Rexmobbin Posted October 9, 2004 Share Posted October 9, 2004 my car is less than a week old, and i have a slight issue that i also had with my WRX (maybe an AWD thing?) when i'm on flat ground, if i hold the wheel perfectly straight, the car will slightly veer to the left. therefore, i find myself constantly with the steering wheel very gently cocked to the right all the time. does anyone else notice this? or am i just unlucky? it's a very slight bit off, not really noticeable unless you're trying to notice it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boostjunkie Posted October 9, 2004 Share Posted October 9, 2004 I had the same problem, but with the car drifting to the right. I took it in to my local dealer, and they tired to pass it off as a radial pull and just cross rotated my tires. Didn't help. Ends up their alignment rack is broken so they send me down to a nearby tire shop. A couple days and a couple of trips there later, they determine that the caster is out of spec. It is a non-adjustable parameter. The tire shop ends up loosening the front subframe and twisting it slightly on its mounts and retorquing it all back together. This got the caster back in spec, and the problem is 90% gone. In hindsight, I'm glad the dealer had to send me to an outside shop, as I'm pretty sure their solution is not in the Subaru playbook. Had it been up to them, it would just be deemed "normal" and I'd be left beating my head against a wall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rexmobbin Posted October 10, 2004 Author Share Posted October 10, 2004 dang, they had to do all that? do you think there's any negative aspects of this going on? like something getting damaged down the road? worn steering bushing or something from the wheel constantly cocked to the right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boostjunkie Posted October 10, 2004 Share Posted October 10, 2004 I don't think so. Really the subframe "twist" is not that big a deal. A couple bolts loosened, a firm shove and put it back to together and see if it did the trick. Could be production tolerances or it may have gotten thrown off is transport, who knows. My car still drifts to the right a tiny bit, but if I let go of the wheel, it'll take a good 5-6 count till it starts to go to the next lane (freeway driving). I can live with that, as no one has any business taking their hands off the wheel for that long. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chinchy Posted October 13, 2004 Share Posted October 13, 2004 Glad you got your issue fixed boostjunkie. I'm still having mine looked at. My car's now at a second dealer, for the 4th time to fix the same issue. I have my problems documented in the Warranty forum. They've also quoted the castor or camber issue to me, and that it is non adjustable. We'll see whether it gets fixed this time or not.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rexmobbin Posted October 17, 2004 Author Share Posted October 17, 2004 i would take mine in, but i'm positive that the dealer would blame the problem on my wheels/tires. i'll just have to wait until the weather craps out and i throw the stockers back on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gtguy Posted October 17, 2004 Share Posted October 17, 2004 Mine was, and is, perfectly aligned. So it's an issue with some cars, rather than most, or all, FYI. Good luck, and it should be as simple as just re-aligning the steering wheel. Kevin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rkkwan Posted October 18, 2004 Share Posted October 18, 2004 My WRX's steering wheel wasn't straight, and it was like that with many many WRXes. Didn't bother me enough to get it adjusted. The steering wheel on my GT, on the otherhand, is perfectly straight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agctr Posted October 19, 2004 Share Posted October 19, 2004 This is a post that keeps appearing time and time again. A lot of ppl are having the same issue and Subaru is taking no responsibility whatsoever. Take it to you nearest tyre garage and ask them to re-align. Yes it is a pain, Yes it is an expense to you but atleast you will know the alignment will be done right. Subaru are good at most things but this, they are hopeless. How do I know this, some issue with mine..... Adam. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chinchy Posted October 22, 2004 Share Posted October 22, 2004 My alignment issue is finally fixed. After going up to SoA and dealing with the District Service Operations Manager, they had me bring it in to a dealer that has full alignment equipment and all that. the DSOM made them print out before and after specs, and everything was all off. I don't have the numbers in front of me, but I'm happy to report that my car drives straight now. What a happy day.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rexmobbin Posted October 22, 2004 Author Share Posted October 22, 2004 chinchy, how long did the whole process take? mine's really starting to bug me, im gonna have to address this issue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agctr Posted October 23, 2004 Share Posted October 23, 2004 Fantastic to hear chinchy. The whole process should only take an hour or so at most to address. Get it into your dealer ASAP before you have major tyre wear. Adam. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chinchy Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 Sorry for the delay in responding. Hahaha, the whole thing took like 2 days. Becuase the dealer was having problems with their alignment machine or something, and then they didn't have the 05 specs, which is why I think my spec sheet says it's for a 2003 Legacy Sedan. What a pain in the butt. And that was just after I brought it in to the shop. Time frame from when I first reported the problem to the first dealer, to when it was finally resolved by the second dealer after going through SoA was like a good 3-4 weeks. Maybe a little longer... Now THAT'S a real pain in the butt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agctr Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 You have to keep on top of these guys otherwise the problem will be swept under the carpet. Good to hear some positive feedback. Adam. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rexmobbin Posted November 5, 2004 Author Share Posted November 5, 2004 yah, as soon as i get the stock tires back on, i'm taking it in. just because i KNOW they'll blame it on my Paradas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agctr Posted November 5, 2004 Share Posted November 5, 2004 LOL exactly, I know what you mean. And then you get the "a scratch, we didnt do that" I have heard that one a few times too. I repeat, NEVER let Subaru EVER touch yr rims or do a tyre rotation or welcome to Scratch World and Not Balanced Galaxy. Trust me, tell them this or suffer.... Adam. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rexmobbin Posted November 9, 2004 Author Share Posted November 9, 2004 gotcha. although a good buddy of mine (great mechanic too) works at the dealer where i'll be likely taking mine to address this issue, so i think my car would be in good hands there. good lookin' out though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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