CONSTANT DRAG
Q
I have a 1969 Triumph 1300 which has a problem in that the steering is constantly dragging to the nearside. This means that if I take my hands off the wheel for a second, the car will veer over to the left and not travel straight ahead as I would expect it to. I have checked to ensure that the brakes are not binding at all, and I have had the tracking on the front wheels checked by two different garages, both of whom have confirmed that the tracking is correct. Close inspection under the vehicle confirms that the body and structure of the vehicle appears to be original and I do not suspect that it has been in any major accident in the past, but I am at a loss to know why the steering constantly drags. I am sure this will wear my tyres out as well as my patience. Any thoughts?
David Scrace
AI would first make the presumption that the tyres are all good and that the pressures are set evenly. Although you mention you have had the tracking checked, I suspect this was only on the front wheels. If that is the case, and providing a full check of the steering geometry was carried out including the camber and caster settings, one problem that was quite a common issue and may be the reason for your problems is that the rear subframe is out of alignment.
The quickest way to check this is to measure the distance between the centre of the front and rear hubs. This is a two-person job and can be done easily with a length of strong cord. Both sides should be exactly equal, but if any difference in the measurement is found, then it can be confirmed that there is a problem in this area and the most likely cause is that the rear subframe is out of alignment. If that is the case, then this will need to be addressed and should remedy the problem of the vehicle steering off to one side.