Please help, I am at my wits end! A RANT!!

1997 Rover 200 1.6

I post here in sheer desperation, and to vent some steam...

I feel like my car has been totally trashed. A couple of weeks ago it went in for it's annual service & MOT and one of the items that was checked and "fixed" was the steering tracking. Except it wasn't broken because it drove in a perfectly straight line.

So I picked the car up just before the joint closed (on my way home from work) and on the drive home immediately noticed a strong pull to the right when I was accelerating. Would also drift right when coasting with the hands off the wheel.

So I complained and took it back. They re-adjusted it until the mechanic got it "spot on, can't fault it now sir". Bollocks was it spot on! Now it pulls to the left - only worse than it pulled to the right.

The guy gave me some bollocks about the camber of the road etc which I do accept they lean to the left for drainage, but unless all the roads have suddenly changed overnight my car never used to pull left.

So today I took it to the local kwik-fit joint and let the monkeys have ago. I didn't hold much hope and sure enough they've managed to f**k it it even more so it practically U-turns to the left by itself when you accelerate.

The monkey did give me a printout of the new measurements which I have pasted below. They mean nothing to me, but common sense tells me that adding to the figures to make them positives would cause it to pull right. Somewhere inbetween is straight ahead?

LEFT FRONT RIGHT FRONT TOE = -0'04' -0'05'

TOTAL TOE=0'07' STEER AHEAD=-0'04

Can someone please help me by telling what the hell they are adjusting on my car? What nut are they spinning? And why didn't they just leave the bloody thing alone because it was perfectly fine?

This is totally ruining my car, not to mention all the time off work I have to keep taking to arse around taking it back and back and back again to get it "fixed".

Can anyone please shed any light on what adjustments they have been making so I can hopefully go about sorting this f**king mess out.

Jesus my car was safer before it had an MOT...

Apologies for the rant all, I don't offen loose my rag but this has pissed me off to the utter extreme.

Reply to
Andrew Ratcliffe
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I am afraid common sense does not prevail here as the figures look reasonable to me the negatives relate to the centre line of the car and all modern front wheel drive cars toe negative slightly I would recomend returning to one or other company and insisting that they readjust and then test drive the car ( if you go back to kwik fit insist that the manager or assistant manager adjust and drive the car as they tend to be much more experienced than the other staff)

hope this helps

Radar

Reply to
radar

I had the same shit on my Sierra. Took it to a few different places (even with those fancy laser thingy's) ALL said it needed adjusting it was ALLWAYs worse after. Took it to a backstreet mechanic with an old mirror type gauge who set it up to his own spec and I never had any hassle since. What he said was (his words NOT mine) set ALL steering RWD or FWD to DEAD straight regardless of what the manufacturer says. technically its bollocks but it seems to work.

Just a comment (not even car related), a friend of mine took his bike for an MOT, the MOT tester said it was all OK except for the steering. He said (the tester) that he would adjust it and pass it for an extra tenner. He slackened the lock-nut and tightened it again without the even touching the adjusting nut. What an arseholse.

There also a saying "If it isn't broke, don't fix it"

Reply to
Marty

They could just be quoting the figures from a book (which in theory should match the manufacturers' recommendations), but what they've done in practise could be quite different.

This may not help, but I've always had pretty good service from National Tyres + Autocare, and as a general rule they seem to have a much better reputation that Kwik-fit and others from what I've read on here and elsewhere. Give them a try - they did a good job on my tracking a while back when it needed doing.

Peter

Reply to
AstraVanMan

FWIW, I've generally go to the same tyre place. It seems to be depend on the bloke doing it and the wind direction whether or not they get it right or not. Occasionally I've had it spot on from them, other times a little off to the right or left. I once 4 laser wheel alignment done at Alba tyres in Leeds, wasn't cheap (£25 or so) but it was spot on.

Reply to
Doki

Judging by the quality of that post, it's time to go to sleep.

Reply to
Doki

Opposite happend to me

back street garage set mine up same idea dead straight, scrubbed the inside of the tyres off in about 5000 miles

took it for laser adjustment, handles better, lighter steering, and bingo tyres last longer.

Reply to
Tom Burton

I'm not surprised they're all confused, so is the Rover Manual !

In the Information section is gives a front reading of toe-out of 5 minutes plus or minus 7.5 minutes per side

In the Steering section it suggests a toe-out of 10 minutes, plus or minus 12 minutes per side !

At least both sections agree on the rear setting, suggesting a toe-in of 8 minutes, plus or minus 10 minutes.

It also suggest the car is rolled backwards and forwards several times to settle the suspension, and that the average of three measurements are taken. Not very likely ! :-(

Andy

Reply to
Andy Pandy

Why didn't I think of that!!?? That is so bloody obvious.

I need to check the tracking on my Astra after changing the wishbones.

Thank you.

Reply to
Simon Barr

Will do.

Reply to
Simon Barr

: In article , A.W.T wrote: : > Kwik-Fit et al tracking balls-up recovery procedure:

: > Repeat on the trailing side. The trailing side distance should be a smidge : > (

Reply to
Ian Johnston

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