Start with an inspection of the suspension and steering systems. A tire shop is a good place to visit. Worn ball joints and tie rod ends are the most likely suspects, but a less-known cause is a tire pull. Tire pulls generally don't change when the engine warms up. A clue can be found with front-wheel-drive cars by observing the behavior. A tire problem will cause a pull in one direction when accelerating and the other way when braking fairly hard. The steering wheel must be turned to keep the car going straight.
Control arm bushings and to some extent, struts can also cause the pull. If you find only the steering wheel is turning but there is no pull to one side associated with that off-center wheel, you might also check for loose rack and pinion mounting bolts. The confusing part is there really isn't anything that should be affected by how warmed up the engine is.
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Thursday, January 6th, 2011 AT 5:18 AM
