jameslwt Posted October 24, 2010 Share Posted October 24, 2010 Been looking at a 2003 TD5 today with a possible view to buy. All is looking good so far - couple of minor bits but nothing too bad. However when test driving I noticed that the steering wheel needs to be slightly (like 2 degrees if that) to the left in order to go straight. The car doesn't pull either way at all, and is nice and straight etc under braking. All the rods/bars are straight as I had really good look underneath (to the bemusement of the vendor!). Any ideas what this is and if I should be concerned? Even wear on all tyres as well. The only thing I noticed even remotely connected is the driver's side front wheel bearing has play in it, which is being used as part of the inevitable negotiations as I understand you have to replace the whole hub? But I can't really see how that could have any effect on this. Otherwise quite a good vehicle so far, but nothing agreed yet. Many thanks James Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bear Posted October 25, 2010 Share Posted October 25, 2010 Hi James, Has some work been done on the steering in the past e.g. new ball joint, in which case the steering wheel may not have been centered. If this is the case you'll probably only just need to adjust the length of the steering rod. Regards, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scube Posted October 25, 2010 Share Posted October 25, 2010 Not sure about TD5 discovery in as much as do they have air bags fitted as standard. If your vehicle is not fitted with air bag in the steering wheel then you can remove the steering wheel and reposition it so everything is pointing in the right direction. If it has an air bad I really would not touch it. Bear’s solution is the way to go, but if you do it yourself you may mess up the tracking. There is nothing wrong but if it bothers you (I know it does me) you’re best bet is pop it along to somewhere who deals with tracking for them to adjust it for you. I know the last time I had my tracking corrected for me after replacing all the track rod ends I was asked if my steering wheel was set level when driving in a straight line. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roverbo Posted October 25, 2010 Share Posted October 25, 2010 Bear’s solution is the way to go, but if you do it yourself you may mess up the tracking. Haven´t got any experience with such a modern car, but can´t figure how an adjustment of the steering rod can change the tracking ? Steering rod: Connects steering box with the wheels (steering wheel alignment) Tracking rod: Adjusts tracking (toe-in / toe-out). Or has something changed radically since my RRC rolled of the band ? Regards Bo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jameslwt Posted October 25, 2010 Author Share Posted October 25, 2010 Thanks for the replies everyone. Greatly appreciated. Not an issue anymore as she is unwilling to take any less than the asking price, and I feel that £10k is way too much money when Parkers says under 9k! Shame cos was otherwise a nice vehicle. Thanks though - am sure more questions will come up. When potentially spending this kind of money I want to make sure I get a good one. Cheers James Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dooroy Posted October 27, 2010 Share Posted October 27, 2010 The Discovery has a drag link which can be adjusted - but it has no effect on the tracking (alignment). In this way you can 'centre' the steering wheel . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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