Car pulling to left
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 343
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From: UK
E320 CDI Elegance auto
Car pulling to left
Hi - car now 8 weeks old 6000 miles, 7 days in service dept to date.
On my last visit to service dept I was told that the car pulling to the left was normal due to the concourse of the road. I said that I did not agree but it was late and I was just glad to get the car back after the fitting of the new auto transmission. I also had a 12v power supply fitted in boot. I did say to the customer service guy that I would be back if I was not happy.
Checked the car out when I got home:
- Black marks all over the back of the front seats and on the back seats and doors. Luckily was not oil and I managed to get them off. What if I had not had leather seats and they had been cloth.
- The 12v supply, pushed in plug and all worked fine, pulled out plug and the complete socket came out.
- Car seems to be pulling more to the left.
- Rattle in front dash.
- Intermittent vibration noise still there when accelerating from left hand bend or junction. (this was what had prompted them to replace the transmission.
Not happy, phone dealer, asked for service managers name, then asked to speak to him, put me through to the same rep as last time, asked to speak to manager, not available, will phone me back.
He phoned later, I explained issues, he agreed that I had every right to complain, he said that the C Class has a ongoing issue with pulling to the left (why did they not tell me that in the first bloody place, instead of bullsh*tting me) they would need to make it pull to the right to straighten it up (hmmm ). Need car for 2 days to do all the issues.
Now booked in at the earliest date which is in 2 weeks.
Apologies if this goes on a bit.
On my last visit to service dept I was told that the car pulling to the left was normal due to the concourse of the road. I said that I did not agree but it was late and I was just glad to get the car back after the fitting of the new auto transmission. I also had a 12v power supply fitted in boot. I did say to the customer service guy that I would be back if I was not happy.
Checked the car out when I got home:
- Black marks all over the back of the front seats and on the back seats and doors. Luckily was not oil and I managed to get them off. What if I had not had leather seats and they had been cloth.
- The 12v supply, pushed in plug and all worked fine, pulled out plug and the complete socket came out.
- Car seems to be pulling more to the left.
- Rattle in front dash.
- Intermittent vibration noise still there when accelerating from left hand bend or junction. (this was what had prompted them to replace the transmission.
Not happy, phone dealer, asked for service managers name, then asked to speak to him, put me through to the same rep as last time, asked to speak to manager, not available, will phone me back.
He phoned later, I explained issues, he agreed that I had every right to complain, he said that the C Class has a ongoing issue with pulling to the left (why did they not tell me that in the first bloody place, instead of bullsh*tting me) they would need to make it pull to the right to straighten it up (hmmm ). Need car for 2 days to do all the issues.
Now booked in at the earliest date which is in 2 weeks.
Apologies if this goes on a bit.
Last edited by Apollo; Nov 8, 2002 at 10:53 PM.
Admin Alumni
Joined: Nov 2001
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See Garage
Actually this is a unique thread... Most people complaining of car drift say it pulls excessively to the RIGHT. Someone correct me, but I think this is the first time I've read about pulling to the LEFT.
EDIT: Sorry, you're in the UK... LOL! I was told by the dealer in the US that the cars "come from MB with a natural set to drift to the curb (away from the centerline)... better to drift away from oncoming traffic rather than drift into oncoming traffic." Thus, drift to LEFT would arguably be typical for a RHD car in UK.
Of course, excessive drift in either direction is not ideal. Although I've never owned a Rear Wheel Drive car that didn't have some nominal drift in the steering, even after a fresh alignment.
Regardless, here in the states you are entitled to a true up alignment under warranty (or at least lots of us have had them done without cost). They'll get it right, or hopefully you live in a location where you can visit another dealer.
You would think that car alignments are taught in MB Tech 101 class, but maybe not. The car is German, the service Techs are not...
EDIT: Sorry, you're in the UK... LOL! I was told by the dealer in the US that the cars "come from MB with a natural set to drift to the curb (away from the centerline)... better to drift away from oncoming traffic rather than drift into oncoming traffic." Thus, drift to LEFT would arguably be typical for a RHD car in UK.
Of course, excessive drift in either direction is not ideal. Although I've never owned a Rear Wheel Drive car that didn't have some nominal drift in the steering, even after a fresh alignment.
Regardless, here in the states you are entitled to a true up alignment under warranty (or at least lots of us have had them done without cost). They'll get it right, or hopefully you live in a location where you can visit another dealer.
You would think that car alignments are taught in MB Tech 101 class, but maybe not. The car is German, the service Techs are not...
Last edited by MB-BOB; Nov 9, 2002 at 03:21 PM.
Super Member
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 678
Likes: 1
From: Vancouver WA
'14 GLK250 Diesel
Well....
...It's caster, not camber, that is the issue, and yes, the easiest solution is to go to a dealer, explain the problem, have them put it on the alignment rack, and suggest to the tech that they crank a little extra caster into the side that is pulling.
Extra caster has the effect of making the car resist changes in direction ever so slightly on that side. This corrected a pull in our C240 that was otherwise within spec [toein, etc. was correct].
To accomplish this adjustment, the tech has to install a so-called "caster kit" on each front suspension base link; this only takes a few minutes per side.
It is also possible a tire is causing the problem - though this occurs less often, it is a possibility if all else fails.
Extra caster has the effect of making the car resist changes in direction ever so slightly on that side. This corrected a pull in our C240 that was otherwise within spec [toein, etc. was correct].
To accomplish this adjustment, the tech has to install a so-called "caster kit" on each front suspension base link; this only takes a few minutes per side.
It is also possible a tire is causing the problem - though this occurs less often, it is a possibility if all else fails.
Super Member
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 571
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unbeleivable you cant post the word B- I- T- C- H here on this forum. it is locked out/converted if you group the letters together. wonderful censorship isnt it. this word is on public television and radio, not to mention a couple others. yet we cannot have freedom of speech here on this board. is anyone offended by this word?
Super Member
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 678
Likes: 1
From: Vancouver WA
'14 GLK250 Diesel
OK, let me try again....
I had a new C240 with a pulling problem. It was cured with a very slight extra bit of CASTER cranked into the side toward which the drifting occurred. It is indeed adjustable in any W203 car as soon as the caster kits are installed, which as I said, takes minutes per side.
Caster refers to the angle from the top of the strut to the bottom, as viewed from the side. In our case, the left side is now carrying about 9.5 degrees, and the right side [the pulling side] 9.75. This small difference has made the car completely neutral - it will follow road crown either way, but if there is no crown, it will track straight as an arrow. [If you look at the suspension from the side, you'll note that the strut seems to angle forward from the top to the bottom - this angle is the caster angle].
There are CAMBER differences on our car of about 0.4 degrees in front [-.12 degrees vs +.29 degrees], but the tech didn't bother to do anything about that, and it seems not to make any difference. Camber, of course, is the degree to which the wheel angle diverges from vertical as viewed from front or back.
I can assure Apollo that, barring a tire problem, a good alignment tech with the right equipment can solve this complaint.
Caster refers to the angle from the top of the strut to the bottom, as viewed from the side. In our case, the left side is now carrying about 9.5 degrees, and the right side [the pulling side] 9.75. This small difference has made the car completely neutral - it will follow road crown either way, but if there is no crown, it will track straight as an arrow. [If you look at the suspension from the side, you'll note that the strut seems to angle forward from the top to the bottom - this angle is the caster angle].
There are CAMBER differences on our car of about 0.4 degrees in front [-.12 degrees vs +.29 degrees], but the tech didn't bother to do anything about that, and it seems not to make any difference. Camber, of course, is the degree to which the wheel angle diverges from vertical as viewed from front or back.
I can assure Apollo that, barring a tire problem, a good alignment tech with the right equipment can solve this complaint.
Last edited by jrct9454; Nov 11, 2002 at 02:07 PM.
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MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 1,536
Likes: 2
From: Brisbane, Australia
C200K (w204)
yeah, i still have this problem too. Went to my local tyre shop and told me that the caster need ajustment however he doesn't carry the right equipment to do that, told me to fix it at the dealer. My E class has this problem too
, dulu ada forum di CLK ngomong indo di complain gitu
Super Member
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 678
Likes: 1
From: Vancouver WA
'14 GLK250 Diesel
Nov...
I have tried to restrain my frustration at your persistence in posting this "non-fact" about the suspension adjustments on the W203.
Every dealer alignment tech SHOULD KNOW about the caster adjustment kits. I have had to have the alignment worked on on each of our last three MBs: a '94 W202 C, a '98 W210 E, and now our new '02 W203 C. In each case, the tech goes to the parts dept, pulls the necessary stuff, and in ten minutes per side, installs the caster adjustment hardware.
I personally witnessed the process on our current car, and have the "before" and "after" printout on the alignment specs from the machine. So, one final time - CASTER CAN BE ADJUSTED ON THESE CARS, and in fact is the prime place to start if tires and toe-in are not an issue in those cases where the customer complaint is drift to one side.
Whomever at the dealership who told you that caster cannot be adjusted is just plain wrong. This HAS been known to happen [dealer personnel being misinformed]. I'm sorry you're so hard to convince, but Apollo and others have legitimate problems that might be solved with the correct information. I think that's one reason we have these forums...
Every dealer alignment tech SHOULD KNOW about the caster adjustment kits. I have had to have the alignment worked on on each of our last three MBs: a '94 W202 C, a '98 W210 E, and now our new '02 W203 C. In each case, the tech goes to the parts dept, pulls the necessary stuff, and in ten minutes per side, installs the caster adjustment hardware.
I personally witnessed the process on our current car, and have the "before" and "after" printout on the alignment specs from the machine. So, one final time - CASTER CAN BE ADJUSTED ON THESE CARS, and in fact is the prime place to start if tires and toe-in are not an issue in those cases where the customer complaint is drift to one side.
Whomever at the dealership who told you that caster cannot be adjusted is just plain wrong. This HAS been known to happen [dealer personnel being misinformed]. I'm sorry you're so hard to convince, but Apollo and others have legitimate problems that might be solved with the correct information. I think that's one reason we have these forums...
Last edited by jrct9454; Nov 12, 2002 at 01:39 PM.
Super Member
Joined: Sep 2002
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i beleive you are getting caster and camber mixed up. THERE ARE NO ADJUSTMENTS FOR CASTER ON THE COUPE. THE ONLY WAY TO ADJUST THIS IS EITHER PUT IN A VERY EXPENSIVE KIT OR BEND THE SUSPENSION INTO SUBMISSION.yes there are camber correction kits out there and camber being off will also cause a pull to one side if the camber is set extremely negative the car car will have good high speed stability but it will wear the insides of the tires, if the car has excessive positive camber it will be very unstable at highway speed. if one side is set negative and the other side is positive the side car will pull to the positive side.
Member
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 247
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From: Vancouver, WA
2001 C240 / 6-speed
I disagree. Caster, Camber and Toe are all adjustable on all W203 chassis. Caster and Camber are adjusted with a $3 bolt available at your local dealer. That is not what I call either unadjustable or expensive.
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Joined: Sep 2002
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Super Member
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 678
Likes: 1
From: Vancouver WA
'14 GLK250 Diesel
Yes
This person seems determined to contradict what the rest of us already know. I'm done with this discussion. NOV simply doesn't understand what the factory kit does - the adjustment is easy once the kit is installed, and doesn't involve any of these expensive add-ons he has so carefully pictured for us.
Patronus has it right - it's one fitting that makes it adjustable, and takes minutes to install at the dealership. Sigh...
Patronus has it right - it's one fitting that makes it adjustable, and takes minutes to install at the dealership. Sigh...
