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Why does my car swerve sometimes

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Old 08-11-2005, 12:01 AM
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Default Why does my car swerve sometimes

I can be going 70mph with no hands on the wheel at one moment and then the next moment the car will start pulling either to the right or to the left, and it's not just the roads around here you can definitly tell something is weird. Same thing with braking, sometimes it will stop perfectly straight but other times it will pull either way. Any ideas?
Old 08-11-2005, 12:15 AM
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It's probably mostly the roads. It COULD be an alignment issue, but I'll bet it's the roads. Slight to major ruts can cause trammeling (the effect of the wheels wanting to follow the road ruts) or it could be from camber in the road around turns or the crown of the road which is there for water sheding purposes. If you're severely in doubt get the alignment checked.
Old 08-11-2005, 01:07 AM
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it's usually the massive tires we put on the cars. mine does it all the time with the 275's up front. as pimpmaro said it's usually just the road. if you want to know for sure try to find a freshly paved road that doesn't get very much traffic on it. I though my car was jacked for like the first year until I figured that one out.
Old 08-11-2005, 04:20 AM
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I say its the roads. When stopping my car on black top I have to fight with the steering wheel.
Old 08-11-2005, 09:47 AM
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I say you need to stop playing with your peter when you are driving. I had this same problem with my 01 Z then i realized to put the hands on 10 and 2 instead of my ****. I also cut an entire second of my e/t at the track
Old 08-11-2005, 01:34 PM
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If you want to get technical, you shouldn't be driving your car with your hands at 10 and 2 on the wheel. In a modern car with a properly working power steering system, you should be driving your car at 9 and 3 whether you're driving on the street or racing. It gives you more control and finesse. The reason people used 10 and 2 was the mechanical advantage they gained over the steering system in a manual rack or poorly working power steering system.

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Old 08-11-2005, 01:58 PM
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I too have noticed weird things happening when I use no hands while driving. It's like the car is out of control or something ...
Old 08-11-2005, 02:01 PM
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I powershifted before while holding the cellphone with one hand and the shifter in the other. Not smart, but I didnt know I did it untill I had already done it. Not one of the smarter things ive done.
Old 08-11-2005, 02:32 PM
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Originally Posted by ZEEMAN
I say you need to stop playing with your peter when you are driving. I had this same problem with my 01 Z then i realized to put the hands on 10 and 2 instead of my ****. I also cut an entire second of my e/t at the track
Old 08-11-2005, 06:18 PM
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I tend to drive with my hands at 8:37 p.m.(that's post meridian) and 2:18 a.m.
Old 08-11-2005, 11:35 PM
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alrighty then
Old 08-12-2005, 09:40 AM
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One thing i have noticed with both of my 01 fbodies is that they pull. Even if it is aligned perfect and tracks straight as an arrow. Once it hits the slightest pebble or unevenness in the road it tracks in that direction. I still have no clue why but to me its not a huge issue
Old 08-13-2005, 03:56 PM
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Originally Posted by ZEEMAN
I say you need to stop playing with your peter when you are driving. I had this same problem with my 01 Z then i realized to put the hands on 10 and 2 instead of my ****. I also cut an entire second of my e/t at the track
Old 08-13-2005, 04:54 PM
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This is all explained in the SLP owners manual suppliment. They call it trough wander.
Old 08-14-2005, 10:42 AM
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Trameling, is that the word for experiencing hard pulls left and right with large rubber up front. Many times as you come to a stop you really need to hang onto the wheel as it will move firmly left or right. The grooves and ruts in our road swill steer the car.
Old 08-14-2005, 11:04 AM
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Trameling, is that the word for experiencing hard pulls left and right with large rubber up front. Many times as you come to a stop you really need to hang onto the wheel as it will
No, it's called trough wander.
The way SLP explains it is a rut in the road is called a trough. When you drive over a trough with wide tires up front it's possible that only the edges of the tires are taking the load and this causes the pulling.
Old 08-14-2005, 01:07 PM
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Originally Posted by ZEEMAN
then i realized to put the hands on 10 and 2

Technically 9 and 3 are the preffered locations. This way the line connecting your hand locations passes right through the centerline of the wheel, thus under lateral acceleration when you brace yourself with the wheel, it wont affect the steering angle.
Old 08-14-2005, 01:48 PM
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Originally Posted by jxaxsxoxn
No, it's called trough wander.
The way SLP explains it is a rut in the road is called a trough. When you drive over a trough with wide tires up front it's possible that only the edges of the tires are taking the load and this causes the pulling.
Jason, FYI it's also commonly known as trammeling.

Originally Posted by DanO
Technically 9 and 3 are the preffered locations. This way the line connecting your hand locations passes right through the centerline of the wheel, thus under lateral acceleration when you brace yourself with the wheel, it wont affect the steering angle.
I said that! Sorta...
Old 08-14-2005, 04:44 PM
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I am going to say it's your front tires, since I run 275 on my fronts most of the time and the car wanders all over the place on certain roads, mostly roads that have indentations in them from the weight of the cars and trucks and on the highway where there is a groove near the right shoulder. One of my sets have 245/45 and I have no problems with the aforementioned roads with those on the car.
Old 08-14-2005, 04:47 PM
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Originally Posted by pimpmaro
If you want to get technical, you shouldn't be driving your car with your hands at 10 and 2 on the wheel. In a modern car with a properly working power steering system, you should be driving your car at 9 and 3 whether you're driving on the street or racing. It gives you more control and finesse. The reason people used 10 and 2 was the mechanical advantage they gained over the steering system in a manual rack or poorly working power steering system.

/End Public Service Announcement

Are you sure that they didn't change hand postions when Air Bags became almost standard on all cars.


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