Torque Steer

1. Put vehicle on hoist.
A. Visually inspect for damaged front and/or rear suspension or steering components.
B. Check for obvious brake drag.
C. Swap left front tire/wheel assembly with right front tire/wheel assembly. Cross only the front tires/wheels. Do not perform a standard or modified "X" rotation.

2. Test drive the vehicle.
A. If the vehicle is fixed, OK.
B. If the vehicle torque steers in the opposite direction from the original complaint, the problem is most likely to be tire related. Proceed to step 3.
C. If the vehicle torque steers in the same direction, proceed to step 4.

3. Tire/wheel rotation for torque steer.
A. Swap LF tire/wheel assembly with LR tire/wheel and test drive.
B. If vehicle is fixed, replace LR tire (tire that was originally on RF). If vehicle is not fixed replace RF tire (tire that was originally on LF.)
C. Test drive to confirm fix. Labor operations E0100 and E0421.

4. Measure front suspension "Z" heights as specified in Service Manual. One method of taking this measurement is to stretch a string tightly between the grease fittings on the bottom of the ball joints and measure the distance up from the string to the bottom surface of the suspension support. If the side-to-side difference is greater than 6 mm (1/4 inch), correct the "Z" heights to equal settings. "Z" height can be increased by installing a new service replacement spring that is one part number "stronger" (or more if required) than the original equiqment spring. Each subsequent spring code will result in approximately 8 mm (3/8 inch) difference in "Z" height from the previous code.





5. Test drive the vehicle.
A. If the vehicle is fixed, OK Labor operation E3020 or E3021.
B. If the vehicle still torque steers, proceed to next step.

Figure 1:

6. Measure transaxle heights - see Figure 1. Side-to-side transaxle heights should be equal. If side-to-side differences are greater than 6 mm (1/4 inch), follow the engine shake-down procedure below:

A. Loosen the engine/transaxle to body mounts.
B. Start the vehicle and shift from reverse to drive slovvly three times to re-settle the engine/transaxle assembly.

Figure 2:

C. Block vehicle wheels and apply park and service brakes. With an assistant watching the engine, make sure the transmission mount is not grounded against the stop in drive. If so, shift the mount until the rubber stop is not contacting the mount with the engine in drive. Refer to Figure 2 (not applicable to 1992 Achieva).
D. Re-tighten all engine and transaxle mounts to body.
E. Check to see if the engine/transaxle is not level by measuring as described above. If it is not level, shim engine/transaxle mounts to raise the side with the lowest reading, using appropriate wheel alignment shim stock. Labor operation T4639.

7. Test drive the vehicle
A. If the vehicle is fixed, OK.
B. If the vehicle still torque steers, contact Technical Assistance.