W123 experts - i've got an 82 300TD wagon that has developed a pulling problem. Prior to bringing it into a mechanic and having some brake and rear axle work done, the car was more or less driving straight. the steering box was a bit loose, but it wasn't bad for a 30 year old car. After the work was done, the car was pulling wickedly to the left. The steering wheel needed to be turned 15 degrees to the right to keep it straight, and it was a bit of a fight when going over bumps on the freeway at high speeds. I took it back into the shop complaining that they hosed my steering. They took it to an alignment shop that supposedly aligned it on their machines, but the reality was that it still pulled. The mechanic then checked all the tie rods and steering system, then eventually rotated the tires. Now, the car pulls about as much to the opposite side. i've given up on this garage's abilities to resolve the problem, so i'm soliciting advice from some of the more seasoned MB techs out there. one potential clue is that when they replaced the front brake pads, one of them was worn down way more than the other. i don't know if it's related, but it's something that i noticed.

Anybody have any thoughts?

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1982 300TD, 124K mi.

What kind of rear axle work was done? If this happened only after the shop worked on your car, then it directly deals with the work that was done.
I would guess a cailper is sticking.

I agree that that is important information - but - if they then took it to an alignment shop and messed about with the front there's a greater chance of something else going wrong at the same time...

@chittick

Tell us more about the work that has been done. If they provided a good itemised bill post a picture of that - take a picture of the work done at the front - take a picture of your front tyres so we can see the tread wear marks (we need to work out how long the problem with the front - if any - has been there)

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1992 W201 190E 1.8 171,000 km - Daily driver
1981 W123 300D ~ 100,000 miles / 160,000 km - project car stripped to the bone
1965 Land Rover Series 2a Station Wagon CIS recovery therapy!
1961 Volvo PV544 Bare metal rat rod-ish thing

I'm here to chat about cars and to help others - I'm not here "to always be right" like an internet warrior



Don't leave that there - I'll take it to bits!

i would say if the pulling changed sides when the tires were rotated, then it sounds like you have a tire low in pressure. check your tire pressure at all 4 wheels and let us know.

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85 mercedes 300D-T 258k miles

on another note you also said something about your brake pads being low on one side, can you provide more information on this, like: the passenger side had no pad left, while the driver side had 1/2 pad left.
if that were the case then you have a caliper hanging and it will always pull to that side, if every so slightly or if the alignment was setup to correct the pull, then you would have sever tire wear... and when the brakes got fixed you would have a pull to the opposite side of the stuck caliper ( so in the case above a pull to the drivers side once the brakes were fixed)

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85 mercedes 300D-T 258k miles

thanks for the response guys. I am convinced the shop is responsible in some way but i can't get them to a) own up or b) figure out the issue.

The first time i took it in, i had both rear axles replaced with new axles. The right rear was dangerously close to breaking. i also had the rear calipers replaced with new ones. One of the old ones had previously been sticking.

With regard to the front brake pad wear, i can't recall specifically which one was more worn down, but one was definitely shot, while the other had 50% left. i had only gone 10-15K miles on the brake pads.

When i took it back into the shop to get realigned, they rotated the tires, adjusted the steering gearbox and supposedly did something to the idler arm bushings in the rear.

I'll get a copy of the full work invoice later tonight when i go home. At this point, i just want to take it somewhere else to have it taken care of.

Any suggestions for shops in San Francisco or the Peninsula? (don't say MB Garage in San Mateo, please ;-)

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1982 300TD, 124K mi.

Since the pulling changed direction after a tire rotation I'd suspect the tires. Try swapping the front tires. Then drive it. See if the pulling changes again. If not then try swapping the rear tires, and see if that changes anything. If this doesn't change anything, then it's not tire related. Try driving it for a bit, then touch each rim. See if one of them is significantly hotter than the other. This will tell you if the calipers are sticking.

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A bad tire can cause a pull with a car that is aligned, and will frequently follow that tire when swapped. Tire pressures are factors, as is wear, belt condition, etc.

Check pressures, maybe add a few psi above recommended.

Get the alignment data sheet from the garage, if possible.

Park your car with the steering wheel straight ahead and take pictures that show tire position; then repeat after you park the car with it tracking straight ahead but the steering wheel cocked. This may help ID if a wheel isn't aligned.

A dragging brake could be a problem, but that is unlikely to follow a tire. A noticeably hot rim will be a big clue. Replacing the pads is very straightforward, but also easy to dork up if you don't fully compress the piston, clean the old dust out, etc. Properly adjusting the parking brake after the axle swap is one more thing to consider. If they got it wrong, that could be contributing.

New axles, new calipers, new pads. That's some pricey work to have had done and end up with a serious pull. It's worth it to try to find the cause and see about some money back.