I have a 99 SVT with about 37000 miles on it. I recently got the alignment done at the Ford Dealership. The wheel was slightly off-center when driving straight, before I brought it in. I told them the main reason I wanted the alignment done was to get the steering wheel back to center.
Well, sure enough they aligned the car nicely so that it goes perfectly straight down the road. However, to make the car go straight, the wheel has to be about 3-5 degrees off center. If you put the wheel dead-center, the car will drift right, as if the wheel was turned to the right.
I brought the car back and told them the wheel was still off center. The checked it and said that the alignment was fine, but they still rotated the tires and put all the tires' air at 32psi, to see if it did anything. They then said the tested it on local roads and the wheel was straight except for crowned roads, (roads that are higher in the center and lower on the sides for drainage reasons.) Well, I had a funny feeling they would say that.
However, the wheel is still off-center on all road surfaces, including the highway, where you can't get any flater a surface. The worse part of it is that after today, the second time I brought it in, now the wheel is worse than after they did the initial alignment, because now it is a couple more degress to the left.
So what should I do? The car goes straight and doesn't pull, but only if the steering wheel is cocked to the right. Should I leave it alone and live with the annoyance of an off-center wheel, or should I make sure they get it right for the $79 they charged for the initial alignment. How anyone ever had this problem before after getting an alignment...should the wheel always be straight after getting an alignment, or is it hard to get it perfect? Your help is greatly appreciated!
