Definative explination.... Pull left

[Gavin14774]

I've had an odd take on this, my 2013 C250 drove fine, didn't pull, nothing. Last week I snapped a front spring going over a raised pedestrian crossing, after having the new spring fitted it's pulling to the left, I assumed it would need retracking but I had it checked at the place that did it for me when I first bought the car and they say it's spot on!

 

[wheels-inmotion]

Did you replace both springs.... If no measure the body height across the axle just in case they had fitted the wrong rate of coil?

 

[Gavin14774]

Did you replace both springs.... If no measure the body height across the axle just in case they had fitted the wrong rate of coil?

Only one spring, the bloke that works on my cars said it wasn't necessary to replace both which I though was odd. It seems to be more than just pulling though, the steering seems reluctant to centre too. I'm taking it back to the garage on Tuesday.

 

[wheels-inmotion]

That was poor advice... It's like buying one shoe. Over time the coils sag meaning the coil rate also changes.
If you look at the car can you see it leaning to one side?

 

[markjay]

Only one spring, the bloke that works on my cars said it wasn't necessary to replace both which I though was odd. It seems to be more than just pulling though, the steering seems reluctant to centre too. I'm taking it back to the garage on Tuesday.

An OT comments:

The funny thing is that if you take the car to a dealer with a failed suspension component (spring/damper etc), they will always tell you that it needs changing in pairs. But if you mention that the car is still under warranty.... then suddenly only the faulty side will need changing (unless you want to pay for the other side yourself).

Personally, I have always replaced suspension components in pairs. But it is not just about maintaining a balanced ride. This is especially true for items that fail due to wear (as opposed to say hitting a pot hole), because if one side failed due to being worn-out, then the other side will likely follow soon and fail as well, or at any rate will be in a similar pitiful condition. A bit of preventative maintenance is always a good thing to do!

 

[whitenemesis]

WIS does have a mileage limit on replacing springs/shocks singularly. IIRC it's approx 50k miles.

I imagine nearside suspension components may tend to wear more quickly than the offside, due to drains, generally poorer road surfaces in the gutter area?

 

[Gavin14774]

Well mine has 65k on it, like I said, I'm taking it back tomorrow to get the other spring fitted and we'll see from there.

 

[bolidemichael]

Hi WiM, I've read this with interest. My S211 E500 regularly ends up pulling to the left. My 'man' has a hunter alignment system but I reckon that with the potholes and everything, I have to probably have an alignment done three or four times a year. My Falken FK501s were all worn on the shoulders after around 24,000 miles, as I didn't respond quickly enough to have the alignment done.

I have a couple of questions for you:

- when you align the wheels and install the grooves adjustment bolts, do you also ensure that the ride heights of the air suspension are correct?

- once installed, will my 'man' be able to make micro adjustments as and when required, or will the car still need to be brought back to you for a little 'black magic'?

I'm in SW20, so not a million miles away and am going to be swapping the summer alloys back soon, so probably an ideal time to consider your service.

Hi WiM,

I raised a couple of questions for you on the previous page. I'd be grateful if you could have a look at them.

 

[wheels-inmotion]

The air suspension trim height is measured via the angle of the front wishbones and driveshafts. Once the datum is dialled in the target datum is displays accordingly.
The datum MB offer has never been a problem, the actual issue is the symmetry. The issue is MB say our cars are a perfect build so the "over the axel" disparity is very low. I would say about three times smaller than other cars.
What most shops fail to understand the measured data are not just figures, they are forces. Depending on the complaint those forces can be added or removed.
Another serious point is the data offered by all manufacturers are a suggestion, not the law.

 

[Gavin14774]

Well I had the other spring fitted and my car is still pulling.

 

[LabourOLove]

Apologies if this has been raised in a previous post (I haven't read all 8 pages!) but one thing that helped hugely on mine was replacing the steering rack mounting bushes. I had lived with "the pull" for years assuming I would never get it driving correctly but the smallest of changes pretty much eliminated the problem and improved the steering feel massively.

Obviously, worn bushes shouldn't be an issue on newer models, but anyone who is struggling with a 10+ year old car, I'd highly recommend changing these bushes. They're cheap and it was a very easy job on the W203.

 

[BlackC55]

Well I had the other spring fitted and my car is still pulling.

Then there is something wrong. You mentioned the self centring not being good? Did they fit MB springs?

 

[Gavin14774]

Then there is something wrong. You mentioned the self centring not being good? Did they fit MB springs?

I don’t know and they’ve gone down the route of “that’s all we can do, it’s normal” I’m going to ring another garage today and see what they suggest.

 

[Gavin14774]

Well the other garage said to take it to a place that is highly regarded for their ability to sort alignment issues. They said the tracking was 11 minutes out on the right and 8 on the left. Result? It's pulling as hard to the left as ever.

 

[BlackC55]

Well the other garage said to take it to a place that is highly regarded for their ability to sort alignment issues. They said the tracking was 11 minutes out on the right and 8 on the left. Result? It's pulling as hard to the left as ever.

Did they fit genuine springs?
What make tyres do you have?
Alignment on these is not an easy thing to get right.
Does it pull on a completely flat road with ZERO camber?

 

[Gavin14774]

Springs - Unkown
Conti sport contacts all round, good tread.
Yes, it pulls on a completely flat road.

 

[Gavin14774]

Did they fit genuine springs?
What make tyres do you have?
Alignment on these is not an easy thing to get right.
Does it pull on a completely flat road with ZERO camber?

Springs - Unkown
Conti sport contacts all round, good tread.
Yes, it pulls on a completely flat road.

 

[slipons]

Uk roads are higher in the centre, and lower at the curb edges, so since we drive on the left, due to the Castor angle of the vehicle (Positive Castor in 99.9% of cases), it will have a tendancy to pull to the left (assuming the vehicle tracking and suspension geometry is all within the manufacturers specifications). If you drive the vehicle on the opposite side of the road, it will have a tendancy to pull to the right. It is as simple as that.......

In summary, when the vehicle has a positive Castor angle (as most vehicle do):- If the road leans left, the vehicle will turn left.
If the road leans right, the vehicle will turn right.
If the vehicle behaves differently to this, something is out of spec.

 

[Riva811]

I couldnt agree more. Just had my wheels aligned and in some situations the steering wheel still pulls to the left! in others not.

 

[flintx]

The air suspension trim height is measured via the angle of the front wishbones and driveshafts. Once the datum is dialled in the target datum is displays accordingly.
The datum MB offer has never been a problem, the actual issue is the symmetry. The issue is MB say our cars are a perfect build so the "over the axel" disparity is very low. I would say about three times smaller than other cars.
What most shops fail to understand the measured data are not just figures, they are forces. Depending on the complaint those forces can be added or removed.
Another serious point is the data offered by all manufacturers are a suggestion, not the law.

hi wheels-inmotion, any chance we could have a chat? after some help with my w211 pulling