iDynamite

Hey MBWorld! So I just got my 2012 C250 from a dealership in Northern California that had a single owner, 23k miles, and no accidents whatsoever. I've been enjoying this car for about 2 weeks now- which is sad since I bought it over a month ago... since the purchase, the car has been noticeably pulling to the right which I assumed to be a alignment error so I've taken the car back to the dealership numerous times under warranty for it to be fixed.

The car has been in their hands for more than half the time I've had the car to myself, which would be great if the car would be fixed by now except that it isn't. Being the concerned owner that I am, I did my research and found that the slight pull to the right in C250's are common

http://www.benzworld.org/forums/w204...-new-c250.html

I was wondering if anyone else would be experiencing the same thing? They've had me test drive other C250's in their lot to prove that all C250s pull towards the right because of the crown in the road itself, and they all still pulled to the right, but I doubt that basically brand new mercedes are built this way, even my 05 Prelude doesn't pull to the right.

Any help or insight would be appreciated, thanks for reading.

Volcom1216

My 2012 c250 also does the same. Just had an alignment check done last week at the dealer. Bought my c250 about a month ago with 21k miles. Didn't know if pulling to the right a bit was normal.

They said it was and checked the alignment. Everything was within tolerance. They adjusted a bit of the rear, but it still pulls a lil to the right. I guess im ok with it if its normal. The 2014 c250 loaner i got did the same and that only had 8k miles.

I have the 18inch amg rims btw.

iDynamite

Wow...I mean that's just the weird thing too because I swear the three loaner cars I had (two C250's and a C300) all drove perfectly fine, no slight pulls or anything at all. I'd hate to take mine to a 3rd party mechanic to see what can be done because that would void the warranty but still...

justaguy

My 2009 C300 4matic pulled to the right since I purchased it with 12000 miles on it.
Had it checked under warranty , dealer informed me that there was nothing wrong with the car or the alignment.....

arketect

Even if you have directional tires, cross rotate the front tires. This is to eliminate the possible radial pull that tires can create. Also, have you gotten the results, and checked the cross caster? Generally the r/f wheel has 1/2 degree more negative caster. Meaning the top of the strut (right side) is more forward than the left. Creating a slight push to the left to counteract road crown.

MBSebas87

I noticed it when I switched to dws tires. Took it to the dealer and fixed the problem but not 100%.

iDynamite

I never got the results back from the tests they've done, they just briefly showed me on paper that each wheel (except the front right) has followed specified guidelines by the actual manufacturer to keep traction while remaining straight I guess? But they've also mentioned that they cross-rotated the front two tires and eventually all the tires on the car and they said it made the issue worse. I remember the Maintenance Lead telling me that if anything the steering column could be misaligned or dysfunctional, but said that this is basically the worst case scenario (that they've never addressed since the potential cost of repair on their end could come up to over $7000).

Just to be clear... I mentioned the possible issue with the steering column and they said that's definitely not the issue at all.

shinjyo

My 14C250 does the same thing. I took it in two weeks after I bought it brand new. The tech say for some reason, those german aligned the car straight on flat road and didn't account the US road slope, plus the car is very very sensitive to tire balance, alignment due to the suspension setup etc. They admit that my C250 does pull to the right a bit more than usual even at the crown of the road. They spent a day and realigned it. Now the car drives much better with a very very very slight pull and that's acceptable to me. And yes, their loaner doesn't pull like mine.
They didn't charge me for the work.

Hope of this help.

iDynamite

Yeah that helps, thanks... not much of an issue I guess but I can live with it.

spyked

My C250 is perfect in this area. No pulling or drifting at all. I have a more rare Luxury trim with matched tire sizes though, and softer suspension. That said, I am extremely OCD about alignment (suspension or steering wheel) issues. I can say that I've never driven a RWD car that has alignment/pulling issues.

Good luck getting it fixed. Just know they don't all pull to the right (or any direction).

iDynamite

See? I thought so...I cant honestly believe that all C250's or all cars of the same specs would pull at any direction. Is that just for the luxury trim where I can find no alignment issues at all? Or is there anything that can be done to the sport variation as well?

MDMercedesGuy

I'm going on 32K with my C250, and it has never pulled in any direction. At 10K miles, my right front was backed into and I took a trailer hitch receiver to the right front wheel. The wheel, strut, and some other misc suspension components were replaced in the end - and it still had no pull after.

I have noticed that my car is sensitive to tire pressure though - a few PSI off of one of the tires and it feels jerky in maneuvers at highway speeds. My OEM contis are at about 40% front and almost down to the wear bars on the rear.

I have the 18" AMG 7 spoke wheels, FWIW.