pulling to the right problem

[tony speed]

So my car is pulling to the right hard when I'm driving on the highway. I have to basically drive with the wheel tilt to the left the whole time. I took it to get aligned today and the problem is still happening.

I wasn't sure what was wrong so I measured the heights to the top of the fender from the floor and they are a little off. Would this affect the steering so drastically? Everything seemed fine when I had my old tires and I haven't adjusted the heights since then.

Or do you think they just didn't align it?

[oldschoolimport]

have you checked your tire pressure on the fronts, mainly the right front. also, try driving in the left lane on a four lane in different places. maybe the crown of the road bed is steep on the roads you travel. just possibilities.

[tony speed]

my ball joint is dead......sigh.

[Peking]

How can you tell? I just took my wheels off to clean them (one at a time). And when I put them back on, took her for a spin. Now she pulls to the right too.

[Peking]

It's funny, because this is not the first time I jacked each side up for a good period of time.

[ep3guy]

Originally posted by tony speed
my ball joint is dead......sigh.

What do you mean your ball joint is dead? Did it pop out of its socket? Which balljoint? I hope you're not talking about the lower balljoint which is attached to the rotor I believe... This happened to me when I was about to put in some Ground Controls and the axle popped out. My friend then pushed the rotor while I rotated the axle to get it back in. Friend pushed too hard and balljoint popped out. Big nightmare. You can hammer in the balljoint again, BUT if you hit a bump going fast, say goodbye to your suspension.

BTW, you cannot replace only the balljoint I'm talking about, only the whole knuckle assembly which is about $250 for the part. If you get lucky thoguh, you can find a balljoint at a junk yard. None had it in stock when I went since the car was too new

Good luck, hope you're not talking about the same thing I am.

[tony speed]

well, my lower ball joint is broken. the guy at the alignment place could wiggle the wheel + rotor around (up and down and everywhere) in place easily, but it's supposed to resist that kind of motion. I'm trying to get just the ball joint from some parts places. it is expensive, but it broke yesterday when i dropped the car onto that axle (i heard it go POP). I had already gotten into an accident on that wheel (replaced the lower control arm and sway bar link), but it didn't break until now...it must have been pretty stressed out already.

atlas...i doubt you broke the joint unless you got into an accident or dropped some serious force onto that wheel. I'd check to make sure your lug nuts are torqued properly??

[Peking]

Thanks, I didn't think so. Just that it seems strange how the pull feels. Mybe just the tires staying in the same position for a long time, warped them alittle.

[ep3guy]

Ouch that sucks, the balljoint alone shouldn't be expensive. I needed the car for school and no parts places had it in stock so I had to get a whole new knuckle assembly.

[chunky]

you can use the front lower balljoint from any 2001+ civic. pretty easy to find at junkyards.

[staticflo]

I'm having the same problem with my car I have a post going in EP discussion about it. I just lowered my car on s tech springs and took it to get it aligned and its been doing it since and ive had it aligned at two different places. I hope my ball joint isn't broken, I doubt it is since I did not have an accident or anything. I know for a fact that the guy who installed my springs didn't torgue my lug nuts hmm... maybe thats my problem anyone know what there supposed to be torqued to???

Another thought, I hope the guy who installed my springs didn't break my ball joint, how can I tell? I don't even know where to begin to look....

[ep3guy]

Originally posted by chunky
you can use the front lower balljoint from any 2001+ civic. pretty easy to find at junkyards.

Yup, too bad all there weren't any civics at the time I had the problem. :( And I live in SoCal too. Damnit.

[nozomi]

My car is pulling to the right as well:( .......but only when accelerating, does tat happen to you guys also?

[tony speed]

i don't think they sell the joint separately. All the stories I've heard say that they are made as one part...I'm paying $200 for mine, not from honda. Maybe the stories are still full of crap. chunky, do you know anyone who has replaced the balljoint with a civic balljoint successfully?

It's actually pretty easy to damage the balljoint if you put too much force on it when you're separating them, unless you know what you're doing. The main problem is that the "separator" honda sells costs way too much money, so most people opt for the "hit it hard enough" option, or the pronged fork...both of which can do damage if not done properly. I'd listen for funny clicking noises when your suspension is under stress or while turning....and like i said, the mechanic i went to was able to wobble the whole rotor/wheel assembly all around because it was broken.

[ep3guy]

Originally posted by tony speed
i don't think they sell the joint separately. All the stories I've heard say that they are made as one part...I'm paying $200 for mine, not from honda. Maybe the stories are still full of crap. chunky, do you know anyone who has replaced the balljoint with a civic balljoint successfully?

It's actually pretty easy to damage the balljoint if you put too much force on it when you're separating them, unless you know what you're doing. The main problem is that the "separator" honda sells costs way too much money, so most people opt for the "hit it hard enough" option, or the pronged fork...both of which can do damage if not done properly. I'd listen for funny clicking noises when your suspension is under stress or while turning....and like i said, the mechanic i went to was able to wobble the whole rotor/wheel assembly all around because it was broken.

You can still try to look for a 2001 civic balljoint at a junkyard if there are any nearby. It will cost a lot less. I had to buy the whole knuckle assembly. At least you can find it a little cheaper.

[staticflo]

So, if I jacked my car up if my ball joint was broken i would be able to move the wheel that is jacked up all around with my hands? This might sound dumb, but I wanna make sure mine isn't broken and this is the best way i can think of to make sure....