Steering wheel alignment off after snow tires?????

baltimoreM3 · Wed, Jan-31-2007, 10:10:37 PM

On my wifes 325Ti, I just installed the winter wheel/tire set. The next day she tells me that the car tracks straight but the steering wheel is off center a bit.

I took it out today and confirmed what she said. It also appeared that the left rear end was sitting lower than the right rear end.

I changed shocks to a set I had at the house, not new but with only about 15K miles on them. They have been in storage for about 5 years.

This swap seemed to fix the rear end problem, but the steering wheel alignment is still present. All air pressures are fine.

When braking from 50-60 mph the car brakes straight as well. It doesn’t pull, but the steering wheel is just of center.

Any ideas?

**Sirius** · Wed, Jan-31-2007, 10:11:56 PM

That's very strange. Swaping out rims/tires shouldn't affect alignment at all and/or steering wheel centering.

baltimoreM3 · Wed, Jan-31-2007, 10:25:50 PM

Unless, and this is my theory, her shocks and struts have 121K miles on them, the struts are also supporting a 2.5 liter engine not the factory 1.8 L.

So jacking the car up one corner at a time to swap the wheels/tires, may have finally done it in for the struts and shocks.

When I changed the rear shocks, the rear seemed to sit back to normal. I can't see a difference in how the rear sits, and like I said it doesn't seem to pull.

Crosswire3 · Wed, Jan-31-2007, 10:30:22 PM

Responsible Man's Action: Fully diagnose and solve the problem.

Poor Man's Action: Pull the wheel and recenter

baltimoreM3 · Wed, Jan-31-2007, 10:31:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crosswire3

Responsible Man's Action: Fully diagnose and solve the problem.

Poor Man's Action: Pull the wheel and recenter

I'll take catagory number one for 200 please Alex

Braymond141 · Wed, Jan-31-2007, 11:38:14 PM

Do not pull the wheel and align it. Your wheel should match it's original alignment marks on the column, any deviations should be corrected by an alignment (wheel alignment to clarify, not steering wheel alignment). Adjusting the wheel rather than alignment will result in improper alignments (in the future) and your lock to lock will be different at each side.

Sounds like the wifey hit something... Have it checked out at a shop for alignment.

baltimoreM3 · Wed, Jan-31-2007, 11:44:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Braymond141

Do not pull the wheel and align it. Your wheel should match it's original alignment marks on the column, any deviations should be corrected by an alignment (wheel alignment to clarify, not steering wheel alignment). Adjusting the wheel rather than alignment will result in improper alignments (in the future) and your lock to lock will be different at each side.

Sounds like the wifey hit something... Have it checked out at a shop for alignment.

The things she probably leaves out when telling the story

Rear shocks were easy on the Ti, are struts a DIY, what can I use to compress the spring?

Braymond141 · Thu, Feb-01-2007, 12:00:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by baltimoreM3

The things she probably leaves out when telling the story

Rear shocks were easy on the Ti, are struts a DIY, what can I use to compress the spring?

Kragen has spring removal rental tools. My ghetto friends just tie chains around the springs and stand back

If she didnt hit anything, maybe somethings lodged up in the suspension? It really could be anything... but an alignment check is a good start.

PhYrE · Thu, Feb-01-2007, 01:42:21 AM

I'd bet their jack point was off, potentially bending something. Maybe even bent a control arm or tie rod in the process.

Oh- one more thing, and this one may save you a ton of time. How do you know the alignment is off? Is it because you need to hold it off-centre to keep the car going straight or because the wheels aren't straight when the wheel is centred? If it's the former, check tire pressures [which you did] but also look for defects in the rims and tires (and ensure they match). If it's because it pulls to one side, they may have thrown off your alignment (though they'd have to hit it pretty hard) or jack it up by a suspension component instead of the cross-member under the engine or jack points at the sides.

-M

mvwaterboy · Thu, Feb-01-2007, 03:18:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by baltimoreM3

The things she probably leaves out when telling the story

Rear shocks were easy on the Ti, are struts a DIY, what can I use to compress the spring?

Harbor Freight Spring Compressor tool : $11. (I got mine on sale for $8!)

Wed, Jan-31-2007, 10:10:37 PM	#1
baltimoreM3 Registered User Join Date: Jan 2006 Age: 36 Posts: 1,528 Reputation: 0 Location: Nashville	Steering wheel alignment off after snow tires????? On my wifes 325Ti, I just installed the winter wheel/tire set. The next day she tells me that the car tracks straight but the steering wheel is off center a bit. I took it out today and confirmed what she said. It also appeared that the left rear end was sitting lower than the right rear end. I changed shocks to a set I had at the house, not new but with only about 15K miles on them. They have been in storage for about 5 years. This swap seemed to fix the rear end problem, but the steering wheel alignment is still present. All air pressures are fine. When braking from 50-60 mph the car brakes straight as well. It doesn’t pull, but the steering wheel is just of center. Any ideas? __________________ Mine: 1999 M3 Coupe Fern Green,Dinan Stage 3 Suspension,X-brace,AA-Tower Brace,AA CAI,AA Gen 3,AA Performance Software,S.S. Brakelines,UUC Red/TME,VDOs... Hers: 2006 X5 3.0 Black Sapphire, Xenons, Leather

Wed, Jan-31-2007, 10:11:56 PM	#2
Sirius How many licks.. Join Date: Mar 2004 Posts: 46,143 In the garage: '97 BMW M3 '10 Yamaha R6 Reputation: 45	That's very strange. Swaping out rims/tires shouldn't affect alignment at all and/or steering wheel centering. __________________ ♪♫♪♪♫♪ Trevor ♪♫♪♪♫♪ 97' M3. '10 R6.

Wed, Jan-31-2007, 10:25:50 PM	#3
baltimoreM3 Registered User Join Date: Jan 2006 Age: 36 Posts: 1,528 Reputation: 0 Location: Nashville	Unless, and this is my theory, her shocks and struts have 121K miles on them, the struts are also supporting a 2.5 liter engine not the factory 1.8 L. So jacking the car up one corner at a time to swap the wheels/tires, may have finally done it in for the struts and shocks. When I changed the rear shocks, the rear seemed to sit back to normal. I can't see a difference in how the rear sits, and like I said it doesn't seem to pull. __________________ Mine: 1999 M3 Coupe Fern Green,Dinan Stage 3 Suspension,X-brace,AA-Tower Brace,AA CAI,AA Gen 3,AA Performance Software,S.S. Brakelines,UUC Red/TME,VDOs... Hers: 2006 X5 3.0 Black Sapphire, Xenons, Leather

Wed, Jan-31-2007, 10:30:22 PM	#4
Crosswire3 The Hire Join Date: Jan 2006 Age: 25 Posts: 1,075 Reputation: 0 Location: North Canton/Dayton	Responsible Man's Action: Fully diagnose and solve the problem. Poor Man's Action: Pull the wheel and recenter __________________ -Mike

Thu, Feb-01-2007, 01:42:21 AM	#9
PhYrE Mmmmm-3 Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 2,065 Reputation: 0 Location: Richmond Hill (Toronto), ON	I'd bet their jack point was off, potentially bending something. Maybe even bent a control arm or tie rod in the process. Oh- one more thing, and this one may save you a ton of time. How do you know the alignment is off? Is it because you need to hold it off-centre to keep the car going straight or because the wheels aren't straight when the wheel is centred? If it's the former, check tire pressures [which you did] but also look for defects in the rims and tires (and ensure they match). If it's because it pulls to one side, they may have thrown off your alignment (though they'd have to hit it pretty hard) or jack it up by a suspension component instead of the cross-member under the engine or jack points at the sides. -M __________________ 2008 BMW M3 Coupe (White on Fox Red) CF everything / Lowering springs / EDC / Tint AA Short Shifter SOLD - 1997 BMW M3 Coupe (Estoril Blue] VFE Supercharger Stage 1 Bilstein Sport Shocks/Struts Euro-M3 Springs Two-Piece Euro Rotors JVC KD-AR5500 Headunit Euro Headlights w/ TSX Projector Retrofit and HIDs VDO Gauges Harmon Kardon Amplifier retrofit 18-button OBC conversion retrofit BMW Euro (clear) corners, tails, sidemarkers ROH RT wheels / (f) 245/40/17 (r) 265/40/17 Toyo T1R

Wed, Jan-31-2007, 11:38:14 PM	#6
Braymond141 Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 15,480 Reputation: 0	Do not pull the wheel and align it. Your wheel should match it's original alignment marks on the column, any deviations should be corrected by an alignment (wheel alignment to clarify, not steering wheel alignment). Adjusting the wheel rather than alignment will result in improper alignments (in the future) and your lock to lock will be different at each side. Sounds like the wifey hit something... Have it checked out at a shop for alignment.

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