Hello again everyone.

I am having a small but annoying issue with my 4.6L 1997 4x4. The steering wheel is somewhat off center to the right while driving. Ive had it checked by two different shops and neither of them think it is an issue. One stated that they noticed nothing wrong and the other stated that they thought it was just the crown on the roads were high causing it to feel like the steering wheel was off center to one side. I do agree with him that some of the roads like that around here do have high crowns and make it worse but that there is definitly something not right with the steering wheel. Below is a timeline of work Ive had done on my truck.

88k miles ; new lower ball joints and uniroyal tires and new sway bar linkages.
92k miles ; 90k ford checkup

the steering wheel issue started immediately or shortly after this checkup although I think this is a coincidence.

between 92k and 100k multiple free wheel alignments done to try and fix the problem along with tire rotation and balance.

100k mile ; new shocks installed helped ride alot but not off center steering issue

around 106k I had the tie-rod inner and outer ends changed along with the pitman arm and idler arm. All the sqeaking from the front end went away but still no fix for the off center steering wheel.

now Im at 111k truck runs great and handles great just has the off center steering wheel. The truck doesnt really pull to one side or the other unless the crown on the road is to one side or the other so I dont think this is an alignment issue or uneven tread wear but I could be wrong. Alignments and rotations never fixed the off center steering wheel issue and Ive had them done at two different shops.

Is there anything else this could possibly be? I think it must have something to do with the steering wheel itself. There is a little play in the steering wheel mostly to the right side that it likes to hang to. There is no play to the left. Ive heard of a steering gear box could this be the problem?

I hope someone can make sense of this rambling. I drive on the freeway straight for 200miles almost every weekend and when you are driving straight for that long the steering wheel hanging to one side can get quite annoying!

Thanks,

Mike, Wisconsin

 

This is a simple adjustment of the tie rod ends on both sides to bring the wheel back to center. One side will need to be lenghtened, the other shortened in equal increments.

Any good front end tech worth trusting to work on your truck should know this and should have already taken care of it for you. I would suggest that you find a good frent end shop because the two you have been using seem to be worthless to you on this problem.

BTW, I am not a front end tech and have never worked as one. This comes from simple knowledge of front end components. Goods luck!

 

Thanks for the advice on adjusting the tie-rod ends. Had no idea one could do this. Im definitly going to look into this...

Mike

 

KR is right on. the tie rods are two adjustble length rods one on the left and one on the right side front tires. with the truck pointed straight forward, the steering wheel should be centered.--- any good shop can fix it, you can also do yourself if you have some basic knowledge of the operation.. as KR said, you loosen up the lock nuts on the left hand and right hand rods, then turn one in to shorten it (maybe 1 full turn), and the other turn out to lengthen it (one full turn). by doing both the same amount you dont change the toe in-out, just the alignment of the steering wheel--------- drive forward a few feet and turn the wheel untill it is straight. stop and park. get out and go to the front of the truch and sight down the outside of the front tire toward the rear tire. you should see that the fronts are not pointed directly at the rears, as one will be pointed outward, and one inward compared to the rear tires..