my car is pulling to one side over potholes and drains

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ibrahimx2001

Active Member
Joined
Dec 31, 2013
Messages
115
Location
West London
Car
2005 c220 cdi sport edition
hi all,
as above.
i have just purchased a c220 cdi sport.
the other day i drove over a drain and noticed it pulls and sort of jumps to the left as i went over it.
this happened a few times and i was thinking maybe its due to being a rear wheel drive. ( i am new to rear wheel).
the other day i was just having a look and the tyres to see if the tread on them are low but the were still above the minimum legal limit.
as i was looking at them i decided to check the gap between the wheel arch near the front of the rear tyres and on the passenger side i could fit 4 fingers in between and on the drivers side i can fit only 3 fingers.
it seems that the previous owner has hit a curb or something to knock the wheel back?
i was just wondering if this is fixable? and roughly how much it would cost if it is?

sorry for the long description.

thanks in advance
 
i would have thought its something to do with the rear links or something like that?
 
id go get the tracking done first and see what they say.
when under there they could look and see if theres any play anywhere else etc
 
ok ill go when i get a day off after new years. i think all the garages are closed until 2nd jan.
thanks for your help.

also this issue can be repaired if a link is bent?
 
Have you got the same size tyres on the rear? if yes check the spring and shock,if it's
a slight steering snatch check the lower ball joint on the n/s front.
 
i have 245/40/17 on the rears and 225/45/17 on the front
is this the correct tyres sizes as 2 garages said this is whats meant to be on them from manufacturer.

the suspension looks absolutely fine tbh but haven't had the car on a ramp so when i go to get the tracking done i will have a proper look around
 
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Have you got the same size tyres on the rear? if yes check the spring and shock,if it's
a slight steering snatch check the lower ball joint on the n/s front.

its the n/s rear that seems to be out of place buddy
 
so it is pulling to the left when the rear wheels hit a bump,if thats the case check the spring(common to break) and rear shock,
also the anti roll bar bush.If it's tracking you will see uneven tyre wear
 
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so it is pulling to the left when the rear wheels hit a bump,if thats the case check the spring(common to break) and rear shock,
also the anti roll bar bush.If it's tracking you will see uneven tyre wear

yeah the car is jumping towards the left when i hit a pothole or drain or a ditch in the road.
i believe the tracking is ok but pulling a tiny bit towards the left
 
also my esp light is on and got it plugged in and the garage told me its the steering angle sensor which they will replace.
 
Sounds like it's been in an accident to me, do not replace the steering angle sensor, get it to someone familiar with Mercedes, you need the steering angle sensor actual value checking to see if its straight when the steering wheel is in a head on position, and then get a full geometry check as apposed to just the tracking.
 
Rear wheel set-back although not ideal won't cause the complaint you have.

If we assume there has been an "incident" at the rear it's probable the toe angle is out on one of the wheels. The toe position is longitudinal so any deviation build deflection into the tyre side wall. Any deflection or lets say deviation gets released at every opportunity, white line, drain cover and so on.

To give an example with a 15" wheel and 2mm of misalignment it would equal driving one mile, stopping and then dragging the car 15ft sideways.
 
The car is 2005 the mileage is 65k and it's got full service history. It does look like it's had some work done on the rear passenger side arch as I have noticed some over spray around that area.

I reckon it could have been involved in an unrecorded accident at some point.

Should I still get the angle sensor changed or what should I do about the esp warning light?

Also where could I go to find my local garage who could do a full geometry check?
 
I wouldn't have anything set/ changed until the chassis has been measured. Many of the systems will re-set themselves if the chassis is found to be incorrect and re-set.

As said the handling alone suggests a geometry issue so for now address known issues and take it from there.
 
As you have just bought it, consider rejecting it.

Was a quality dealer ?

Has HPI check been done by yourself ? If not do one.
 

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