Hey guys! So I have a 2008 Base AT TL... I've recently gotten an alignment, new tires 6,000 miles ago, and a tire rotation just a day or two ago. My car is pulling to the right enough to where I have to permanently hold the steering wheel to the left to compansate.. not too much but just enough to get annoying. I've been having this problem for quite a little bit of time and thought the new tires and alignment would fix it... it didn't. Also, when I got my timing belt and water pump replaced about 4 months ago the auto shop said that my car has weak shocks and a "bad power steering pump leak". I know the shocks are weak because they are not dampening like they used... I feel every little pebble and bump in the road. As far as the power steering pump leak I have no idea what they mean. I check all my fluids weekly and have never noticed any leaking power steering fluid nor had to fill it up. There are no unusual noises coming from the power steering either so I am a little confused where this leak is. Is there any way the car pulling to the right could be due to either the weak shocks or a supposed power steering pump leak? I figured it's because of my shocks but am not sure. I've heard that with an automatic car you can put it in neutral and shut the car off while driving and if the car stops pulling to one side then the power steering is the culprit.... is this true and safe to do with an automatic? If so I may end up doing that to rule out power steering. Thanks for any help and advice!

 

Start by rotating the tyres front to back and/or left to right.

 

They were just rotated in an x pattern a couple days ago

 

1.) Did these issues exist prior to the alignment and tire replacement?
2.) Does the car actually drift/pull? Or is the wheel just off-center while going straight?

If the same issues persisted prior to the tires being replaced and rotated, then that pretty much leaves a failing/failed/damaged suspension component. Check your various bushings on the front end.

 

Yes the issue existed prior to the new tires and alignment.

And yes the car pulls to the right. If I let go of the steering wheel the car pulls to the right even if the steering wheel is straight.

Would weak shocks make a car pull in one direction? I plan on replacing the stock shocks with some koni yellows eventually but I just dont want to drop almost a grand on shocks and springs quite yet.

My car only has 105k miles

 

Did you get an alignment printout that you can post?

 

Yeah... I'll have to go find it and then I'll post it.

 

 

Maybe a bushing is worn and the alignment isn't holding.

Is your front compliance bushing torn?

 

I'll have to check and see but I dont think so

 

Alignment sheet looks relatively normal. My bet is on bushings

 

So I finally got around to replacing the passenger side engine mount and oh boy did it need it. The car pulling to the right is significantly reduced now and I dont have to constantly hold the steering wheel to the left to compensate. The rubber covering on the old mount was so stiff and dried out that when I tried to pull it off the rubber broke.

 

I find it hard to believe that side mount would impact driving dynamics like that....anything is possible though.

 

I all with you man! I was very reluctant to believe that the mount would have anything to do with the car pulling to the side but I did read a couple articles saying it could throw the alignment off. Like I said though, the car is driving significantly straighter since getting it replaced so I'll take it haha I was going to replace the mount anyways so I'm glad it seems to have very good results. Maybe I'm crazy but when I shift from park to reverse the car doesn't budge or jerk anymore either. I figured that would be more of a front mount or tranny mount issue but the side mount seems to have solved that issue as well... not that it was jerking the car a lot to begin with though.

 

The side mount for sure makes a difference in engine movement...I replaced mine several years ago since I could feel the engine flopping around more than I liked and it looked just like yours. My assumption is if the side mount is in the bad of shape, the front and rear can't be functioning as well as they should be...just too lazy to go through the pain of replacing them.

 

I've tried inspecting the front mount but it is kind of hard to tell just by looking at it. I have read on these forums that if it's not leaking any hydraulic fluid then it's still good... that doesn't mean it will be performing to the best of its abilities though. I can't seem to find the rear engine mount and I can only assume that it's also a bitch to replace.