Pilot pulling left and right

[K20FA5]

We've been having an issue with the Pilot lately.

The car will pull to the left sometimes. To the right sometimes and sometimes drives fine. This all started about the time that I put the Michelins on it. I've had people tell me that the side walls are stiffer and that could cause this. I say bologna! It aligns fine; the tire wear is fine too. The camber on the driver’s side is above spec. There is no adjustment; I have to replace the arms to get it fixed. Not sure if this could be the cause or not?????

I'll list what I've done and the order below:

1 Replaced the shocks and struts, still had the old Yokohama tires on and drove fine.

2 Had vehicle aligned to OEM specs.

3 Put new Michelin Defender LTX tires on and started to notice the random pulling.

4 Had it aligned again to OEM specs.

5 Went back to Discount Tire to have them rotate the tires, thinking it might be one of the Michelins having radial pull.

6 Noticed that the front sway bar links had torn boots, so I replaced those. I haven't done an alignment since I put these on, but I really shouldn't need to, do I????

After all of this, it still randomly pulls. It makes no rhyme or reason either. Sometimes you look at the crown of the road and say, OK it should be pulling to the right, but the car is pulling to the left. Other times, the wind is blowing hard onto the passenger’s side, so I would think it should be pulling to the left, but it's pulling to the right.

I did notice the other day that if I make a left hand turn, the car then seems to pull to the left after that. Then if I make a right hand turn, the car seems to pull to the right after that. I might just be imagining that, it doesn't seem logical to me, but that is what it seems to be doing.

Does anyone have any advice for me on this one? It's making me crazy LOL. Thanks!

 

[Rand]

I have no idea the suspension setup on a pilot..
But I had a similar issue and it was the strut bearing plates.
I'm sure someone with knowledge of Pilots will reply soon.

 

[IndyIan]

Put it in D3 at 55mph on the highway and get on and off the gas without moving the steering wheel. If it veers one way or the other you've got something loose in the suspension/steering.
A loose ball joint in mac strut suspension can cause odd steering issues that seem random.

 

[OneEyeJack]

I had a problem with Michelin tires on my 4Runner. 2 were replaced under warranty right off the bat because of tread separations and bulges in the sidewalls along with intermittent pulling to one side or the other. The alignment, shocks and suspension components were all checked and okay. These tires were a replacement for the original Michelin Cross Terrains that lasted 80K miles and were excellent but discontinued. These replacement Michelins were not acceptable because of more problems. All 4 ended up getting replaced and still there were problems. 2 more tires were replaced. In frustration I switched to Firestone Destination LE 2's with a good discount from Discount Tire where I purchased those replacement Michelins and the problems ended.

 

[meep]

being that it can pull against the grain, such as UP the road crown or INTO the wind, I would look at the rear end. raise the tire pressure on the back just as a test. Inspect bolts for looseness.

I don't recall - but can you pull a fuse to deactivate the SH-AWD. I'm not sure if its torque vectoring intelligence uses just steering inputs or if it also has a yaw sensor, but disabling that to eliminate that could be helpful.

when was the oil last changed in the rear AWD unit?

 

[MolaKule]

Another consideration is valving in the steering rack.

When was the last time you had the PS fluid changed and analyzed?

 

[K20FA5]

Originally Posted By: meep
being that it can pull against the grain, such as UP the road crown or INTO the wind, I would look at the rear end. raise the tire pressure on the back just as a test. Inspect bolts for looseness.

I don't recall - but can you pull a fuse to deactivate the SH-AWD. I'm not sure if its torque vectoring intelligence uses just steering inputs or if it also has a yaw sensor, but disabling that to eliminate that could be helpful.

when was the oil last changed in the rear AWD unit?


It's just a FWD. The only thing that is out (that I can tell) is the camber on the driver's side. It's about -1 degree more than it should be. There is no adjustment on this car, so I would need to replace the upper control arm.

When I put new shocks and struts on it, I replace all the hardware up front with new (mounting plates, bump stops, etc).

 

[K20FA5]

Originally Posted By: MolaKule
Another consideration is valving in the steering rack.

When was the last time you had the PS fluid changed and analyzed?


I have done a turkey baster method since new at every other oil change. Never a full change and no UOA on it.

 

[ARCOgraphite]

Make sure the tire pressure isn't too high or lets say more than 2psig above recommended. Make sure front coil springs are in perches and pightails are in wells. Check front axle intermediate "pillow" bearing to make sure its not worn or mount loose. Check motor mounts.

and like Rand says,k upper strt steering race are usually pounded to death by 40-70K miles on moderate bumpy roads and moderately overinflated tires. That would shoe up as camber. Cross camber (L-R delta) will steer you. Is it more than 0.5 deg?

 

[mclasser]

Could be worn compliance bushings. I had mine checked out during an inspection at the dealer. SA said Honda extended the warranty on these bushings due to widespread failure.

Hit up your dealer and see what they say.

 

[440Magnum]

Originally Posted By: K20FA5
Originally Posted By: meep
being that it can pull against the grain, such as UP the road crown or INTO the wind, I would look at the rear end. raise the tire pressure on the back just as a test. Inspect bolts for looseness.

I don't recall - but can you pull a fuse to deactivate the SH-AWD. I'm not sure if its torque vectoring intelligence uses just steering inputs or if it also has a yaw sensor, but disabling that to eliminate that could be helpful.

when was the oil last changed in the rear AWD unit?


It's just a FWD. The only thing that is out (that I can tell) is the camber on the driver's side. It's about -1 degree more than it should be. There is no adjustment on this car, so I would need to replace the upper control arm.

When I put new shocks and struts on it, I replace all the hardware up front with new (mounting plates, bump stops, etc).


"Just FWD" is irrelevant, if the rear end has a faulty suspension component or the rear alignment is out of spec, that can show up as a "steering" input causing wandering or pulling. That's even true of old-school solid axle rear suspensions if a track bar or link bushing is sloppy, or even leaf springs if the bushings get bad enough. Its even more true of IRS setups.

 

[mehullica]

You can easily change front camber without changing arms. There's "skinny" bolts you replace that bolt the strut to the steering knuckle. You can get about 1 degree by replacing both bolts. Since the bolt is narrower than the OEM bolt, it allows some movement between the two parts.

 

[cptbarkey]

ball joints.

 

[Cujet]

Let's assume there are no mechanical faults....

Then you have a classic "toe out" condition.

It's rather common for vehicles to require a good bit of "toe in" to prevent wandering and other symptoms. The more compliant the suspension, the more toe in required.

I'd try adjusting the tie rods for a bit more toe in. Remember, most alignments are done without driver and passenger weight. And they don't take into account, dynamic issues, such as road crown, which can cause toe out.