Steering wheel not centering

[Baxter01]

just noticed that steering wheel is not centering after turning left.  If i turn left into a street it will turn back to the right, but stop usually a good 30 degrees or more off centre then i have to straighten by hand.  Turning the wheel right seems to slowly go back to centre and if i move it slight to the right it seems to centre ok and instantly.  If i touch the steering wheel left slightly it seems to just stay there.  Anyone have similiar issues? does yours always return dead centre?

i also dont think it straightens if i move slowly, say in a car park.  will check later.

its a late 2011 auris, bought end of may this year

[Clivuus]

Baxter01

.                 I had a similar problem on a previous car which turned out to be ball joints in the steering rack. The gator had come adrift and let water into the joint causing the joint to start seizing up. This would be a good place to start looking as ball joints are relatively cheap to replace. Also worth checking is the front wheel tracking as hitting a pot hole/kerb can cancel the self centring of the car.

 

[Mooly]

Its also worth checking tyre pressures and making sure that similar tyres in a similar state of wear are fitted to left and right. No mismatches.

[Baxter01]

Had wheel alignment done, but still the same.

 

anyone else with the first gen auris able to check if theres is similiar.  After turning left, steering wheel will not centre, goes to about 10/11 oclock, so have to move it to centre

[alan333]

We had a 2011 Auris (with low miles and FDSH) which did the same.  It always felt 'fidgetty' on the road, and the steering randomly wouldn't self-centre.  Sorry but we never got to the bottom of it.  It's one of the main two reasons we got rid of it - the other reason being the dreadful MMT 'auto' gearbox.

[jgodfrey]

My 2011 hybrid is the same and pulls to the left slightly on flat roads. The steering wheel centres at around 11 o'clock and its been that way since I got it in March, could have been curbed by a previous owner I guess? I've been meaning to get a laser alignment done since I bought it but I haven't got around to it yet.

[FROSTYBALLS]

I've had two Auris (2009 and 2012) and not had an issue with self centring on either.

[Ben.]

I've got 57 auris with a similar issue, very subtle pull to the left. I'll take it apart to have a look at the steering rack when i get a chance

[Baxter01]

But there is no pull to the left, it just wont centre after turning left.

turning a corner it will return to about 10/11 oclock, i then pull it to 12, at 12 car is perfectly straight.  If i turn right is usually turns back to centre depending on road conditions.

when on a road with a slight bend, when i turn wheel left to 10/11 oclock it would stay in that position.

only time it will go back to 12 on a left turn, is only if its a small turn left, say 9-11 oclock and im doing 60+ mph,

had car for 5 months, and had the uj on the steering column replaced, few months ago

[Mooly]

I've kept meaning to try this....

Straight road and no camber and steering tracks straight and true for as long as you wish.

Turn right and steering self centres, possible slightly overcorrecting to give a slight left bias.

Turn left and steering does not fully centre but remains with left bias. Bring the wheel to straight ahead and it tracks correctly in a dead straight line.

Owned from new and never curbed. I seem to recall similar behaviour on my 2002 Corolla Tsport.   

 

[Baxter01]

Yeah thats it, right turn steering self centres, but on left slows to a stop at 10/11 oclock, so you have to move it centre, once centre it tracks in a straight line.

 

any small turns or touches of the wheel to the left, to 10/11 oclock, and it will stay there.  It seems to get closer to centre when doing 60 mph on roads will left bends.

 

how far off is yours?  Dont know if i should bring it back to garage before 6 month warrenty runs out

[Mooly]

Its very variable depending on the surface and speed. How far off... hard to put a figure on it but I would say if you imagine a clock face, then the clock hands would be at around 12 minutes past and 18 minutes to the hour.

Another trait I suspect it has is that less force is needed to turn the wheel left compared to turning right. That all said, I don't view these as faults but rather a characteristic of the car. They are not troublesome in normal driving, more something that an analytical report might highlight.