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Steering misalignment

5K views 22 replies 11 participants last post by  canalbrat 
#1 ·
Picked up my 2014 WK2 Limited, and I love every bit of it except one tiny detail that's driving me a bit nuts. The steering wheel appears to be ever-so-slightly misaligned with the vehicle... like maybe a few degrees to the right. When I'm driving, if I straighten out the wheel (using the Jeep logo and the "Since 1941" sign for reference), it pulls slightly left. Sooooo annoying. When I first got it, I took it in and told them "the Jeep is out of alignment" (I wasn't aware that it's the steering wheel), but they gave it back to me claiming the alignment was good.... which it is as far as the wheels are concerned. I have an appointment to take it back in tomorrow, but I am already dreading the visit, fearing they will still try and tell me it's fine. My wife notices it, and I had a friend who owns a 2012 JGC check it out (drive my Jeep)... they all agree it's ever-so-slightly off.

I know this all sounds stupid... it's very slight, but when I'm driving, it's annoying to have to constantly correct for this. I've read aligning the steering is an easy fix (I wish I was handy, I'd do it myself), so I hope the dealership will make the repair and not waste another day telling me it's "fine." Don't know if I'm posting this just to sound off or looking for advice/reassurance... just want to get everything perfect so I can enjoy the vehicle.
 
#2 ·
IMHO.... keep driving it for a while. There is another thread here we talked about "first oil change". Give the factory alignment a little time to set in but yes this can easily be corrected.

You may wish to report this to your dealer for the record.
 
#4 ·
Not likely but possible. Once some miles are on there the suspension will sit slightly differently and that may make it better or worse. But fixing the alignment now doesn't make sense without having at least 500 miles or it will change ever so slightly again.... get my drift.
 
#5 ·
My 2014 Summit had the same problem. My dealer tried to center the steering wheel but it took him 2 tries to get it close. All that was off was the toe adjustment. I finally had to go to a professional shop to get it done correctly.
 
#6 ·
Brought it in and did a ride along with the service manager of the dealership. Got him to acknowledge that the wheel was off center, but he tried to give me the "well, it's like 1 degree off out of 360" guilt trip (in my opinion... and if we're splitting hairs, it's more than 1 degree)... not that he refused to fix it... he said he'd make it right, but it might take "a few tries" whatever that means. Fingers crossed for this afternoon but I have a feeling this is going to take a while (like BobsWK2 said above). Love to be wrong tho.
 
#7 ·
Hopefully you'll be lucky and it gets corrected on the 1st attempt. I mean how hard can it be to do an alignment? My dealer even has one of the latest Hunter Alignment racks and after 2 tries, they still couldn't get it right. I just think its poor tech training. Also try and get them to recalibrate the steering wheel angle sensor which is supposed to be redone after any wheel alignment was done and they will look at you with a blank face. Again, poor training.
 
#9 ·
So I got back the Jeep and now the steering wheel seems misaligned ever so slightly to the left. Good lord, how hard can this be? One would think a Jeep dealer would be really good at aligning a Jeep. I'll guess I'll bring it back in after the weekend is over. Man, is this annoying. You'd think that after the alignment, they'd take it out for a test spin to see if it's fine. I mean, am I being too picky because it's a new car? Is there an acceptable tolerance for this and I'm expecting too much? I mean, it's slight... but you can tell. I just want to get the dang thing perfect :)
 
#10 ·
I went through this with another car. It took three different alignment shops of the same chain before they got it right. Each said the other did it wrong. Good luck! Check your tire pressure. A couple psi difference from left to right can make a difference.
 
#15 · (Edited)
The suspensions get "tied down" during shipment to prevent the car from bobbing and weaving during transport. Many manufacturers also block the springs to keep the car stationary. These can change the alignment from the Factory settings. That's why the dealer is supposed to check the alignment before delivering a new car.

You might want to read up on the intricacies of rack and pinion to learn how difficult it might be to get the steering wheel absolutely centered. We always told people that a dead on accurate alignment was more important than whether the rack allowed the steering wheel to be absolutely centered.

If I were in your shoes, I'd take a perfect alignment over a perfectly centered steering wheel and a sloppy alignment.
 
#13 ·
Big thing is to get it on the record. Tires are not warrenty idems (you get to pay for them) but if misaligned (and all it would take is the wrong hit in shipping) the tires may wear fast/funny. Get it on the record and get it fixed. If a car does not hold a straight line on a level road "hands off" with the steering wheel centered, something is rong.

ps said level not crowned.
 
#16 ·
So I was able to actually have the balancing tech sit with me and drive my WK2 today. He was pretty knowledgeable and friendly (which made the visit easier). I was able to articulate to him directly and visually about the wheel. The dealership kept assuming (god knows why) that I was talking about the vehicle's tire alignment was off. I was able to tell the tech (and show him) the steering wheel being off. Took about 35 minutes, and we tweaked the wheel. Told me he adjusted it about 4 degrees. Drove it with him after he was done and it seems to be on the money, but I'll need to drive it longer than a local test drive (he said bring it back and ask for him if it's still off). Pretty confident that he nailed it though... just took patience and perseverance.
 
#18 ·
2800 miles on my '14 Overland V6, my issue is padgett mentioned above...most noticeable at highway speeds, I'll let go of the steering wheel and it veers to the left. Very annoying, dealer said they "couldn't reproduce the issue"... so next step is to drive with a tech in the car.
 
#19 ·
Basically, I went to my dealer that I bought the car a total of 4 times, and they never got it right. So, I took it to another dealer the next town over from me and they nailed it the first time. It all boils down to: the technician has to know how to use the equipment properly. FWIW, the second dealer I went to had a "Hunter Laser Alignment System." The first dealer didn't have it, but I still say the fault lies with the technician being incompetent at the first place.
 
#21 ·
All,

I just joined the forum coming from a Challenger SRT8. I went with a 2014 Overland RWD with V6. My steering wheel is off slightly to the right also. It also had a very slight pull to the left. I know from experience with my Challengers (two) and other friends with Challengers, the alignment is always off when delivered, possibly due to shipping as previously stated. On staggered tires like the SRT8 with expensive tire, this is costly If not corrected quickly. So, I immediately (1200 miles) went for the alignment at my local shop (I only let one guy in particular touch my alignment). First off they did not have alignment specs for the 2014. I got those from the dealer and got my guy to align it on the "preferred" settings. The alignment is right on the money now and steering wheel alignment is better. The curious thing, and the reason for this lengthy response, is that there is an alignment spec for left side driver and right side driver. I assume that this is for countries where they drive on the other side of the road and this is to compensate for the "crown" in the road. My guy was a little suprised by this and this may be the reason why the vehicle steers differently depending on the road crown. And of course the steering wheel position. I have to spend more time with it to render a further opinion. Lastly, I have 20 inch wheels and I am going to get the road force balancing to go after the slight vibration in the 70 mph range. We shouldn't have to do this to get it right, but maybe I am just a bit picky.:)
 
#22 ·
In some countries the steering wheel is on the right side of the vehicle (OZ).
 
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