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2011 Sorento right pull fix

76K views 129 replies 71 participants last post by  KLS 
#1 ·
I just got a call from Kia's corporate office in Irvine regarding my 2011 Kia Sorento that has been at the dealer for more than 2 weeks now getting the transmission replaced, when i spoke to the headquarters i informed him of all the various problems with my vehicle (i.e. sunroof visor rattles open under regular driving, rattling from center console, auto a/c not working properly, and how my vehicle pulls to the right up acceleration and under normal driving )and he informed me of a recent TSB to correct the car from pulling right, he stated it was just announced and was going to call the dealership to make sure they had the part or bolt that would apparently correct the defective alignment that has plagued so many sorento owners. Unfortunately since i don't have my car back yet, i cannot give you the TSB or part number for the fix. However, I can give you the number and name of the person i spoke to from Kia headquarters, just send me a private message and i will forward you his information. Hopefully when i get my vehicle back i can verify if the fix works.

jaedee33
 
#3 ·
Yeah the dealer had no idea regarding the fix and apparently the part had to actually be ordered through hyundai, and i should get it installed next week when they receive it. However with the new transmission they installed i can honestly say the pulling to the right has significantly went down as well as the excessive torque steer.. And MPG wise i was averaging 28.5 on the freeway when previously i was lucky if i averaged 23-24 on the freeway. Once i get the info from the dealer regarding part number i will post it on here.
 
#4 ·
No magic pill here with the Kia alignment pull fix.They are adjusting the wheel camber with a crank bolt to basically make the car pull left to counteract the right pull towards the ditch.Good alignment shops have been doing this for the last 30 years.NAPA sells the crank bolts in various styles and bolt diameters to fit any car or SUV.A simple job that only adds maybe 30-50 dollars to the alignment fee and it is a permanent fix.
 
#8 · (Edited)
Just another note on the front end pulling problems.Before any alignment adjustments are made to correct a pull condition ,you must be certain that the pull is not caused by a faulty tire.Switch the tires around front to back and side to side and test drive the car.If at any time a tire switch eliminates the pull or the pull goes the opposite direction,you need a new tire or multiple new tires,not an alignment.A brand new radial tire,if manufactured improperly,can cause a pretty serious pull or drift.
 
#9 ·
Ok guys jaedee33 is correct and I was told next month they will release a TSB to fix this. This is all caused by spring sag. The TSB will be to replace the coil springs with a new design and realign the car. My service manager is very friendly with the KIA tech dept and they gave him this info and also the part numbers for the new springs that are not available yet. He did not give me the part numbers. I picked mine up Friday second time for a re alignment and now its worst then ever! They really messed this car up for me I am not happy about this at all. They did some other things that I was not happy about. I called KIA and they sent my case up to national so I will be getting a call back either today or tomorrow. I will let you guys know how I made out... I do not feel safe at all with the way this car drives right now. I had a friend drive it and he said it is over steering way too much and not to make any quick turns with it like avoiding a deer. I told him he had to be kidding me but I kind of hope I do hit a dear and end this whole issue with the car. I also have the front knocking noise that the I4 has along with many other issues.
 
#11 ·
2011 Sorento pulling to the right.

Just bought a 2011 Sorento (V6). On a three lane highway: In the right lane it pulls to the right. In the middle lane, it still pulls to the right but not as much. In the left lane, it goes fairly straight. The steering wheel is always turned slightly left. I took it in for an alignment. They also rotated the tires. The problem still exists. I just read about this issue here and would like to know if there is any fix yet.
Carl
 
#14 ·
Glad I keep reading and found this post. My brand new SX has the same problem and the dealer tried rotate the tires to fix; no better. I directed them to TSB announcement I read about here to see if this applies.

I refused to take final delivery of the vehicle until the problem is fixed. Hope that puts some fire under their butts to get it fixed.
 
#15 ·
I have the I-4, and do not notice the pull. I wonder if it is related to torque steer, as both of the drivshafts are unequal ? Also, you wonder about the weight difference of the 4 and 6 cyl., and if the trans are the same ?
I recall when people first bought front-wheel drive, they would complain about pulling right or left with take-off.
 
#17 ·
I have an EX FWD 4cyl and mine tracks perfectly. I am very fussy with that sort of thing so I made sure on the test drive to look for it. My build date was 8/31/10 so maybe it was taken care of by then at the factory. I also test drove a V6 fwd and althought the power was amazing it was almost too much as there was quite a bit of torque steer and it seemed like overall it was too much power for the vehicles suspension. It just felt twitchy and nervous to me compared to the 4cyl. I think if Kia came up with a motor that put out about 200hp it would be plenty of power and while still allowing the vehicle feel very stable on its feet.
 
#19 · (Edited)
Rear suspension of my 2011 Sorento Ex-V6 was corrected to fix the problem about pulling right. The dealer told me that he has added a bolt somewhere in the rear suspension or something like that.....(but the work was performed at an independent workshop alignment).The old model had a rear suspension with a possible fit, and the new generation did not .. I am very satisfied with this repair. This is quite different!
 
#20 ·
Do you happen to have part number or model to help out us fellow pulltotherighters?

Hi all, my wife just bought a 2011 sorento and we love the car but we are experiencing the dreaded pull to the right problem. We have an appointment for Tuesday to get an alignment but I would rather not have them do it if it's going to do jack squat for us. Thanks.
 
#26 ·
Don't forget the slope to evacuate water from the road... It is normal the car pulls to the lower side of the road. Perfect sample : 3 lanes highway. Normal to pull left on left lane, normal to pull right on right lane and normal to go straight on center lane.
 
#27 ·
My dealership is still positive my problem is my tires (even after a rotation front to rear and side to side didn't fix it). They got an email from kia with a possible fix to replace the tires, they ordered them last week and will be installing them tuesday morning. They are a bridgestone (one of the dueler line of tires). They email hinted that the tires were too soft in the side wall and could have possible defects (so they are just guessing at this point).

I don't expect it to fix the issue but will take the upgraded tires if they want to give it to me and will continue to pursue the issue until it's correctly resolved.

my pull has actually become less severe over time (now have 1500 miles on it) but still disconcerning when I take my hand off the wheel and it wants to go to the ditch

I will let everyone know the results, what tires they installed, and how to go about getting them
 
#28 ·
Well new tires installed and guess what? It's not pulling now. Shocked me that it really may have been a tire issue.

They replaced the oem tires with Bridgestone dueler 684 II's, which it what comes stock on the Santa fe. They are a little stiffer and after reading reviews of them I'm not all that happy about the tire choice (complaints of being noisy, rough, and bad treadlife abound the reviews)

But it has fixed the issue.
 
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