Why does my car veer slightly to the right when I center the steering wheel?
I drive a 1993 Ford Explorer. It always veers to the right when I center the steering wheel, so I have to hold the steering wheel a little to the left while driving to keep the wheels centered.
Is this a problem with the wheel itself or does it need new struts, springs, etc?
Get your tires aligned.
It's possible it was aligned w/the wheel slightly off-center.
It's also possible (likely?) that a vehicle that old has worn steering/suspension parts that are causing alignment issues. Tie rods, wheel bearings, springs, ball joints.
Any competent alignment shop should be able to look it over for you and give you an idea of what's going on and what would be required to repair it.
You might just need an alignment, but it's 24 years old. You might need some new parts, anything that's still original has to be fairly worn out by now.
The steering wheel is not centered, no issue unless it bothers you.
Maybe not enough air in a tire
It's probably worn tires. Either have them rotated or switched side to side in the front. If that doesn't fix it you need a wheel alignment.
The wheel alignment may just be off. Bad belts in tires also can cause a pull. You need a mechanic that does alignments to inspect the vehicle and let you know what's up.
Dittos to all: you need to find a trustworthy alignment shop that will diagnose the problem without selling you $1500 worth of unneeded work.
Am not sure if you are saying that the vehicle tracks straight and true but the steering wheel is then not dead-centered… Or that you have to put continuous pressure on the steering wheel to keep it going straight.
As others have said, wheel can be off dead center, may need a simple alignment or might be suspension or steering components, springs, shocks, a bent wheel, bad tire(s) etc.
Ask friends to recommend a trustworthy shop - go there with a accurate description of what's wrong… And doesn't hurt to tell them upfront the maximum you intend to spend on a 24 year old vehicle.
Most rural roads are crowned so the water will run off, try the steering on a flat strip of interstate highway for center.
All vehicles will pull to the right (or left in europe) to some degree when driving on a crowned road, keep this in mind.
Make sure your tires are aired to the proper and same all the way around per the door jamb tire pressure placard.
Simplest, check tire pressure. The car will veer toward a low tire. Other things being wrong are possible, but do the easy thing you can do. If that corrects it, you save time and money not needing to go to the shop.
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