S60 T5 tyre choice/tracking issue

I recently replaced the 17 inch goodyear eagle F1's on the front of my 51 plate T5 as the originals were badly worn. The new eagle F1's are far grippier and the ride has improved significantly, but my steering wheel was slightly off centre (to the right) and the car pulled slightly to the left. I've had the tracking done by a local specialist (the tyre shop didn't offer this service) and the car no longer pulls but the steering wheel remains annoyingly off centre. Does the tracking need redoing or is it something to do with the fact that the tyres are 'directional'?

Probably nothing to do with the tyres and everything to do with the wishbones particularly the front hydraulic bushes.

When these are shagged they allow the wishbones to splay, increasing the wear on the inside of the tyres. It is not immediately evident especially when checking the 'tracking' as the backward/outward movement of the wishbones is only there when the suspension is loaded, i.e. when the car is being driven.

I had a dealer INSIST there was nothing wrong with the wishbone bushes, and, under warranty, changed tie rods and tie rod ends, and drop links then do a four wheel alignment. This was followed by 200 quids worth of Pirelli P6000s disappearing in under 9000 miles.

I now use Falkens on my D5 and the last pair were shot in 12000 ish, thanks to refurbed wishbones with Powerflex front bushes and a proper tracking. OK it's not great but they only cost half the Pirelli price.

Please note that if you want to void uneven tyre wear then you must be quick to do any remedial work needed. Once a tyre has a wear pattern the wear is accelerated whether the fault is rectified or not.

luv'n'stuff

J

This is very useful - thanks very much. Any idea on likely cost of replacing the wishbones at the front? The old front tyres were worn worst on the outer edge rather than the inner edge. Is this still consistent with your thinking? Cheers.

I can agree with everything John says - I replaced the bushes on my wishbones and the alignment was 4mm out as a result.

The steering wheel alignment is more to do with the competence of the operator. I had mine four wheel tracked after I too replaced the inner track control arms and track rod ends on the steering rack, and it went back to get the wheel aligned properly.

As for getting the wishbones rebushed, John (V70 Torslander) is being modest - he refurbs them to a high standard - Powerflex in the main, front bush, new Volvo rubber bushes at the rear (though you can now specify Powerflex in the rear at £90 a pop...). He'll send a pair of wishbones out to you, you get them swapped over on your car and send your old ones back. Pm either me or John if you're interested.

Thanks for this - I'll get the tracking checked again first before I do anything else. I had a volvo mechanic check the suspension recently as I had a noise coming from one of the wheels (turned out to be an incorrectly fitted brake pad caliper) and he said everything looked okay. He initially thought it was a track rod until he took it off and it was fine when he checked it and then spotted the caliper!

Just a thought,Nick. . .

Does your vehicle have DSTC? If so you should get the tracking readjusted to include alignment of the steering wheel. If the wheel is off-centre, at extremes, the DSTC can get a false signal from the steering column contact because the car may 'think' it is travelling sideways. [This is why the steering should be locked if you ever need to disconnect the steering rack] Obviously it depends on how much off centre the wheel is but it is better rectify an incidental fault because the solution may point to the cause of the underlying problem, if you get me. . .

J

Good point. It does have DSTC and I have it switched on but the tracking/steering wheel issue doesn't seem to be related to it. I did mention the steering wheel being off centre when I had the tracking done, but you never know if the guy I told actually told the guy who did it etc etc. I'm getting it redone tomorrow so hopefully I'll be sorted soon. By the way - any thoughts on my other thread re my alarm issue?

So.....I went back and had my tracking/steering wheel checked again and they say it was 'out' again and that they have aligned it appropriately. I get in the car and drive it away and it's still out. It's soooooo frustrating as it's such a great car to drive and the steering wheel being so slightly out just does my head in. I can't understand how the wheel was straight with no pull on either side before I had the old tyres changed and I have all this hassle after just getting new tyres fitted!