Aurion 'Pull Left' Issue Explained

[KenChen]

I am still looking for a place in Sydney to fix this issue. It looks like I have to fix it properly this time.

In the last 2 years I did 3 wheel alignments. And I still have to replace front tires every year (I need to check my records but I doubt I can make 30k out of Michelin Primacy LC)

[Beep Beep]

I am still looking for a place in Sydney to fix this issue. It looks like I have to fix it properly this time.

In the last 2 years I did 3 wheel alignments. And I still have to replace front tires every year (I need to check my records but I doubt I can make 30k out of Michelin Primacy LC)

I'm wondering if this whole pull left issue can be put down to a misunderstanding of what sort of alignments should be done.

I had the pull left issue for a while, and had the alignment done every 10,000km since new, each time with noticeable improvement but not a total elimination of the issue. I did a bit of research and found that I've actually been getting the wrong kind of wheel alignment done. What I SHOULD have done (and insisted on regardless of what the tech or sales ppl said) is to carry out a FOUR wheel alignment each and everytime I send the car in for an alignment instead of the standard front wheel alignment these tyre places always try to sell you.

The one time I did a four wheel alignment (and I insisted on getting a copy of the report), the pull left issue completely resolved itself. My Aurion now tracks straight as an arrow. It doesn't pull left at all now. Heck, I don't even need to apply any pressure on either side of the steering wheel at ALL on the road to keep it tracking straight.

I'm just sayin, that it could well be that people haven't been doing the right alignments on their cars. You can have perfect front wheel alignment, but if your rear alignment is off, even just slightly, the car will tend to pull to one side.

I figured these tyre places only do front wheel alignments because it's quicker and they can turnover customers faster (hence more profit through volume). Four wheel alignments are a ***** to do because of the extra effort. Cost wise it's not even double the cost of a front wheel alignment, so overall they actually make less money doing four wheel alignments. In my mind, this explains why they tend to shy away from four wheel alignments and always try to tell you that the fronts are always the culprits and the rears shouldn't be the problem.

I think it might be a case of people assuming the rear wheels are always perfectly aligned. This isn't necessarily the case, and the alignment does go out (eg, you drive over the curb while turning a bit too sharply into a corner or parking space, etc).

Just my 35c worth.

BB

[11/16Aurion 12Kluger]

Any whel alignment on a Camry / Aurion should be a full 4 wheel alignment.

Cost is around $70 - $80.

Any aligner that only does 2 wheels is just after your money.

Unless you are constantly bashing gutters frequent wheel alignements are a waste.

Our ACV40R has done over 80,000 k's and has never had an alignment.

Factory Dunlops were recently replaced so tyre wear was very good.

[DJKOR]

Unless you are constantly bashing gutters frequent wheel alignements are a waste.

Our ACV40R has done over 80,000 k's and has never had an alignment.

Agreed. My TRD has not had a single wheel alignment over the 137,000km of it's life. FIrst (factory) set of tires were changed at around 70,000km and the second set have been on for the last 67,000km and have at least another 35,000km in them.

Interesting to note too, I have the pull to the left issue as well and constantly have to hold the wheel with a slight right turn... however, my last set of tires as well as my current set are showing even tire wear. I'm in the mindset of "if it aint broke, don't fix it" so I don't intend on correcting this pull left issue in case it makes matters worse.

[EC11WA]

Agree with above statement. My trd was bought new. 45000km on the clock now with only a slight pull to the left issue. Even tyre wear all the way around. Only ever had 1 wheel alignment and that is when the car was lowered. I figure by playing around with it, things could possibly get worse( uneven tyre wear), so no point changing anything .

[humsuptivo]

I am still looking for a place in Sydney to fix this issue. It looks like I have to fix it properly this time.

In the last 2 years I did 3 wheel alignments. And I still have to replace front tires every year (I need to check my records but I doubt I can make 30k out of Michelin Primacy LC)

I'm wondering if this whole pull left issue can be put down to a misunderstanding of what sort of alignments should be done.

I had the pull left issue for a while, and had the alignment done every 10,000km since new, each time with noticeable improvement but not a total elimination of the issue. I did a bit of research and found that I've actually been getting the wrong kind of wheel alignment done. What I SHOULD have done (and insisted on regardless of what the tech or sales ppl said) is to carry out a FOUR wheel alignment each and everytime I send the car in for an alignment instead of the standard front wheel alignment these tyre places always try to sell you.

The one time I did a four wheel alignment (and I insisted on getting a copy of the report), the pull left issue completely resolved itself. My Aurion now tracks straight as an arrow. It doesn't pull left at all now. Heck, I don't even need to apply any pressure on either side of the steering wheel at ALL on the road to keep it tracking straight.

I'm just sayin, that it could well be that people haven't been doing the right alignments on their cars. You can have perfect front wheel alignment, but if your rear alignment is off, even just slightly, the car will tend to pull to one side.

I figured these tyre places only do front wheel alignments because it's quicker and they can turnover customers faster (hence more profit through volume). Four wheel alignments are a ***** to do because of the extra effort. Cost wise it's not even double the cost of a front wheel alignment, so overall they actually make less money doing four wheel alignments. In my mind, this explains why they tend to shy away from four wheel alignments and always try to tell you that the fronts are always the culprits and the rears shouldn't be the problem.

I think it might be a case of people assuming the rear wheels are always perfectly aligned. This isn't necessarily the case, and the alignment does go out (eg, you drive over the curb while turning a bit too sharply into a corner or parking space, etc).

Just my 35c worth.

BB

Hi just wondering what state your in.......if your in vic can you please give me the details of the place you went to so i can get a four wheel alignment done, thanks in advance

[Beep Beep]

I am still looking for a place in Sydney to fix this issue. It looks like I have to fix it properly this time.

In the last 2 years I did 3 wheel alignments. And I still have to replace front tires every year (I need to check my records but I doubt I can make 30k out of Michelin Primacy LC)

I'm wondering if this whole pull left issue can be put down to a misunderstanding of what sort of alignments should be done.

I had the pull left issue for a while, and had the alignment done every 10,000km since new, each time with noticeable improvement but not a total elimination of the issue. I did a bit of research and found that I've actually been getting the wrong kind of wheel alignment done. What I SHOULD have done (and insisted on regardless of what the tech or sales ppl said) is to carry out a FOUR wheel alignment each and everytime I send the car in for an alignment instead of the standard front wheel alignment these tyre places always try to sell you.

The one time I did a four wheel alignment (and I insisted on getting a copy of the report), the pull left issue completely resolved itself. My Aurion now tracks straight as an arrow. It doesn't pull left at all now. Heck, I don't even need to apply any pressure on either side of the steering wheel at ALL on the road to keep it tracking straight.

I'm just sayin, that it could well be that people haven't been doing the right alignments on their cars. You can have perfect front wheel alignment, but if your rear alignment is off, even just slightly, the car will tend to pull to one side.

I figured these tyre places only do front wheel alignments because it's quicker and they can turnover customers faster (hence more profit through volume). Four wheel alignments are a ***** to do because of the extra effort. Cost wise it's not even double the cost of a front wheel alignment, so overall they actually make less money doing four wheel alignments. In my mind, this explains why they tend to shy away from four wheel alignments and always try to tell you that the fronts are always the culprits and the rears shouldn't be the problem.

I think it might be a case of people assuming the rear wheels are always perfectly aligned. This isn't necessarily the case, and the alignment does go out (eg, you drive over the curb while turning a bit too sharply into a corner or parking space, etc).

Just my 35c worth.

BB

Hi just wondering what state your in.......if your in vic can you please give me the details of the place you went to so i can get a four wheel alignment done, thanks in advance

Hi,

I'm in WA, so where i had mine done probably won't be much use to you, I'm afraid. I would suggest a reputable shop, not necessarily franchises like Bob Jane, tyrepower etc. This is purely because franchises tend to be "sausage factories" i.e. get as many customers in and out as quickly as possible so profit is maximised by sheer turnover. There may be exceptions to this, and I apologise beforehand if I offend anyone who happens to work in these establishments or owns a franchise, but it is my experience to date with these places.

I now go to either a) Toyota Service Centers, or B) performance suspension centers. I've every confidence these two are capable of doing (I haven't been proven wrong as yet) a proper four wheel alignment on my Aurion each and every single time. They are both so confident in their workmanship and abilities they are happy to provide a full, proper printed report with each alignment.

On a side note, I have the alignments done on my other cars (Toyota L/C & VW CC) at a performance suspension center now too, and I still cannot believe the difference it makes when the time and effort is taken by the technician to PROPERLY do an alignment.

Hope this helps, Han.

Cheers,

Joachim.

[prometheus]

I took my 2011 Aurion Touring in for its first 9 month/15 000k service (the car had done 12,300 klms)

A front and rear wheel alignment, wheel rotation and balance was also done ( cost $80 )

Today, I drove from the inner west of Melbourne to Warragul (and back) to visit a friend and noticed that when the steering was pointed dead ahead the car pulled to the left; or alternatively that in order to go straight ahead the steering wheel needed to be turned slightly to the right by say approximately 5 degrees,

I hadn't noticed this prior to the service etc.

By the sounds of earlier posts, is it worth taking it back to the dealership to try and get it rectified or am I better off looking to get it fixed properly with someone that knows what there are doing?

Can anyone recommend a place to try in the inner West or inner North of Melbourne?

Also, on the sticker for the next service they have shown as due for late Dec of 2012 and/or 20 000 klms.

I assume this is because the car has done fairly low klms and they are assuming that it will continue to do so.

I don't do alot of mileage; and have tended to average about 14 000 klms per year so I guess its not a bad idea to get it done then?

Edited June 27, 2012 by prometheus

[zedder]

whiteline do a castor correction bush. fixed mine and was under $100.

[the drake]

Hey Guys,

I'm taking my Aurion to Pedders this Saturday to have a look at the following:

1. Noisy front suspension(squeeky when going over speedbumps)

2. Loose steering at the centre (small bumps cause excessive movement)

3. Steering wheel vibration over 120km/h

4. Pull left issue.

I believe 2 and 3 can be addressed through wheel alignment?

Regarding pull left issue, they are well aware of this issue on Aurions and service 2-3 Aurions a week suffering this issue. He mentioned over the phone that a camber kit is required and verbally quoted $350 incl. parts and

install - does this sound right? Anything I should be wary of before spending my money at pedders?

Thanks for looking..

[Noodle Boy]

this reply may annoy various people out there, therefore i'd like to make my apology upfront. since a lot of our members, inluding myself, have had the pulling-left issue and had gone ahead and installed either camber bolts or offset bushes, i'd thought i'd go through any other alternatives, since i want to save some cash and dealing with a dealer will seem overwhelming for me. I wanted to go with 'the adjusting the camber' approach since my car could do with some extra negative camber. I came across a few forums which suggested filing or slotting the lower strut hole to allow the bolt to be moved, enabling the adjustment of camber either more positively or negatively. so i'd thought that what i could do is adjust the left strut to be a bit more negative than the right which will push the car up the slope of a typical road, by filing or drilling the left lower strut hole (and maybe a bit on the right if needed) to accomodate this.once finished i will get the wheels re-aligned. However, i'd like to see your opinions upon this in terms of worth, safety and ease.

Edited July 29, 2012 by Noodle Boy

[Pittsy]

Hey Drake, how'd you go with Pedders? Did it fix the problem?

[Pittsy]

Just rang a Fulcrum dealer/fitter in Moorabbin Vic and they quote to supply the Superpro SPF2904K parts with labour and a wheel alignment a total of $470......

Not sure if I want to spend that much.....

Ahhhhhhh

Edited August 7, 2012 by Pittsy

[KenChen]

I am still looking for a place in Sydney to fix this issue. It looks like I have to fix it properly this time.

In the last 2 years I did 3 wheel alignments. And I still have to replace front tires every year (I need to check my records but I doubt I can make 30k out of Michelin Primacy LC)

I'm wondering if this whole pull left issue can be put down to a misunderstanding of what sort of alignments should be done.

I had the pull left issue for a while, and had the alignment done every 10,000km since new, each time with noticeable improvement but not a total elimination of the issue. I did a bit of research and found that I've actually been getting the wrong kind of wheel alignment done. What I SHOULD have done (and insisted on regardless of what the tech or sales ppl said) is to carry out a FOUR wheel alignment each and everytime I send the car in for an alignment instead of the standard front wheel alignment these tyre places always try to sell you.

The one time I did a four wheel alignment (and I insisted on getting a copy of the report), the pull left issue completely resolved itself. My Aurion now tracks straight as an arrow. It doesn't pull left at all now. Heck, I don't even need to apply any pressure on either side of the steering wheel at ALL on the road to keep it tracking straight.

I'm just sayin, that it could well be that people haven't been doing the right alignments on their cars. You can have perfect front wheel alignment, but if your rear alignment is off, even just slightly, the car will tend to pull to one side.

I figured these tyre places only do front wheel alignments because it's quicker and they can turnover customers faster (hence more profit through volume). Four wheel alignments are a ***** to do because of the extra effort. Cost wise it's not even double the cost of a front wheel alignment, so overall they actually make less money doing four wheel alignments. In my mind, this explains why they tend to shy away from four wheel alignments and always try to tell you that the fronts are always the culprits and the rears shouldn't be the problem.

I think it might be a case of people assuming the rear wheels are always perfectly aligned. This isn't necessarily the case, and the alignment does go out (eg, you drive over the curb while turning a bit too sharply into a corner or parking space, etc).

Just my 35c worth.

BB

I was doing four wheel alignment every time.

3 times, different places, same result. That's what makes me believe it's not enough.

[the drake]

Hey Drake, how'd you go with Pedders? Did it fix the problem?

yeah it sure did - if you let go of the steering wheel (or hold the steering wheel with minimal force) the car drives in straight line no probs. It is still very slightly off centre but i hardly notice it and i can live with it.

you should check out the parts online, and get them to do the fitment. should've done that, as they put huge markups on the parts..

Edited August 14, 2012 by the drake

[Beep Beep]

I am still looking for a place in Sydney to fix this issue. It looks like I have to fix it properly this time.

In the last 2 years I did 3 wheel alignments. And I still have to replace front tires every year (I need to check my records but I doubt I can make 30k out of Michelin Primacy LC)

I'm wondering if this whole pull left issue can be put down to a misunderstanding of what sort of alignments should be done.

I had the pull left issue for a while, and had the alignment done every 10,000km since new, each time with noticeable improvement but not a total elimination of the issue. I did a bit of research and found that I've actually been getting the wrong kind of wheel alignment done. What I SHOULD have done (and insisted on regardless of what the tech or sales ppl said) is to carry out a FOUR wheel alignment each and everytime I send the car in for an alignment instead of the standard front wheel alignment these tyre places always try to sell you.

The one time I did a four wheel alignment (and I insisted on getting a copy of the report), the pull left issue completely resolved itself. My Aurion now tracks straight as an arrow. It doesn't pull left at all now. Heck, I don't even need to apply any pressure on either side of the steering wheel at ALL on the road to keep it tracking straight.

I'm just sayin, that it could well be that people haven't been doing the right alignments on their cars. You can have perfect front wheel alignment, but if your rear alignment is off, even just slightly, the car will tend to pull to one side.

I figured these tyre places only do front wheel alignments because it's quicker and they can turnover customers faster (hence more profit through volume). Four wheel alignments are a ***** to do because of the extra effort. Cost wise it's not even double the cost of a front wheel alignment, so overall they actually make less money doing four wheel alignments. In my mind, this explains why they tend to shy away from four wheel alignments and always try to tell you that the fronts are always the culprits and the rears shouldn't be the problem.

I think it might be a case of people assuming the rear wheels are always perfectly aligned. This isn't necessarily the case, and the alignment does go out (eg, you drive over the curb while turning a bit too sharply into a corner or parking space, etc).

Just my 35c worth.

BB

I was doing four wheel alignment every time.

3 times, different places, same result. That's what makes me believe it's not enough.

Dude, that really sucks. It's possible that I may have been lucky because mine was fixed up without needing to install extra parts. Even now, bout 2 months later after it was fixed, she still tracks straight.

Not sure when yours was built, but mine is a MY10 (Sept build).

BB

[Pittsy]

Drake:- Booked into Pedders tomorrow, $14 they will check the whole suspension/alignment and advise what they think I should do.

Can I ask you what parts they put into yours?

Thanks

Edited August 16, 2012 by Pittsy

[the drake]

they put in a camber pin - like this one

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/WHITELINE-Camber-adjustment-bolt-kit-17mm-toyota-camry-celica-kluger-lexus-/271018295754?pt=AU_Car_Parts_Accessories&hash=item3f19f301ca#ht_1996wt_1397

yeah, did the 28 point check, they will no doubt recommend putting a camber pin, getting wheel alignment, bla bla bla at the end of the day they want money off ya. they even told me my $14 check was free when i tried to haggle.

the parts are dirt cheap - as far as i can see its just a modified bolt, nothing special about the part yet they charged me over $100. i reckon if you look overseas parts website no doubt it will be cheaper.

anyways, it took me around 1.5hr to complete..

they didnt really budge on the price, but i just wanted to get it over and done with so just paid the money.

[Pittsy]

They had a look and quoted me a total of $570 bucks to do it. I'm not going to bother!!

The local Beaurepairs can do a 4 wheel align for $99 bucks and said they will sort it out...

I'll see how I feel in a while, the tyres have done 55,000 km's now and I might as well wait until I change them in 10,000 km's or so before doing a 4 wheel alignment. Then if it still pulls left I'll think about installing camber pins etc. I think 55,000 km out of a set of tyres is pretty good?

Thanks

Edited August 19, 2012 by Pittsy

[viper33]

Just browsed through the thread

Has anyone tried playing around with the tie rods to counter the steering being off

Coz at work if a car has the steering slighty off after a wheel alignment(generally coz steering wasn't dead centre when aligned) you can easily make it centre without using the maching provided you know which way to turn the tie rods

I'd be happy to show what i mean in person, bit hard to explain over the internet

[Pittsy]

DJKOR:- Just wondering about the SuperPro SPF2904K offset bushing kit, some have said after 12 months they squeak a bit? What has been your experience with them??

Thanks

[DJKOR]

DJKOR:- Just wondering about the SuperPro SPF2904K offset bushing kit, some have said after 12 months they squeak a bit? What has been your experience with them??

Thanks

Never noticed any noise. Surely though if they were squeaking, that would simply be solved with grease. They aren't intended to stay greased for life.

[Pittsy]

Ok thanks mate.

[Arsalan]

Hi guys,

can anyone please suggest what would be the best place to get it done around Melbourne?

Thanks

[jeffy]

Hi guys,

can anyone please suggest what would be the best place to get it done around Melbourne?

Thanks

are you after alignment ? or installing the bush kit ?