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I am having this exact problem with an 05 Kia. New tires and an "aligment" later(can you call it an alignment when all they adjust is the TOE??) it stills pulls just as much.
I can tell you the problem right now and my service guy and I are about to have it out over this: you have to make your car adjustable. You have three adjustable bolts up there controlling your alignment and usually these are housed in a slot, thus making it adjustable. On some cars there is no slot and a slot has to be bored out to adjust the camber or caster--this is not unique to Kia, common on GM cars too, apparently.
So that's the story. They will eventually try to sell you a bearing package and rotate your tires ad nauseum but that isn't going to help. You have to reset that stinking camber.
Welcome to the forum, KayDeeArr. Interesting that you have an Optima doing this as the Rondo is built on that platform. Good suggestion on boring a hole out at the strut mount to adjust the camber. Although this may lead to abnormal rust.
Very frustrating, I have not heard from the rep yet on whether or not the alignment machine is fixed. They want to get a reading to see what they can do to adjust the camber. The rep mentioned shortening a strut bolt.
As for pulling in the snow I have not any additional problem from the pulling. Although I have no frame of reference because my Rondo pulled from day 1.
Your remark about GM is interesting. I've got Buicks and camber is adjustable on them. It was also adjustable on all my and my friends domestic Chryslers, TC3s, Caravans, Lasers Daytonas. I'm also pretty sure it was on my 78 Ford Fiesta (The World Car). GM's mini cars, the Geos, etc are made in Korea. I wonder if these are the ones with no adjustments.
The very thought of drilling a hole to correct camber is really frightening. First, you are going to have a dealer, who can't keep his most basic equipment in shape (an alignment rack) drill a hole oversized to allow a setting. Who is going to tell him how big to make the hole; is he going to go through the math do figure it out? And if he does, what is going to hold the adjustment? Friction? Realize that if this is done, the bolt in the undrilled hole is going to support the entire load on that side. The hole gets bigger in vertical and horizontal dimensions, so friction will have to hold both the camber (not likely) and the vertical load, not very likely.
The adjustment I'm familiar with isn't just a slotted hole, but a slotted hole in combination with an eccentric bolt. The bolt can be tightened sufficiently not to rotate and that is what maintains the camber setting; not clamping pressure on the strut!
Last edited by G WILLIE FOX : 02-26-2008 at 06:05 PM.
Didn't Graeme Fletcher, the guy who does automobile test drives on the Motoring 2007 (now 2008) TV show and a columnist for a Toronto-based newspaper (can't remember the name of the publication), end up buying a V-6 Rondo for himself?? I wonder if it wouldn't be worthwhile for someone to send him a copy of this thread. Who knows, maybe his Rondo has the same problem.
Kia Canada may be more responsive to the "pulling to the right problem" that some people are having with their Rondos if someone in the media brought it to their attention. I realize that it may be "a shot in the dark", but then again, it might just work.
I have e-mailed Graeme Fletcher and copied Bill Gardiner of Motoring 2008. If I get a response I will be sure to share it here!
Narvo, did you ever hear back from Fletcher or Gardiner? If not, I guess that's to be expected, although I was hoping Fletcher would follow up on it since he owns a Rondo and seems to be quite a fan of it.
Narvo, did you ever hear back from Fletcher or Gardiner? If not, I guess that's to be expected, although I was hoping Fletcher would follow up on it since he owns a Rondo and seems to be quite a fan of it.
Narvo, did you ever hear back from Fletcher or Gardiner? If not, I guess that's to be expected, although I was hoping Fletcher would follow up on it since he owns a Rondo and seems to be quite a fan of it.
By sheer coincidence, Motoring 2008 is doing their long-term wrap-up of the Rondo in this weekend's episode. Wonder if they'll mention the pulling to the right??
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