Pulling right + memory steer
 

Bought a 2002 A6 4.2 a few months ago. When I bought it, I noticed that it pulled to the right just a bit, figured it needed an alignment. So after the safety check work was done which required a few control arms and such... thus needing an alignment regardless! After the alignment, the car still pulled to the right just a bit... kind of the same as when I first bought the car! Took it back to the shop they double checked the alignment... showed everything was in the green. They suggested it might be the tires, so I swapped left and right on the front, and unfortunately it still pulled to the right about the same. The shop still saying it was the tires, so I put the winter tires on and it still pulls to the right about the same. Brought it back to the shop for a 3rd time, they checked the alignment, still in the green, they said the front end is super tight, nothing is loose... they tried tweaking the toe-in to force it to drive straight, didn't seem to help?

I noticed something else that it has, what is called "memory steer"... which is a situation where you are turning a very sharp 90 degree turn from a stop (like at an intersection on narrow side streets)... once you round the corner, the steering wheel should return to center by itself without much assistance. When I turn left it does this just fine, but turning right, it doesn't return as easily. So the shop says this can be due to a shock-mount bearing being worn or a caster alignment issue. But the alignment shows the caster is in the green! Also, the shock mount bearing idea does not explain why it pulls to the right? The shop seems to be stumped!

So if anybody has any ideas on what this could be or what we could do to figure out what is causing this... would be greatly appreciated.

Was the car hit? Sounds like a caster issue. Can you post the alignment numbers? "In the green" does not sound very reassuring.

Probably sounds like a dumb question but when you say they aligned the car was it a four wheel alignment or just the front? If the car history is available that would be something to consider. CARFAX should indicate if the car was in a collision in the past and should also indicate the severity of the damage.

As far as I know the car has not been hit... because we discussed that at length... the shop said there is no obvious indications that collision repairs have been made. They didn't give me the before and after alignment numbers (even though I asked for them). They did a four wheel alignment (twice). I asked what do they mean by "in the green"... they said that the current measurements from the alignment machine match the factory specs.

I think it would be money well spent to get the CARFAX report. I think it is something like $50 for the report and might give you valuable info about the car. If it is pulling to the same direction after all the work that has been done something is obviously amiss with the car. Most of the newer alignment machines that are computerized can generate a printed copy of the numbers. I don't understand the shop's reluctance/ failure to provide the information you asked for. Whenever I have asked a repair shop for information of before and after specs on similar work, if the said they couldn't or wouldn't do that, I went looking for another shop.

I think you are absolutely right... I will take a look at getting a CARFAX (or whatever is similar in Canada)... and for sure I will be taking it to a specialty alignment shop for a 2nd opinion. Please note, this is not a huge "pull to the right", it is very minor, but still there is an issue that I want to get to the bottom of.

In Canada the equivalent to CARFAX is called CARPROOF. Ran a report and it says that this car has never been "reported" to be in an accident.

Yeah, gotcha. With what these cars cost it should track straight as an arrow if all the specs are met. Just an after thought, double check all your tire pressures. I know you moved them around already but get a really accurate gauge and then try adjusting pressures and see if it makes a difference.

The tire pressures were an issue for sure... as a few of the tire/rim combinations had slow air leaks... but we certainly experimented with high and low tire pressures on the most recent set of tires... and the air leaks have been addressed... the tire pressure experiments didn't seem to make much difference. So I think the next step is to get it into the Alignment Specialty Shop asap.

Another thought popped into my head this morning. Brake drag. Is there a possibility that a brake isn't fully releasing? When you apply the brakes fairly firmly does it still pull? Being in Canada I'm guessing that salt is used in the winter time to deice the roads. If a build up of crud or corrosion has built up on the caliper sliding surfaces maybe a brake is hanging up ever so slightly. It would be a fairly simple task to address on a weekend. Pull the wheels and inspect the pads for unusual wear ( wearing on a bias, inside pad thinner than the outside or vice versa, etc). Look for a build up of brake dust, rust, etc on the caliper mounts and pins/ bolts.