Hi All,
I was wondering if an off-center steering wheel on an XF is an easy fix or something that needs to be brought in to correct (you know, when the car is driving straight, yet the wheel looks like I am turning). The car drives fine at all speeds, its more just an annoyance. Thanks!!

 

Looks like a tracking problem unless someone has removed and replaced wrongly. Best get tracking checked you could experience abnormal tyre wear.

 

It's a lot more work to remove and reposition a steering wheel than it is for an alignment shop to fit it by adjusting the tie rods. Plus you will get to double check your alignment is within spec and fix it if not as part of the cost.

If after the alignment your wheel is still not straight, make sure to take it back right away and they will readjust until they get it right as part of the cost.

 

Thanks for the replies. The steering wheel went crooked after I had new tires put on, and they "allegedly" did an alignment. I guess not.

 

They DID an alignment and screwed up the steering wheel position in the process. One of the alignment steps is to correctly center the steering wheel. They must have neglected that step as they adjusted the front suspension.

You did not say how far off center the wheel is. Sometimes alignment shops will set the wheel very slightly off center in order to compensate for a "crown" or "slope" in many road surfaces.

 

Wish they wouldn't do things like this because they think it's better.

It's strange when you feel the effort in the steering wheel of compensating for the crown, but the steering wheel is still straight. And then when you are on perfectly level road, you have it turned.

These alignment guys always make things worse when they try their own fixes.

 

The wheel is only off just enough for it to be annoying...and enough for me to have them fix it. If it were any less, I would probably not bother until I had to bring it in for other things. Thanks again everyone. Very helpful

 

I went and bought tires and the shop said you get a free alignment check. Tech came in and said front was off by 3 deg, I OK'd alignment knowing the tires that came off had 60K miles and no non-normal wear. 3 deg cannot be much as I usually do my own toe-in and set. Well, yes, the wheel wound up off about 5 deg to the left. Pissy fit insued and will never return to that tire shop. Worst yet, I sat there and watched him adjust tie-rods with vice grips. If interested in learning to do simple toe-ins and wheel set, lots on youtube and do it yourself tool kits on internet.

 

Two possibilities, neither is good.

Tire shop screwed up the alignment or bad tire. Even new tires can be bad and in fact usually if a tire is going to be bad it will be bad right from new.

Either way I would not be shopping at that tire shop again if I were you.

If they did not road test the car then they are incompetent.

If they road tested the car and thought that was "good enough" then they are incompetent.

There is no third explanation.

 

I brought it in today to have an alignment done again. Afterwards, they did do a road test and all is well. The wheel is perfectly straight now. Thanks all for your help.