Vik888

I'm aware of the right pull on all W211's and the bolt kit that has been discussed dozens of times on how to fix it.

My question is -- does that mean the car is slightly misaligned, so that my tires will wear unevenly should my dealer refuse to do the repair?

Thanks,
Vik

AndrewAZ

Like I was told by a SA all mercedes pull slightly to the right as a safety feature, so incase you fall asleep at night you will drift to the right and hit the wake up bumps before going off the road instead of running head on into oncoming traffic.

With the stock alignment I have never had a MB go strait (Neither car or SUV) they all go slightly right.. I asked once if I could come and give them some camber numbers and they would not allow anything besides factory spec because of legal issues.

But at most resting your hand on the left side of the wheels should correct the right drift.. Anything more than a slight resting and you need an alignment or something else fixed.

pinebaron

[QUOTE=AndrewAZ;2416823]Like I was told by a SA all mercedes pull slightly to the right as a safety feature, so incase you fall asleep at night you will drift to the right and hit the wake up bumps before going off the road instead of running head on into oncoming traffic.
QUOTE]

I have mentioned this in a previous post on this subject; my 2007 does not pull to any side and I have not had it adjusted or anything, I can leave my hands off the steering on a long straight and it does not pull, just keeps straight like auto pilot; I tried this several times to check this out.

vettdvr

[QUOTE=AndrewAZ;2416823]Like I was told by a SA all mercedes pull slightly to the right as a safety feature, so incase you fall asleep at night you will drift to the right and hit the wake up bumps before going off the road instead of running head on into oncoming traffic.
QUOTE]


Nuts. The right side caster isn't set correct if it is pulling right. It might still be within the alignment specs but there is a spec for cross caster that allows the independant setting of the wheels and still be in spec. I have been through this on my Mercedes and Diesel Excursion. When set correctly they will drive straight. We just drove our E500 2000 miles last weekend with new Michelins and it drove where I pointed it.

I did have to purchase from mercedes the caster adjustment bolts for $35.00 and have an Independant shop do the alighment. Your dealer is correct, they will pull to the right when set to specs but the specs allow for alignment to drive where you point it. I'll bet the Mercedes race car doesn't pull to one side. Jim

cyclerider

My 2007 behaves like pinebaron's.

SEEG

Ditto

Vik888

Ok, so the answer to my orig question is that the alignment is within spec and my tires wont wear unevenly?

I still haven't filled out the survey from the dealership. I know they want me to give them 100% and do it b/c they get paid if they get good surveys. I'll fill it out AFTER I get the alignment issue fixed. Just need to find a perfectly flat road and test and see.

It seems that its pulling right a little more than what should be normal. I can let go of the steering wheel and in under 3 seconds the car has started going into the lane next to me.

vettdvr

This is too much pull given tire pressure and wear is normal.

jimm

I definitely am no expert. BUT - it seems to me that if “pulling to
the right” is normal, then changing it would certainly effect tire
wear. And, maybe some steering characteristics.

When I got my E350, it pulled to the right badly. They “fixed” it
with the bolt kit, etc. It still pulls to the right but not as bad. I hate
that. Haven’t taken it back; don’t think it would do any good. (I’d hear
the old go to sleep, drift to the right thing.)

But, one thing I “think” has changed since their “fix” is that it doesn’t
seem to track as “true” as it did before the “fix.” Now, I seem to have
to keep tweaking the steering more to keep it straight, especially
when the road has even a few little uneven spots.

In contrast, I can just rest a thumb and finger on the steering wheel
on my C6 and it goes perfectly straight no matter how uneven the
road. Maybe, not a fair comparison .. but maybe it is.

I’d be interested to hear if anyone else is having to keep tweaking
their steering “just a little” to keep it going straight.

jimm

==========

‘08 E350 Sport, P2, Black/black, Parktronic,
Voice, Bluetooth, Burl Walnut, Split rear seat,
Wood/leather steering wheel

vettdvr

You are correct the "bolt" does fix the problem but they didn't adjust your caster enough. You still need more work.

It might or might not affect tire wear. Visualize two tires exactly vertical and parallel but one tire 3 feet further forward than the other. This will cause a drift given road surface but not cause wear because the tires are in perfect alignment. This is what cross caster does. Do a search on cross caster.

My C5 wore tires on the inside and drifted right, but cross caster with right side leading 3/4 degree and reducing toe - in now has my tires wearing normal,, that is " except for the track" Check 6 you might see me there.

NCE500

My 2007 is also like Pinebarrons.

However, I have found that tire pressure has significant impact on this issue. My car had a some drift to both right AND left on crowned roads when I first got it. I checked the tire pressure after a few days, I found them to be set to PSI 35 front and 40 rear cold from the dealer at delivery.

I found that setting the tires to PSI 33 front and 36 rear cold results in pretty much perfect tracking, smoother ride, and excellent handling. Note that setting the REAR tires lower made the biggest improvement.

Also, my car was delivered (thankfully) with Michelins, not Continentals which may or may not make a difference relating to optimal tire pressure settings.

I think mine was aligned pretty close to optimally from Sindelfingen, maybe I am just lucky, but I am not at all inclined to have it changed at the 1st service based on how it tracks and handles.

vettdvr

You are correct,, I did mention that in a previous post. I was running the posted pressure on the placard 26F 29R when I had a cupping issue. As a test I increased pressure to 35 F 35R and the tire wear evened out, but the noise did not so I switched to Michelins and as you found they run well at
29+F and 32+R will improve wear and tracking.