What to check because bus seriously pulls to the right?

[HB of CJ]

We use our hand held laser temperature probe with great effect.  Easy to shoot temperatures.  Tire, brake drums, wheel bearings, etc..  On sale they go now for less than $50 bucks.

[chessie4905]

You better check if they bent the tie rod when they jacked it up. Sounds to me that that is the most likely problem nd I'd check that first. Are one of the front tires toed in when opposite side is straight?

[belfert]

It has been highly suggested that I take the bus out on the highway again for long enough to get everything up to operating temps and then check the temperatures of drums, tires, and hubs.  I plan to do that tonight and check the temps and pressures with my infrared thermometer.

It was a year or two ago I last had the alignment done.

[brmax]

I use to smoke, but not to get that highly. 


Good day
Floyd

[gumpy]

It has been highly suggested that I take the bus out on the highway again for long enough to get everything up to operating temps and then check the temperatures of drums, tires, and hubs.  I plan to do that tonight and check the temps and pressures with my infrared thermometer.

It was a year or two ago I last had the alignment done.

Who "highly" recommended that?  And why are you listening to them?

You need to figure out what's pulling first. Something is very wrong and until you know what, you should not risk your life and other people's lives trying to assess it at highway speeds.

[belfert]

I won't publicly say who recommended a further test drive.  I crawled underneath and don't see anything obviously bent.  I mostly looked at the right tire last night, but I noticed this evening that the left tire is wearing funny.

I am taking the bus to a shop that specializes in suspension and alignment in the morning.  I figure I will need to get the steer tires replaced too.

[gumpy]

Move the current steers to the tag and let it scrub them out if you get new steers.

It's possibly you have a bad tie rod end, or maybe one got bent, which could pull the left tow in, causing the abnormal wear you see. Probably a good call to take it to an alignment specialist.

[niles500]

Sticking brake can?

[belfert]

The alignment shop said the alignment was off 5/32".  They didn't find any other issues.  They also said the front tires are junk and I am having the tires replaced 7 am Monday.  (The tags are pretty old and should be replaced with the steers anyhow.)

The left front brake drum is just a little bit warmer than the right front.  All of the rear brake drums are really close in temps side to side.  Hubs are also good on temps.

[TomC]

When pulling happens, first thing to do is switch sides on front tires. That will tell you if you have a bad tire. At alignment, you want 1/16" to 1/8" toe in, 0 right camber-a bit of positive camber on left to combat crowned highways. Checking toe is the most important.
Good that you're replacing the front tires. Use good quality non Chinese tires. I just installed Hankook on the back of my truck and Freightliner uses Hankook as their standard tires. Course-I'm still a Michelin fan-just way more expensive. Good Luck, TomC

[Zephod]

Nothing wrong with Chinese tires - they might wear a bit faster but with the miles we do, that shouldn't be a problem. It really doesn't matter whether your tires are Michelin or Golden Crack Dragon. What matter is that you change them when they age out and that you keep them at the right pressure as well as turning the wheels every month when you're parked.


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[chessie4905]

Double Coin are quite popular and Chinese made. Just sayin....

[belfert]

The guy at the alignment shop who did the work highly recommended either BF Goodrich or Michelin tires.  He didn't recommend Dayton which was my initial plan.  A local tire shop will have two BF ST230 tires ready for me at 7 am Monday.  The BF Goodrich cost about $100 more per tire than Dayton.

The steer tires are not currently aged out or worn out.  They have some sort of weird wear patterns that my last set of Firestone steer tires also had.  Nobody can figure out what is going on with the steer tire wear.  I replaced the front shocks and have had alignment done twice now.  We'll see if things are better this time.

[Iceni John]

Is your tag axle misaligned?   Couldn't that cause weird steering issues?   Does your bus have IFS or a solid front axle?

John

[belfert]

Tag axle alignment was fixed a few years ago after I brushed the passenger tag wheel against something a few years ago.  The tags are independent for sure.  Not sure if IFS or solid front axle on the front of my Dina.