Camry Steering Problem

[brickner]

A couple of months ago I purchased a 2008 Camry Hybrid with 14,000 miles on it. The Camry pulls to the right. I must maintain constant pressure on the wheel to the left in order to keep the Camry headed straight down the road. I own four vehicles besides the Camry and I drive five vehicles out of a motor pool at work. I drive the same roads in all of these nine other vehicles and none of them pulls to the right as the Camry does so it can’t be the pitch/grade on the road surface. I’ve had the front end aligned twice & tires rotated twice. I’ve increased tire pressure without there being any apparent help.

This is the first Japanese vehicle I have purchased and it took me YEARS of battling my internal feelings of guilt and betrayal not to purchase an American car.

Has anyone heard of this problem and is there a fix for it. I’ve seen discussions of this problem in other forums but none has offered any real hope for a lasting fix to the problem. Should I just cut my losses and trade this *%^@! in on a Buick?

[Mike Gerber]

You said you had the "front end" aligned twice. Your car requires a 4 wheel alignment.

Aside from that, I would try switching the 2 front tires with each other. If the car now pulls to the opposite (left) side, you have determined that the tire now on the left front has a radial pull.

One additional thought. A 2008 Camry with 14,000 or so miles on it should still be under warranty. Have you taken this car back to the dealer and asked them to deal with it?

Mike

[brickner]

Mike, no I've not taken it to the dealer and thanks for the tip. I didn't know about the necessity for the four wheel alignment. I'll take it to the local Toyota dealer, ask them to do the four wheel alignment and switch the two front tires. We'll see if that helps.

On another website someone said they had a weak suspension spring and once replaced their problem was solved. Perhaps I'll also mention that to the dealer.

Thanks again, Brickner

[old_master]

If there is too much cross caster, (difference in caster from driver to passenger side), it will cause a pull or drift. Caster will not wear tires if it's out of spec, but can be annoying to drive, as you already know. It may not be adjustable on the Camry, (it's not adjustable on most front wheel drive vehicles). After they align the front end, ask the technician what the cross caster is on your vehicle. Maximum cross caster should be no more than .5 degrees. If cross caster is excessive, and not adjustable, it can get very expensive to correct it.

[Mike Gerber]

Originally Posted by brickner

Mike, no I've not taken it to the dealer and thanks for the tip. I didn't know about the necessity for the four wheel alignment. I'll take it to the local Toyota dealer, ask them to do the four wheel alignment and switch the two front tires. We'll see if that helps.

On another website someone said they had a weak suspension spring and once replaced their problem was solved. Perhaps I'll also mention that to the dealer.

Thanks again, Brickner

I would switch the 2 front tires yourself, before taking the car to the dealer. This way you will be eliminating one of the options for the dealer to try, and it just may solve your problem.

Also, the dealer will probably not do an alignment under warranty. They will consider it routine maintainance. Just a heads up and another reason I suggested switching the 2 front tires yourself first.

Mike