Truck pulls HARD right even after alignment!

[walmartboi]

Sup fellow X'ers.. My truck has been pulling hard right ever since I started driving in back in February.. All I attributed it to at the time was bad tires and a bad alignment, which I never bothered fixing since I knew I was going to be lifting it and getting beefy tires. Well, 2 days ago I finally installed that lift and tires (with the help of drbandkgb), got an alignment and the truck is still pulling hard right even at low speeds.. I actually had Firestone align it twice and watched the "mechanic" perfect it on the alignment rack.&nbsp;<br><br>So, I have a 2" body lift and brand new (balanced) 33" Goodyear Wrangler MT/r's which I don't want to chew up, so where should I start in diagnosing the problem? My steering components are still very tight when turning right to left when stationary on solid ground, so I don't think it's a worn steering component, however, my right front UCA bushing is pretty worn, and the UCA which it's connected to appears "pushed back"(best way i can describe it) more than the left. Maybe this is the problem?

Help is greatly appreciated..

 

[Silver dude]

The brakes maybe you have stuck caliper. One brake dragging pulling you right.

 

[drbandkgb]

The brakes maybe you have stuck caliper. One brake dragging pulling you right.

I drove it.. Its not brakes... I feel like something is bent in the steering...

 

[Silver dude]

Can't really tell by driving it. I'd jack up the right side and try turning the wheels by hand to make sure its not draging. If something was bent up front the "mechanic" should of noticed it. If it was happening before the lift tires and alignment. I'd come to assume it wouldn't be related to the suspension aligment or tires.

 

[drbandkgb]

Can't really tell by driving it. I'd jack up the right side and try turning the wheels by hand to make sure its not draging. If something was bent up front the "mechanic" should of noticed it. If it was happening before the lift tires and alignment. I'd come to assume it wouldn't be related to the suspension aligment or tires.

Yeah..we did a 2" BL on it Saturday... Was doing this before hand...
Ive drove a truck with a bad caliper.. I would think it the brake was catching you would smell it too...

He said it has been doing this for a long time.. His tires didnt have any strange wear either...

 

[walmartboi]

My old front right tire did have strange wear.. the tread wore at easily a 30* angle. The old tire wouldn't stay straight up in the air, it would just fall over.

 

[J Everett]

That UCA bushing could very well be the culprit. I had an LCA bolt work itself loose and it was causing a bad pull until I got it fixed. If nothing appears bent and it isn't a stuck caliper, I would bet $$$ it's your bushings. And if you're going to pull it apart to fix one, you might as well replace them all while you're at it, UCA and LCA, both sides.

 

[NMTerras]

That UCA bushing could very well be the culprit. I had an LCA bolt work itself loose and it was causing a bad pull until I got it fixed. If nothing appears bent and it isn't a stuck caliper, I would bet $$$ it's your bushings. And if you're going to pull it apart to fix one, you might as well replace them all while you're at it, UCA and LCA, both sides.

This plus what you said about the LCA looking like it wasn't aligned right with the other one makes sense to me...

 

[Xterra Performance]

my suggestion would be to start ruling things out. swap tires side to side to rule out radial pull (rare but.it happens). You can still get a pull due to alignment even if its in "spec". if one side of the truck is close to Max "in spec" camber one way and the other side is max in spec camber the the other way. you can still get a small pull. if your steering is screwed up a good alignment Guy should be able to see that when he does your alignment....might want to get a second opinion on that. when I was a BMW tech I never let a car go after an alignment if it hasld a pull...just saying.. Another thing I would suggest is jacking the front up and set the frame.on jackstands allowing the suspension to hang free. shake the wheels back and forth to check for play in the steering. also grab the top and bottom of the wheel and see if there is a lot of play in your top and bottom ball joint....you can also feel play from wheel bearings this way. good luck

 

[walmartboi]

So my best bet is to replace my oem UCA's with the front suspension lift UCA and bushing kit from AC?

 

[NMTerras]

I don't know man, you probably need to identify your issue before you start buying stuff...and then hit up Dan at ORPP when you do.

 

[granitex]

I agree, throwing money in the form of parts is not the way to go. It could be a number of things, bushings, bearings, worn or bent center link. Figure out what needs fixing before you start replacing stuff.

 

[Bluedog]

Could you post up the before and after numbers from your alignment? I am really curious about the thrust angle and the camber readings. If they bushings are really that bad, then the alignment shop should have caught that and not tried to align it.