[Oregon TDI]

From owning multiple Touaregs I can say that the variation in tire pressure between "cold" and "hot" is as much as 5 PSI. Typical is 3 but on a long hard highway run on a hot day I've seen it reach 5.

Completely normal.

 

[zosocane]

So my new 2016 is pulling slightly toward the right. About 8 weeks ago, when I had about 300 miles on my Touareg, I noticed that when I go hands-free, the car gradually shifts to the right -- doesn't hold a straight line. (No, there is no crown on the road in the middle of a four-lane expressway, which is pancake flat.) So i took it in to the dealer where I got my new 2016 for a front-end alignment, at their cost. The mechanic showed me a screenshot of the VW maintenance guide for technicians that reads:

"A wheel alignment should not be done until the vehicle has been driven 1,000 to 2,000 km (621 to 1,243 miles), since it takes this long for the coil springs to settle."

Roger that. As the weeks go by, there is no improvement. Fast forward to two days ago. At about the 1,600-mile mark, I take it back in. Ask them to perform the deferred front-end alignment. They do, after I wait 8 long hours. The problem is still there, maybe 20% to 25% improvement.

If I take it back to the same dealer, I fear I'm going to lose another full day with no improvement because I got the sense they haven't done front end alignments on Touaregs. Suggestions on next steps?

 

[noobytoogy]

They should be doing a full 4 wheel alignment.

 

[lml999]

As long as they dont charge $200 per hour for labour.

That's not too bad, as long as you can do one wheel at a time. You know, do the left front this month, the right front next month, etc. Gotta budget

 

[13Tregex]

They should be doing a full 4 wheel alignment.[/QUOTE

One thing to check before you take it back is the wheel weights.
I spoke with a European shop mechanic by chance one day and he said he has found 3 Touaregs that people wanted alignments done and they had lost wheel weights, especially common on the 20".

 

[Coldogg]

Ok so if ur car pulls to the left or right a little bit u have to remember that all new roads have what is called a crown so that water does not pool on them mistaking some pull in a vehicle aka a alignment being out when it is not but this could not be the case.
Hope that helps

 

[pommystuart]

My 2016 TDI also pulled to the Curb side during the test drive.
The dealer rotated tyres front to back. No change.
at 3000km I took it to another VW dealer who dialled out some of the drift with a 'wheel alignment' but it still pulls on any road inc Motorways. No charge.
That dealer did drop the tyre pressure from 44psi (original dealer set pressures) to 36psi.
This is the only car that I have had that they cannot/will not set it up to counter the camber.
Next wheels issue the car will be going to my local 4 wheel aligner friend.

 

[zosocane]

Ok so if ur car pulls to the left or right a little bit u have to remember that all new roads have what is called a crown so that water does not pool on them mistaking some pull in a vehicle aka a alignment being out when it is not but this could not be the case.
Hope that helps

Thanks, but as I wrote in my post, this is happening on the middle of a four-lane (really eight-lane) expressway, not a local two-lane road, so it's not the crown of the road causing the gradual pull toward the right.

 

[zosocane]

They should be doing a full 4 wheel alignment.

Thanks NT. This possible solution was not raised by my VW service manager, so I will push for this and report back.

 

[tadpole]

This illustrates why our new cars with all the fancy crap on them are a nightmare to maintain and will get worse with age. It's all neat stuff ,but it will drive you crazy as they age. We will need 10yr bumper to bumper coverage to stay solvent if you keep your cars. Probably why German cars in general are going down in quality and reliability surveys,vs Japanese and Korean models.

 

[bman400]

the pulling to the right or left is to accommodate the crown in the road. It's normal.

This is not normal, crown on road does not cause drifting to the right. I have a 2001 Subaru Forester and it is very very hard to align as well. And unless you find a good alignment shop, the answer is always, "The road is crowned to the right for water". Well, not true when I found good alignment shops the drifting to the right went away.

 

[ConservativeConsumer]

@OP:
As others said, no one aligns just 1 or 2 or 3 wheels. It should be 4 wheels. Also, request a printout of the alignment procedure results and post it here so instead of guesses people can reply back with real suggestions.

 

[pommystuart]

Alignment spec from none VW alignment

This is a RHD car.
The aligner man says my Toe was twice what it should be +3.7mm, now +1.8mm and the Caster was set more for LH drive than RH (LH +08 25, RH +08 53. Now +08 31, +08 17)
He also pulled rear toe from +3.8 to +2.4 and camber from Rh -1 50, Lh -01 32 to Rh -01 31 , Lh-01 28.

Only driven it back home on mixed roads but seems better.
Real test in a few days.

Sorry do not know how to make picture bigger. Can sent by email if any body wants it.

 

[Rossco]

Hi Pommystuart,
Suggest you have a look at my previous entry #16 Page 2 of this thread.
My wheel alignment was also out and did have it corrected. Much better ride, BUT!!!
this process threw out all the settings for the emergency braking. My Touareg was grinding to a halt when the system picked up a car slowing up in another lane. It was like the system had become cross-eyed. Quite embarrassing and very bleedin' dangerous. There was not much interest at first, but I persevered and ended up getting an entire new software package for the car as it had been set up when the alignment was out of whack. Now works well, as it should.
It may be a good idea to follow this up with your dealer. If no joy for you PM me and I will give you the contact details of my service manager who definitely knows all about it. Thank goodness.... he was extremely helpful and got all problems fixed.
Cheers.

 

[pommystuart]

Hi Rossco.
Thanks for your concern but I don't have any of that fancy stuff, mine is the bottom of the range T3 150 V6 TDI Manual breaking at all times.

Stuart.

 

[ConservativeConsumer]

This is a RHD car.
The aligner man says my Toe was twice what it should be +3.7mm, now +1.8mm and the Caster was set more for LH drive than RH (LH +08 25, RH +08 53. Now +08 31, +08 17)
He also pulled rear toe from +3.8 to +2.4 and camber from Rh -1 50, Lh -01 32 to Rh -01 31 , Lh-01 28.

Only driven it back home on mixed roads but seems better.
Real test in a few days.

Sorry do not know how to make picture bigger. Can sent by email if any body wants it.

Glad to hear about improvement in your vehicle ride's quality!
It looks like that your alignment guy is utilizing an old equipment (or maybe just different than the one I am used to). I am not familiar with printouts like yours. Newer alignment equipment's printout shows vehicle's spec values and next to it the "before/after" values so an owner can see things with his own eyes rather than listening what technician's opinion about the results is. I have no printouts of my 2012 T3 alignment handy, - to compare numbers, - but someone might and will comment. Another thing is that I'm not 100% certain that the 2015' and 2012' Touaregs' alignment specs are absolutely identical.

 

[ConservativeConsumer]

OK. Found my last wheel alignment printout...

Hope this helps.