will still pull to the left even after the tracking has been adjusted. Have you tried switching the two front wheels over - if they are directional then try swapping the rears to the front.
And assume that you would not have got this far without checking that the tyre pressures are correct and you don't have a binding brake caliper.

Hey man I've done all this today and the car is still moving to the left. Not sure what it can be..

 

[rf065]

Hey man I've done all this today and the car is still moving to the left. Not sure what it can be..

Have you tried an empty road and driven on the right side, i.e. the wrong side to see if it pulls to the right?

 

[Harjc63]

Have you tried an empty road and driven on the right side, i.e. the wrong side to see if it pulls to the right?

I haven't done that yet... But when I drive on the road as normal it's just starts going to the left. I've had a few cars and nothing like this before.

It's very odd!

 

[rf065]

I haven't done that yet... But when I drive on the road as normal it's just starts going to the left. I've had a few cars and nothing like this before.

It's very odd!

It's not really, the centre of the road is the crown, it then slopes to the left and the right to allow water to drain into the gutters. If you drive on the wrong side of the road and it veers to the right then your steering is normal. For some reason Mercedes seem to be affected more than others in this area.

 

[Smiley]

Hey man I've done all this today and the car is still moving to the left. Not sure what it can be..

If you have swapped the front wheels over and you don't have a binding brake then it can only be the geometry set up. But it is odd that you have had that done - presumably you have the before and after print out of the alignment test and adjustment - maybe post a photo of it on here and see if anyone can spot anything that does not look right?

 

[KrisKross]

PS From memory your car can have extra bots fitted on the front suspension to help tracking.

These bolts needs to be replaced to allow for more camber regulation.
Still looking for a garage in Surrey or London which understand how to do that properly :]
Any recommendations ?

 

[FiveAlive]

Have you read this thread: Definative explination.... Pull left | Wheels, Tyres, Brakes & Suspension ? Has the car been like this all the time you've had it, or has this developed recently?

When I first got my W212 it pulled to the left quite strongly, and getting the tracking adjusted and swapping tyres (Pirelli and Conti if I remember correctly) left to right or front to back didn't help. After a while I replaced the tyres to Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 3 and the pull to the left became barely noticable. As has been mentioned earlier in the thread, it is just following the camber of the road. How can I be sure? Because when I drive it in Europe it pulls to the right instead.

I have since replaced the Goodyears with Michelin Primacy 4+ and they've been fine as well.

 

[philnewmerc]

Before you do anything expensive, try swapping the front wheels. On my car it instantly fixed a small but annoying drift left. And after 2000 miles it is still fine. I would never have believed it as I assumed the tyres would wear back into a drift, but they haven't. This is the 2nd merc I've had where this has worked. I can only assume the rolling resistance is slightly more on one tyre and because the high caster mercs use they're very sensitive to that. (??). Try it. Note that if your tyres are directional then this will be a temporary test and if it works you can get the tyres remounted in the correct direction.