Why do I have to steer to the right to keep my car straight?
She wondered..
This small detail may reveal a hidden problem in your car
Megan got her first used car dirt cheap for just $1000 dollars.
She was really happy as it was in pristine condition.
While driving it back home after the purchase, she noticed that she had to steer to the right to keep the car straight.
If you have to steer and hold excessively on one side to keep the car moving in a straight line, then this is a sure sign of bad wheel alignment.
Megan brought her car to a mechanic the very next day and got the alignment issue fixed.
While the mechanic was working on her car he noticed another detail that she missed.
It turns out that both the left tires of her car were balding from the outer edge.
Tire balding is a phenomenon when one side of a tire is getting more wear and tear than the other.
As a result the tire treads are strong on one side and weaker on the other.
That explains why she was feeling a push to the left. And hence she had to steer to the right to counter the effect.
Tire balding is a sure sign that your vehicle has wheel alignment issues.
If left untreated, bad wheel alignment can cause serious issues down the line as this causes unnecessary stress on the wheels.
And the handling of your car is also compromised.
At high speeds or during emergency braking it can also cause your car to spin out of control because of the angle difference.
When you buy a used car, make sure to check this issue and get it fixed in time.