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yeah its been a lengthy process. Car is actually much nicer to drive now since i changed springs and shocks. Car will go where steering wheel directs it and feels more stable but the second the steering wheel is released it wants to go to the left so constant pressure has to be applied to hte steering to counter this. To be honest through process of elimination it can only be the rack and/or subframe position but im not in an position to put more money into it right now without being certain although there appears to be a very grey area surrounding rack issues. TG over on talkford is having an issue with his steering rack not being centered and various other things so im not alone.

Really? you had the rack causing a pull a lot? Do you know if ER's is mark 3? im in ireland so the shipping of a 2nd hand rack would prob make it a lot more than one i could pick up here

Thanks for that. completely illogical to touch subframe then really. Have you had any racks causing a pull because that seems to be extremely rare also.

cheers for all the help tony. out of interest have you ever encountered a difference in caster of 28' creating a strong pull in all your years?

ok i will think on it. not doing it today though.

we did and i was there when it was done, cleaner and new fluid, bought it myself. only a few months ago. After that

yep i know. the subframe seems to line up well both as per the pins and hte geo itself. After last allignment, i was speaking the boss for a while and he said many 6 month old cars didnt line up as well as that and based on the quick glance he has at hte subframe position he wouldnt go chasing that (probably cos he hasnt got a beam jack on the geo) and would change out hte rack. The other guy who has the beam jack said he would move the subframe but didnt think it would make a noticable difference. I cant afford to waste money so am inclined not to look at moving the subframe based on several opinions. What would be your move at this junction.

not if its not causing the problem which every1 is adamant its not. all the allignment guys say that amount of caster wont cause the pull but will move the subframe is i want.

my mechanic checked for play and said its fine and did his son (good guy) allignment guys did the same and the boss man told me that there is only a tiny bit of play but that if the valve is gone it cant be determined from a visual check. As for the turning left when in the air, two guys think its about the same both sides, one thinks its easier to turn left and this is what i think also (i have tested this a few times myself) although as i said the difference is very very marginal and takes some noticing but is there. was told there is no more testing that can be done on the rack

dont think theres any point in going to move the subframe really based on the criteria you mentioned and i know it to be slightly easier to turn left when wheels in the air. Price of playing with moving the subframe would be about half the cost of a recondtioned rack.

no it doesnt but something that was happening before i changed the springs and shocks was that eveyr morning i came out to the car the steering wheel would have dropped off to the left (i always always leave it centred when i park) but i havent noticed it at all since i changed springs and shocks. Also told that the tolerance for the subframe position is quite wide by one individual whereas another told me it was a hairs breadth (ppl who moved subframe previously when car went straight).

ok thanks. and the only method for diagnosing is the lighter steering in one direction when wheels are in the air? nothing else?

damn car. yeah sounds about right. i suppose the valve could even be seized on one side (ibelieve there are 2 valves in my rack) and when the power steering is applied the force creates a moment around it and pushes more in the direction of the seized valve.

cheers tony, your knowledge knows no bounds. It is very very very slight the difference and seemingly only noticeable to me and one other out of all the ppl that checked it (and i didnt prompt him). Car holds a straight line and the steering wheel stays level on a perfectly flat surface however anything with a little crossfall and it starts to pull and steering wheel drops of to the left straight away.

already done it, made the steering a little lighter but nothing dramatic. Do you think its a waste of money trying to move this subframe today?

hmmm now theres the quandry of whether to bother trying to move the subframe today. cant afford to be wasting mone. where would you put your guess, altering subframe position to try top equalise the 28' extra caster on passenger side or valve in rack?

the weight of hte steering? if so i have done that before myself and there is a very very slight difference in resistance side to side with the left being lighter.

hmmm it does feel light to the left and stiffer to the right. theres no way of checking for this visually or through direct play from the rod end is there?

Moving the subframe later today tony. Just a question, the other allignment guy i go to was saying that he thought there may be a valve in the rack gone which is causing the pull. I didnt think a worn rack could cause this? is this possible?

yeah my place have the system whereby you drive onto the ramp and its raised in the air like that but the wheels are still on the ramp obviously so i guess there only way of doing it would be to move between ramps learn something new everyday

thanks tony. one of the guys i talked to said the alligner lift wasnt right for that kind of work and that it would need to be on a seperate lift to move subframe. i dont see the sense in this as you could be going back and forth between lifts all day having moved it too much or not enough etc.

ok think i have it, will give it a go. was i right in thinking it should be on the alligner rig when doing this?

Thanks, im thinking it should it be on the alligner at the time to judge the movement of caster and camber while pry barring, am i right? What way would you be looking to move it from its current location?

Set back position provided here: http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/851/alignment110622.png car actually pulled in a straighter line prior to this adjustment (wandered a little later). doesnt really make sense as the toe was off prior but anyway. Is it possible to have the subframe relaxed when positioning it? i.e. take the engine weight off? would this be done from above or below?

Tony In a better position now after new springs and shocks. extract from allignment of important points. Front camber now sits at LH -0.47 deg RH -0.64 deg Target -0.65 deg with -1.28 deg tolerance Front caster LH + 2.7 deg RH + 3.16 deg. Target is +2.58 deg with 1.02 deg Everything within spec and car drives better obviously with new shocks and springs. However letting go of the steering wheel still gives a strong pull to the left. My procedure now is as follows. Get it up on the aligner and lossen the 4 bolts on the front subframe and then move it using a pry bar until camber abd caster are more equal side to side. There is almost half a degree difference in the cross caster which i want to fix, will i get this much from moving the subframe? ideally i would like a little extra camber (circa 0.2 deg) and caster (circa 0.2 deg) on the passenger side to slightly force the car into the crown of the road. Do you have any thoughts or comments? Cheers