So my wagon has always had a right pull to it. Enough that it burns the corner off the right rear from constantly turning left.

I've replaced trailing arm bushings, tie rod ends and put new tires+ 4 wheel alignment. Still pulling.

 

Car drives straight with the wheel straight.

 

Also don't know if it's related but the front right always breaks traction first. Under power or braking.

 

Maybe it's lower control arm bushings?

Brake hanging up?

Year and gl / DL / Loyale  might be useful information. 

11 minutes ago, DaveT said:

Brake hanging up?

Year and gl / DL / Loyale  might be useful information. 

All four wheels spin freely when they are off the ground by hand.

I met a German hand model who drove from our west coast to east coast in a Mitsu van that kept pulling left after left turns or bends. Shredded the tyre in 4,000 km.

It was the left ball joint taper bit that nearly got up and walked out of the workshop on its own, taking a left as it went. 

Top mounts in EA81 are bushes that can seize up. EA82 use a bearing, yet to find one of them frozen

I once had an older model.  Was in an accident.   It was before I did all of my own repairs,  so I had a shop fix it.  It took about a year, but I eventually discovered why it always had a slight pull after the accident.   On of the front struts had a slight bend in it.  

who did the alignment ?

5 hours ago, Dee2 said:

who did the alignment ?

It's been to two shops. First one aligned it, then checked it after because of the pull. I then took it to a different shop and they checked the alignment. Everything is dead nuts other than one front camber off by 0.4, and there is no adjustment. Guy said that isn't nearly enough for that much pull. It pulls hard enough I can't even let go long enough to shift if I'm holding something.

So the rear is sagging pretty hard so I'm going to replace the springs/struts.

Passenger side is touching the bump stop on level ground, driver has about an inch.

 

 

$80 bucks for the toyota struts and accord springs from rockauto, good old clearance parts!.

Has your car ever been in a collision?  Bend trailing rod?

1 hour ago, carfreak85 said:

Has your car ever been in a collision?  Bend trailing rod?

Wouldn't that show up with an alignment?

sometimes, brake lines can act like a check valve, maybe the pressure bleeds-off after a while but 'locks' immediately after brake use for sometime.

guys, could this be a broken axle? freewheeling while the good one does all the pulling? (but I still dunno what vehicle this is - might not be possible)

Edited September 24, 20205 yr by 1 Lucky Texan

12 hours ago, Ionstorm66 said:

It's been to two shops. First one aligned it, then checked it after because of the pull. I then took it to a different shop and they checked the alignment. Everything is dead nuts other than one front camber off by 0.4, and there is no adjustment. Guy said that isn't nearly enough for that much pull. It pulls hard enough I can't even let go long enough to shift if I'm holding something.

if it's been to two shops and they agree there is a pull, they should be able to tell you why and give you an estimate for repairs.

If it's not the alignment, we can only guess at possible causes.  It could be tires, brakes, accident damage or ??  Only an inspection can really solve this problem.

 

 

On 9/24/2020 at 1:17 PM, 1 Lucky Texan said:

sometimes, brake lines can act like a check valve, maybe the pressure bleeds-off after a while but 'locks' immediately after brake use for sometime.

guys, could this be a broken axle? freewheeling while the good one does all the pulling? (but I still dunno what vehicle this is - might not be possible)

With a broken axle and open front diff, you wouldn't get anywhere with a broken axle. Also the pads wear evenly ok both sides, and the tires spin freely.

Also car doesn't pull when braking before the tire locks up, so both fronts are working.

The biggest issue is the lack of traction on the front right. I have to use 4wd to pull on to the highway in the rain, or it will spin the tire so bad I can't accelerate. Even going into 2nd and 3rs I have to be gentle or it will spin it. Braking isn't as bad, as I am used to it locking up the tire in the rain.

the one that spins in the rain - is it diagonally opposite the rear that's on the bump stop?

19 minutes ago, DaveT said:

the one that spins in the rain - is it diagonally opposite the rear that's on the bump stop?

Fixed the bump stop issue with new springs and struts. It was on the same side.

2 hours ago, Ionstorm66 said:

Fixed the bump stop issue with new springs and struts. It was on the same side.

Well, both of those shoot my thought.
 

1 hour ago, DaveT said:

Well, both of those shoot my thought.
 

Yeah real head scratcher. I can't think of anything that wouldn't show up on an alignment that isn't bushings. Tomorrow I'm going to stick a camera in the wheel well and see if it's moving. Could be strut top or lower bushing I guess.

If the brakes grab and release properly, the tires spin freely when off the ground and the alignment is within specs yet still pulling, try cross-rotating the front tires.  It's possible tire conicity is causing the problem. 

Edit, just re-read the OP.  You've had the problem before and after replacing 4 tires.  Sorry about that.  But who knows, maybe.  Good luck.

Edited September 29, 20205 yr by UnorganizedMechanic

This is so much like when I found the slightly bent strut.

Rear tyre toe in/camber shot on the side that scrubs the tyres out? 

They say they’re non adjustable but the rear camber/toe in is changeable from the three bolts on the outer swing arm. I need to do mine but haven’t worked out how to do it with tyres on etc - or how to measure it. I have other issues to sort out first! 

Also, no lift in this rig? 

Cheers 

Bennie

Edited September 29, 20205 yr by el_freddo

If you are in the fb subaru group, I think I posted pictures of how to do the rear alignment there.

 

1 hour ago, el_freddo said:

Rear tyre toe in/camber shot on the side that scrubs the tyres out? 

They say they’re non adjustable but the rear camber/toe in is changeable from the three bolts on the outer swing arm. I need to do mine but haven’t worked out how to do it with tyres on etc - or how to measure it. I have other issues to sort out first! 

Also, no lift in this rig? 

Cheers 

Bennie

I got a 4 wheel alignment at both places. They checked and adjusted the rear. After the rear drivers has like 0.3 camber there is in the yellow. Dude said it wasn't enough for the pull I had anyway.

2 hours ago, DaveT said:

This is so much like when I found the slightly bent strut.

I'm thinking bent front strut or maybe bad bushings. It has to be something that happens under load.

On 9/22/2020 at 9:29 AM, DaveT said:

Brake hanging up?

Year and gl / DL / Loyale  might be useful information. 

Lol just maybe 

5 hours ago, IfjdmaintAwD said:

Lol just maybe 

It isn't a brake, because the wheels rotate freely when off the ground. Also info is on my profile. Its a 92.

next time you have it off the ground, stab the brakes and immediately test for smooth rotation. Hydraulic hoses can, rarely, develop a flap from failure of the inner lining that operates as a check valve.