97 Chevy fullsize truck front end alignment troubles


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Old 05-19-09, 04:21 PM
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Question 97 Chevy fullsize truck front end alignment troubles

1997 Chevy extended cab. 2WD, 350V8 automatic
Truck is in otherwise perfect condition. Have had some front end work done, but still pulls to the left. Enough so that at highway speeds Im driving with the steering wheel cranked over to the right maybe 15-20 degrees? I took it back into the dealer today and they put it on "the machine", and everything tested ok they said. So what could still be causing this? Tires and wheels are in good shape. Tires are slightly larger/wider than factory.
 
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Old 05-19-09, 06:09 PM
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swap the front tires right to left and see if the pull changes, if so get a new tire, if not get a new alignment shop! On second thought get a new shop any way they should be able to diagnose a pull that hard without any trouble.
 
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Old 05-19-09, 06:39 PM
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They did a tire rotation the last time I was in, when they did the front end work - replacing the pitman arm and idler arms.
 
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Old 05-20-09, 11:17 AM
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Ok, ....

An off centered steering wheel is different from a Pull.....


Does the truck go straight ahead by itself , with just the Steering being off 15 or 20 degrees, Or does the truck drag to one side and you must force the steering the opposite way to counteract the drag?

I suspect your "Toe" or "Steer-ahead" adjustment may be off. This is probably due to some "Sloppiness" in the steering box, which is kind of a necessary evil, and "In and Of itself" is nothing to worry about.

In defense of your alignment Tech, finding the "Center" of "SLOP" is not always easy, ...But either way, it should not have left the shop that way.
 
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Old 05-27-09, 06:06 AM
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Also depends on the shop, could even depend on which technician in the shop worked on it. I worked one place where the manager was bad about teaching the tire morons to hookup the alignment computer, then telling them if "everything is showing green on the screen" it's within specs. He never would teach them to account for road crown, aftermarket sizes of tires, etc. Half the time they would enter the wrong vehicle and therefore have the wrong specs, or the left and right front wheels would be at opposite ends of the spec tolerances, so the vehicle would pull (usually to the right) like crazy.
 
 

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