I just put on new wheels/tires this past week, and since then, my car has been leaning to the right consistently. I'm guessing I need to get an alignment, but are there any other possible reasons for this? I checked my tire pressure, they're all ok. Any help appreciated, thanks.

 

What do you mean by "leaning"? Is the car actually leaning to one side; is your steering wheel off center; or does the vehicle pull or drift in one direction while driving? If the entire vehicle is leaning to one side, I doubt it's an alignment issue... Ed

 

sorry for not being too clear. my car drifts to the right while driving. the steering wheel also turns slightly if left alone while cruising.

 

bump, help!

 

Ya, I had this same problem with my car, except it pulled to the left. Is your car lowered by any chance? I had no idea my car was lowered and it turns out my camber was way off, throwing off my cars alignment and hence it pulling to the left. Might just want to check it out. Got any connections?

 

Are the wheels and tires the same size as OEM or different? Also, what kind of tires are they, and are they unidirectional? I'm not a suspension design engineer, but I read Juki's post concerning suspension mods and agree. I suppose it's also possible that the front suspension geometry could be affected if the new tires/wheels are of a different size. I don't know about all Maxima's, but on my '98, some alignment setting are not adjustable. Another possibility is that you may have a tire problem. If it's pulling right, recommend you swap your right tires front to back and see if that makes a difference. If your problem goes away, your right front may have been causing radial pull. If nothing changes, recommend you then switch your left tires from front to back...this will eliminate the possibility of radial push from the left. Do one side at a time so you can tell which side was the culprit. Let me know how you make out... Ed

 

the tires are sumitomo htr+ 215/50/17, which i believe is the closest size to oem (205/65/15). they are brand new, so i don't think it could be a tire problem. my car isn't lowered and before i put the new wheels/tires on, it wasn't noticeably drifting to the right as it is now. i think i'll take it to the place that i got my wheels installed and see what they can do.
if anyone has any more suggestions, please post. thanks.

 

You need a wheel alignment.

Your old tires wore into your improper alignment settings over time thus you didn't feel it so much.
Now you put new tires on with nice flat tread and your alignment issues are amplified.

Have it tracked now that you have new tires on, and your new tires will ware correctly and last you a long time.

 

I have the exact same problem on my car. brand new tires and a pull to the right.The old tires wore evenly and had no ppull. After 3 alignments checking everything (including camber), my only thought is that it could only be a radial pull. I am going to test the right and left side very soon so as find the culprit. If in fact that doesnt solve the problem, plan b is to sit and whine

 

thanks. how much should an alignment cost? and is this the type of alignment i need?

For vehicles with non-adjustable rear suspensions:
a. Angle readings are measured at all four wheels.
b. The steering wheel is centered.
c. Front wheel are referenced to the rear thrust line and set to specifications.

thanks for your help.

 

so even after 3 alignments, the problem wasn't fixed? what is radial pull?

 

Radial pull is caused when the belts in the tire are not in perfect alignment...it causes the tire to pull (or push)one directioin or another... New tires can demonstrate this as it is a manufacturing defect.

Again, I recommend you swap them front to back to see if that makes a difference...it will either confirm or eliminate various possibilities. Ed

 

Yes, thats the alignemnt you need and it should cost about $50 bucks.

 

thanks.

 

my chariot is doing the same thing, had the car aligned and was told it was radial pull. drove off and the chariot was still pulling to the right.. glad i had a free coupon... so swaped front tires and still it pulled to the right but not as bad. the tire shop said the car was aligned but yet it was still pulling. last night about 3000 miles later i swaped the front tires back and the pull was worse. im having new shocks and springs installed and thought maybe its a bad shock ? my stock suspension is pretty dog on shot ! will find out whats going on sooner or later. maybe i need to be swaping the front and rear tires.

Question: I got my tires from tirerack. did any of you guys? what else do you check for if they say your car is aligned ? like i said im having new shocks and springs going on soon. what about a bad bearing what would that effect, or mount? Could it be bad tires from tirerack? ANd someone said something about unidirectional tires. The kuhmo supra 712's i think they are . these tires are have to rotate in one direction only. any problems with them

 

So You need an alignment everytime you switch to your stock-aftermarket rims??? Cause I just put my new rims/tires and it shakes like crazy~

 

Alignment shouldn't be related to shaking. Get your wheels balanced first, that's usually the culprit. Or there could be a lot of slack in tie rods or other parts of your suspension where the larger wheels just amplify. Shaking while braking is warped rotors.

 

My problem is that the car was aligned last July with my new 235/45/17. Last November, I hit a serious pothole here in Brooklyn and cracked my front right rim and blew out my tire. I went back to my reserve stock rims/wheels and drove that for the entire winter.

Two months ago I started to hear a clicking sound from the front CV and observed my axle was leaking and completely busted. I had the axle replaced two weeks ago and I reordered the rim which was initially busted in the pothole. I changed from stock to 235/45/17 because the weather is warm now. I am observing the car drifting to the left and the steering isn't centered. I guess it is safe to assume after going in that pothole and changing my right axle, the settings of my alignment are completely off.

Well off to the alignment shop I go to find out.