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My car pulls hard to the right.
My car has pulled hard to the right for at least a 2 months but since I'm planning a big trip soon I want to solve this problem if I can without spending over 2-3 hundred bucks since the car is a 91. I even noticed the wheel shakes when I take my hands off it. Thank you
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Often times this is due to bad tires. Cracks develop in the surface of the tire and the belt inside it starts breaking up.
Either that or there is a significant brake problem. Look at your tires and if they are worn replace them. A blowout at highway speeds can cause fatal accidents anyway. If the tire isn't the problem, have the front end, especially your brakes, checked.
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There are any number of reasons for what is happening to happen. First is the fact that the car is 20 years old and has 230,00 mile on it. Many of the parts may have worn out. Parts such as the shocks, rack and pinon gear, this is the steering mechanism, ball joints and other front end items. These items are all replaceable after which you put new tires on the car and have a full care alignment done.
If the car has been in an accident and the body is out of alignment then fixing the front end will repair most of your problems. Although the car will still not track properly and may even be unsafe to drive.
The first thing I would do is get the serial number and get a car fax report, found on the web, to see what kind of damage has been done to this vehicle by any previous owners. Print out the report then go to a certified automotive mechanic, show them the report and let them look the car over and tell you if it is worth repairing and would be safe to drive after the repairs.
Replacing any or all of the front end of your car, given its age, would be something I would not recommend. The cost of the repair would be more than the car is worth. You would be far better off putting the money towards a newer car.
Should you decide to do so make sure to get a car fax report on the vehicle before you sign any documents and that you can take the car to a certified mechanic before purchase. Any reputable car dealer will allow this.
With all the storms damage we have had in the past several years there are many fine looking cars on used car lots that are unsafe to drive due to storm flooding and other damage. A car Fax report will tell you this. Also a certified mechanic will be able to see this damage.
CarMax has there own version of car fax. Even if I were to buy a car from them and they are a very reputable used car dealer. I would still run my own car fax report. CarMax has their own version as a cost savings measure for them. It is probably just as reliable as the car fax report but there is just that bit of doubt in my mind that would cause me to run my own report .
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Has it pulled since you had it, or was ok and it's just started? If it's just started you might have bashed a kerb or something and knocked the tracking/geometry out. A cheap adjustment might fix it, but it needs the garage gear to measure steering geometry. Take it to a garage anyway at least so they can take a look before lots of motoring. Something could well have broken or even fell off and the car could be a death-trap waiting to happen. It's easy to put up with faults when you're just popping around town shopping and stuff, but on a big trip it's a bit different. If it really bottoms-out on bumps too have a look at how the car 'sits' looking at it from the front. If it leans a bit to the side it pulls to you might have broken the spring? I broke a front spring once. You'd think it'd be obvious, and the car would sort of collapse on that corner But the broken bits can stay in place, just work crap. Either way 230K is a big mileage, and everything's go to be very tired and past it's best. They don't last forever mate. But get a mechanic to look it over for SURE before you go on a big trip, and listen to what he says.
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I'm assuming you are the second, third, or multiple owner by now considering the car is 20-years-old. There is only ONE reason that car is pulling to the right.
Unbeknown (likely) to you this car has in the past been in an accident with front end damage that has screwed up the steering, alignment, chassis, suspension, shocks and cannot ever be repaired. That's also why the wheel vibrates in your hand.
It's been in a wrap-up who knows how severe and then "fixed" by a mechanic. Certain of it. You have only now learned of this because of the terrain you're driving over with shitty roads. It's NOT entirely a safe situation to drive a vehicle like that either. At 230,000 miles it's best to try and find a better vehicle as soon as possible.
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