wrd1972

The steering wheel is off center just a tad which bugs me. I am guessing that the new Panhard rod is a tad longer than the stock. Maybe the stock was even damaged.

I know the quick answer to this is to get an allignment. I actually had an alignment about a month ago and I would like to avoid paying another $60.00

Is it possible to turn both tie-rods the same direction the exact amount to try to center up the steering wheel.

Steve0

Is the new panhard bar adjustable?

MyShibbyZ28

You can turn the tie rods yourself. I believe the nut is a 22mm or 3/4". Just turn one side, then turn the other side the exact same until the wheel is straight.

Greed4Speed

Ok, so you change some parts in the rear of the car and you think they cause something in the front of the car to get out of alignment?

All the PHB will do is cause the rear to sit to one side, not mess w/the front alignment. If you're at stock height you don't need an adjustable PHB.

EastLa

I'm with you on this. The rear suspension shouldn't change your steering wheel center at all.

Joe 1320

Well, that's not entirely true. If an adjustable panhard rod is way out of it's adjustment length, it will cause the car to be off track. You would know it though because one rear wheel would actually be sticking out well past the fender lip.

MyShibbyZ28

I'm with him on this. The rear axle might be dog tracking the car, and making the wheel be off center.

Greed4Speed

But it would have to be way off and quite noticable to do that. Plus it has yet to be determined that the PHB is adjustable.

MyShibbyZ28

All in all it comes down to his original question of can he turn the tie rods.

Yes you can. Like I said in my first post. Turn one side so much like one turn, then turn the other side one turn. So they will be equal still, but you can turn them the same amount until the wheel is straight.

Steve0

Yep, thats why I asked if it was adjustable.

If he says that his front end was fine before the panhard bar install, an unalighed rear axle is the only reason I can see the steering being off. Perhaps the car is tracking to one side or the other.

speed fiend

Rather than the PHB, I would suspect the LCA instead. Are the LCA adjustable? If they are not the same length, your rear end will not be parallel with your front wheels and requiring you to keep the steering wheel off center when driving straight, much like a bent frame. A PHB that is not adjusted correctly will not cause any kind of steering issues. Your rear end will be off center but it would just be like lowering your car without the adjustable PHB. I drove this way for over a year with no steering issues what so ever.

wrd1972

The LCA's and the PH rod are non adjustable. I am at stock height.
The steering wheel is only a tad off. It has to the rear suspension parts that were just put on cause it was centered before.

I am going to try to turn the tie-rods.

Can someone explain which direction to turn the rods to slightly move the steering wheel to the right. I have a 50/50 chance but I want to go the right way the first time.

If the wrench is hanging down on the tie-rod, should I move to the front or the rear.

Thanks all

MyShibbyZ28

Passenger side would be moved to the rear, driver side gets moved to the rear also. It doesn't take much, start with 1/4 turns or even 1/8. Also, you're steering wheel might be off from slack in the steering system, such as the knuckles, rack and pinion, that stuff.

TobyZ28

To Check if your rear is centered do this:

Get a piece of string, tie a nut on one end of it. Tape the string so its hanging in line with the center of the wheel in the middle of the wheel well...
measure the distance between the centercaps and string. Repeat on the other side.

This should give an approximation of how "off-center" the rear is. The number are supposed to be close to the same, if one side is tottaly different than the other you'll need to find a way to center the rear again... if your alignment was ok BEFORE it should be ok after if all you did were LCA's and the PHB.

(Although as posted earlier, its more likely to be a control arm. Even though the Rear axle is off center, doesnt mean it should be tracking left or right, because the control arms should still keep the axle somewhat perpendicular to the control arms)