Steering wheel not straight

[TheDon]

I rebuilt the suspension, the front, on the 240D. Well we got the alignment good enough to drive home on and the steering wheel is not perfect. With the wheels straight the wheel is pretty much pointing (with the tip of the star normally pointing at 12), the star is pointing to maybe 2 o'clock....

What do I do to get it back to normal before I can get the car aligned. Sears said the car was "un alignable" or some crap

So I need to get that situated and I might as well order a new differential mount, sway bar end links, and whatever else I can think of with my $100 rebate card from the tire purchase.

[sixto]

Typical practice is to align the wheels to the steering wheels. MBs should be aligned with a steering box centering pin and a spreader bar. For toe, anyway. Caster adjustment requires turning the steering wheel.

If the car tracks properly as is, turn the left and right tie rods the same amount until the steering wheel is the way it should be. That answers your question but isn't really worth doing. Get the car to someone who has the knowledge, equipment and experience to align your car. Sears ain't it.

Sixto
87 300D

[Brian Carlton]

The alignment procedure will properly center the wheel.

If it's a proper shop, they'll have a pin that is inserted in the steering linkage to keep the wheel centered while they set the parameters.

You shouldn't bother with the wheel yourself....................

[Diesel911]

Below in the fist pic is a Pin that Screws into the bottom of the Steering Box an when installed correctly holds the Steering Box in the mid range where the Wheel should be centered.

In the other pic is the Steering Box Bolt and above it a Homemade locking Bolt.

[Billybob]

Sixto is right on the money, the alignment consists of the correct pointed bolt inserted into the steering gear locking it into it's mechanically centered position first, then the wheels are aligned to their various specifications by adjusting the steering geometry variables i.e. any eccentric bolts, tie rod ends, etc. That allows the vehicle to drive and track correctly and for the steering to seek to self center.

In the correct position the steering wheel is referenced to the mechanical center of the steering gear. If your steering wheel had ever been removed if may not be correctly indexed and will need to be removed and repositioned.

Assuming your steering wheel was centered before your rebuild, then you have assembled and adjusted the steering components at something other than the evact center position of the left-to-right range. An alignment adjusting the steering to the center of that range will correct the steering wheel position, assuming it was correctly positioned in relation to the steering gear originally. Previous owners might have done steering work without a subsequent alignment and moved the wheel to compensate.

The steering wheel is nothing more than a handle which is mounted on a splined shaft which can be indexed 360 degrees in increments dependent on the number of splines.

[Travis_k]

It depends on where you take it. I took mine to firestone and they refused to take the time to get the wheel straight because they said unless I wanted to pay to have them remove and re install the tie rods it wasn't their problem. I just took the wheel off and put it back on straight after the second time I took it back.

[tankowner]

Originally Posted by sixto

Get the car to someone who has the knowledge, equipment and experience to align your car. Sears ain't it.

Sixto
87 300D

I agree. I also just finished a front suspension rebuild on my 123 and, like you, "aligned" it enough to drive it short term. I will be taking it to the dealer since there is no local MB indy that I would trust to do a proper alignment. I've learned my lesson on my 124 . . . the first time to Sears who wasted 3 hours of my life only to finally admit they didn't know what they were doing on that car. The second and third times at a local chain garage where an "alignment" was performed, however, when I asked for print outs of the before and after measurements, I was told the printer was out of ink (both times, about 6 months apart). Regardless, I suspect my time would have been much better spent just taking it to the dealer.

[tangofox007]

Originally Posted by TheDon

I rebuilt the suspension, the front, on the 240D. Well we got the alignment good enough to drive home on and the steering wheel is not perfect. With the wheels straight the wheel is pretty much pointing (with the tip of the star normally pointing at 12), the star is pointing to maybe 2 o'clock....

What do I do to get it back to normal before I can get the car aligned.

Shorten the right side tire rod assembly, lengthen the left side by an equal amount.

[tangofox007]

Originally Posted by Travis_k

It depends on where you take it. I took mine to firestone and they refused to take the time to get the wheel straight because they said unless I wanted to pay to have them remove and re install the tie rods it wasn't their problem.

Centering the steering wheel is is a necessary and essential part of any front end alignment. I am unable to envision any situation which would call for the removal and reinstallation of the tie rods as a solution to misaligned steering wheel. Your experience reinforces my general belief that chain auto repair facilities are best avoided. The "not our problem" attitude is icing on the cake.

[SD Blue]

"Not our problem" or "unalignable" is short for "I don't know how to align a car with adjustable caster, camber and toe. All I know is how to set toe, sort of." With a MB, and cars of that era, setting toe and camber is inter-related and takes some "figgerin".

As previous posters have mentioned, it really is necessary to find a capable shop. I've taken mine to a shop with an expensive laser alignment machine that literally tells the mechanic where and how much to adjust.

[boneheaddoctor]

I'll jump on the bandwagon that this is a sign they aren't the place to do the work.

Besides other reasons mentioned....this wil effect exactly when your turn signals will self cancel as thats geared to steeting shaft position, not necessarily where the wheel is actually pointing after having been pulled off to "fix" an issue like this in the past.....popping the wheel off will only make getting that to work correctly even harder (which is really at best an annoyance). Best that it is done correctly so other issues aren't caused.

[compu_85]

Why not just take the steering wheel off and move it a spline? When you get the car re-aligned properly you can move it back.

-J

[boneheaddoctor]

Originally Posted by compu_85

Why not just take the steering wheel off and move it a spline? When you get the car re-aligned properly you can move it back.

-J

Well, the problem there is it causes problems with the self cancelling function on the turn signals that need the sterring shaft properly aligned. Then the steering box isn't properly centered....etc.

[ah-kay]

Originally Posted by boneheaddoctor

Well, the problem there is it causes problems with the self cancelling function on the turn signals that need the sterring shaft properly aligned. Then the steering box isn't properly centered....etc.

I do not think a spline or 2 is going to make any difference with the self-canceling function.

Take it to a reputable alignment shop, if you can find one, and have it done right. A good alignment shop will center the steering before they do the work. If the 'Total Toe' is within spec, then tires wear will be OK but the steering may be cock-eye-ed. The toe-in probably is not symmetrical. Some websites suggest to move the steering wheel a spline or 2 to allow for it or you can adjust the tie rods as suggested by Tango. I play with DIY alignment with considerable success but it is time consuming but I am getting better at it.

[boneheaddoctor]

Originally Posted by ah-kay

I do not think a spline or 2 is going to make any difference with the self-canceling function.

Take it to a reputable alignment shop, if you can find one, and have it done right. A good alignment shop will center the steering before they do the work. If the 'Total Toe' is within spec, then tires wear will be OK but the steering may be cock-eye-ed. The toe-in probably is not symmetrical. Some websites suggest to move the steering wheel a spline or 2 to allow for it or you can adjust the tie rods as suggested by Tango. I play with DIY alignment with considerable success but it is time consuming but I am getting better at it.

True...but one or two now.....another one or two 5 years or so from now, and it adds up.

Besides....the procedure is center the box....then do the adjustments. I bet someone along the way has already tweaked that wheel off of where it should be already. Who knows what other shortcuts they take as well.