Car wanders on highway

All you need is to have the car at proper ride height to align it. Until that is done, given all the parts that were replaced, it would be a miracle if it DIDN'T wander. You're going to notice poor tire wear too. Total toe or caster can cause wander when they're not correct. Camber or caster will cause a pull when they aren't equal.

I'VE HEARD PEOPLE DISCUSS INSTALLING THE SPRINGS AND RELATED STUFF ONTO A TOWN CAR, OFF OF OTHER FORD VEHICLES. IN ORDER TO RESTORE HEIGHT.

FROM WHAT I REMEMBER, THE WHOLE SYSTEM IS A PAIN AND EXPENSIVE, ONCE IT'S REPAIR TIME!

YOU MIGHT LOOK ON "YOU TUBE", SUBMIT VARIOUS SEARCHES. YOU MIGHT FIND SOMETHING HELPFUL.

THE MEDIC

Do you mean pushing the steering wheel side-to-side, or turning it? If it's side-to-side, there is likely one of the pins for the tilt wheel sheared off. There's a special tool to pull them out and they are replaceable. If there's play in the steering wheel when you turn it, that's normal when there's no pressurized power steering fluid pushing on the power piston in the steering gear box. That play will go away when the engine is running.

Other causes of excessive play in the wheel when the engine is running include tie rod ends, ball joints, idler arm, and pitman arm. All of their ball and socket joints should be inspected for movement while a helper moves the steering wheel back and forth rapidly about a quarter turn. If the new lower ball joints are moving, suspect the mounting hole is stretched and letting the entire joint move around. In very rare cases there can be sideways movement in the pitman shaft where it comes out of the steering gear box. I can describe how to check that if necessary, but on your car that's not very common.

Installing coil springs in the rear to eliminate the troublesome air ride system is a real common procedure. As long as the ride height is correct, there should be no problem aligning the car.

AROUND HERE, THE ALIGNMENT SHOPS ARE GOOD ABOUT INVESTIGATING OTHER PROBLEMS THAT WILL AFFECT THE ALIGNMENT. THEY'LL USUALLY GIVE "YOU" THE OPTION TO REPAIR, OR THEY WILL, HOWEVER YOU "STEER THEM"

USUALLY, AGAIN, AROUND HERE, THEY BACK 'EM OUT. LET YOU FIX, THEN BRING HIM BACK. NO CHARGE FOR THE INSPECTION, THEY JUST WANT YOUR BUSINESS, AND A HAPPY CUSTOMER. SPEAK UP, WHILE YOU ARE THERE, TAKE NOTES ALONG WITH YOU, IF YOU HAVE CRS. LIKE ME. GET IT ALL SPELLED OUT, BEFORE THEY BEGIN. NO NEED IN WASTING MONEY!

THE MEDIC

IF YOU WERE REALLY SMALL

. WOULD YOU BUCKLE INTO MY AIRPLANE AND LET ME FLY YOU AROUND?

BE CAREFUL. BAD DECISIONS ARE EVERYWHERE!

NOT HARD TO FIND ONE

WHAT DID THE ALIGNMENT FELLER TELL YOU ABOUT THE SEVERITY OF YOUR PROBLEMS?

MAYBE A PHONE CALL AND TALK TO "BUDDY RAY". THE FELLER WHOSE EYES, WERE ACTUALLY ON YOUR STUFF!

KEEP US INFORMED!

THE MEDIC

The car can be aligned with play in the pitman arm but they will have a hard time centering the steering wheel. The idler arm is a different story. If you push the end of the center-link up and down, you'll see the right front wheel moving left and right a little. If you can see the movement, that's a lot, ... Perhaps a half inch of toe change. For proper tire wear, total toe is set to specs plus or minus 1/64th of an inch. It is impossible to adjust toe correctly with a sloppy idler arm.

Both of those parts are low-failure items, meaning they don't separate very often. The safety issue is only due to all the other new parts causing the steering wander. Since the alignment mechanic found those worn parts, it's likely he checked everything else. They do that so they know their adjustments will hold in proper alignment. You can drive the car that way but expect excessive tire wear to result. You most likely won't notice that in a few hundred miles.

If there's no wet spots on the ground and you can smell it while driving, suspect injector o-rings are leaking. You'll see that on top of the engine.