NBKA1BM Posted March 22, 2006 Share Posted March 22, 2006 I slammed my car pretty hard and had to replace the Kframe in the front. Everything was fixed but now the car tends to pull a little to the right. I have had the alignment checked and they said the caster was off 1 degree and there was no way to fix. It is not a big deal because you dont notice unless you are going down the highway and let off the wheel the car will wander to the right. WHen your hands are on the wheel it is not very bad. I was wondering if you all had any possible suggestions. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vengeful Posted March 22, 2006 Share Posted March 22, 2006 Unfortunately, the caster is not adjustable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sw Posted March 22, 2006 Share Posted March 22, 2006 (edited) well i really doubt 1 degree of caster is gonna make your car pull to one side enough for you to post about it. good tyre shops are few and far between. if they cant be bothered fixing something they turn around and spin you BS or say 'your ps box must be damaged' or 'youve got a bent frame'. if i where you i would go some where else. they are correct when they say caster is not adjustable on our cars, thats where the aftermarket accessories step in. but if your not running big lift and are paranoid about getting the front end completely perfect, its not worth it. i have a pathy with plenty of lift and due to still running the stock upper a arms have a front end with much more than one degree of caster out. this does not cause the car to track one way or the other on the road. nor does improper caster majorly effect tyre wear. major tyre wear can be caused by improper camber or toe. this is a very simplised thought but anyway, have you taken notice of the roads on which your pathy pulls to one side. i say this as generally speaking roads a designed and constructed slightly slanted to one side. this is due to the road being constructed so that when it rains the water will want to run towards which ever side is lower. obviously we have drainage systems on the side of roads to take the water away. if a road perfectly flat and it rained there would be lots of water sitting on the surface of the road and this would be a hazard for all motorists. if you are driving on a slanted road and you take your hands of the wheel, gravity is gonna pull your car to what ever side of the road is lower. Edited March 22, 2006 by sw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted March 23, 2006 Share Posted March 23, 2006 I'd check your steering components. One or two bent or wobbly items can add up to a wandering Pathy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
02silverpathy Posted March 23, 2006 Share Posted March 23, 2006 I hope to stay on topic with this but how does one spot a bad ball joint on a uni body??? I had my pass side wheel seem to rock (when in park, hubs unlocked) rockable from top side out...the whole assembly brakes and all moves...the driver side seems tight....so after 3 hrs of work I replaced the pass side ball joint and the little stud plate also (since I stripped it and the ball joint nut)..............the dang thing feels the same!! So whats up and is this what is causing my wheel to wobble at certain speeds like between 45-55???? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mws Posted March 23, 2006 Share Posted March 23, 2006 Swap tires from side to side. Not unusual for some tires to be a little funky. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XPLORx4 Posted March 24, 2006 Share Posted March 24, 2006 The R50 Pathfinder only has 2 ball joints - one on the left lower A-arm and one on the right lower A-arm. To tell if the ball joint is worn, raise the front wheels off the ground and shake the wheel in and out. If you feel clunking or see any slight movement in the lower ball joint, it should be replaced. It is true that the only adjustable axis of alignment is toe. Even with aftermarket kits, only camber can be adjusted. Caster is non-adjustable. If you "slammed my car pretty hard and had to replace the Kframe in the front" then poor caster could also be due to a bent A-arm. 98silverpathy- are the bolts holding the steering knuckle to the strut the correct diameter? Are the bolts tight? The steering knuckle is only held secured by the ball joint and the strut bolts. The only way the whole assembly could be moving is due to a worn ball joint or elongated bolt-holes or bolts with a smaller diameter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sw Posted March 24, 2006 Share Posted March 24, 2006 It is true that the only adjustable axis of alignment is toe. Even with aftermarket kits, only camber can be adjusted. Caster is non-adjustable. true. i meant that the aftermarket arms designed for our cars already have a fixed value of caster in mind, which on a lifted pathy is better than what ever you end up with, with stock arms. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
02silverpathy Posted March 24, 2006 Share Posted March 24, 2006 XPLORx4, On the pass side (the more loose side) I just put a new ball joint and replaced the little stud plate also. I used all of the necessary torq specs in my Haynes...for the strut itself I tightend those bolts to just over 100 ft/lbs but they could go up to 120 I think. I get what your saying about the enlargened bolt holes, I will have to get a 2nd person to shake it while look at it. I am going in for an alignment soon (tomorrow I hope), and will ask him to also check me out...I just hope it is something simple since the other balljoint apparently has to replace that whole arm!! I will keep updated on this topic since I think it is very important. For everyone that is not familiar...if you lose a ball joint you will lose your rim and tie rod and bumper, fender, door, truck life (no seat belt) ...depending on speed. My local Nissan Dealer Parts manager told me some stories of F'd up trucks from this very thing...but this is relativel few and far between!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XPLORx4 Posted March 24, 2006 Share Posted March 24, 2006 true. i meant that the aftermarket arms designed for our cars already have a fixed value of caster in mind, which on a lifted pathy is better than what ever you end up with, with stock arms. Gotcha, except there are no aftermarket A-arms available for the R50. The front suspension is totally different than the WD21. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sw Posted March 25, 2006 Share Posted March 25, 2006 ok i didnt know there wasnt front end aftermarket stuff for r50's. i now know for next time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
02silverpathy Posted April 19, 2006 Share Posted April 19, 2006 To add to this thread...my loose front pass wheel was because I have a wheel bearing that needs to have its lock nut tightend just a little! My alignement shop told me this when I told to him to go over the front end for me....quite a cool dude. Liked the Warn Hubs, and was tickled ( in a bad way) that I had a 2" lift plus 4.6" larger tires than when he saw it and it is still kinda small in comparison to many other trucks in the lot! None the less patted me on the back for doing all the work myself and said that he wished more people would pay attention to the alignment and overall correctness of the their vehicle so that they didn't get so pissed when he had to replace parts! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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