TR6 driving sideways

[Graze]

Was following a good friend in his TR6 today - it "crabs" along the road. That is to say the front right hand side of the car sits closer to the centre of the road than the rear.

 

Looking at the car when stationary the left hand front wheel sits slightly outside the wheel arch and the front right sits about 30-40mm inside the arch

 

Is this a chassis issue, or an issue with the way the body is fitted to the chassis

 

I haven't been under the car to check the chassis to see if it has been 'bent'

 

Thoughts appreciated

 

Graze

[John L]

4 wheel alignment check should tell you what's wrong, if there is tracking correctly with the front.

J

[cmdr19]

i think the clue must be in the way you observed how the wheels 'sit' in the arches. 30-40 mm is a big difference to the other side. Can a bodyshell be mounted that offset?

 

Mike

[stuart]

Possibly a combination of both alignment and body chassis issues I would have thought, have a look under the rear and see how close the TA outer elbow is to the body.

Stuart.

[Graze]

Thanks Stuart I'll follow up on that

 

This may be a stupid question but can the incorrect installation of the control arms cause this sort of misalignment given that they are unequal lengths, or can the trunnions be fitted incorrectly to contribute to this sort of thing?

 

Graze

[Peter Cobbold]

As a matter of urgency check that a lower front wishbone bush hasn't parted company with the chassis mounting brackets. These are a known fatigue/rust failure point. A loose rear wishbone will be pushed against the remnants of the bracket by tyre drag and will pull the steering to that side.

Peter

Edited July 27, 2015 by Peter Cobbold