First Post and I Have question regarding front end alignment.

[Eng1Driver]

Hi folks, this is my first post here although I've been lurking for a year or more. I hate to have my first post be a question about an issue instead of helping one of you guy's/gal's out but I'll ask it anyway.

My wife drives an 03' Tahoe Z71 and yesterday I had new tire installed along with a front end alignment. I now notice that the steering wheel is no longer centered but rather turned to the left an inch or two. Is this acceptable? I would think there is a way to center the wheel. Furthermore the truck will still pull to the right a bit but I'm not convinced it's not caused by the road crown. I guess I'm questioning the steering wheel being centered more than the pulling.

Thanks in advance and hopefully I'l bring something to the table for you guy's in the future.

 

[Brandon00hoe]

Take it back where you got the alignment and they should fix both issues. Most places have a 30, 60, or 90 day warranty.

 

[shadow]

That is not normal, nor acceptable.

It happened to me when my Tahoe was still fairly new, and it was the dealer who let that slide by.

I made them correct it, and you should do the same with whoever did the job for you.

It's a matter of getting the steeging box "on center", then adjustment to the tie rod ends to make sure the wheel gets positioned right.

It's tough nowadays to find mechanics who actually know what the hell they're doing, especially at the dealers.

 

[Eng1Driver]

Thanks Guys. I'm bringing it back to the tire installer right now.

 

[Rivieraracing]

I totally agree, very unacceptable this day and age. Glad to hear that you are taking it back, make them fix it right!! Good luck!!

 

[Eng1Driver]

Got the Tahoe back and everything is taken care of. When I dropped it off I explained that the steering wheel was off center and the truck seemed to pull to the right a bit. When I picked it up the gentleman behind the counter agreed that they had done a poor job aligning it initially using the "we were busy that day" excuse. Considering I sat in the waiting room for 3 hours I will agree that they were busy and as much as I think being "busy" is a lame excuse for shoddy work the job was done right the second time. In addition, they were very polite and apologetic about the whole thing which I respect and therfore I wouldn't hesitate to return to them for future work.