[Cineverse]

Hey Guys!

I recently picked up a 2012 Volkswagen Touareg Exec, and love absolutely everything about it! by far its the best vehicle I've ever owned.

This forum has been very helpful in diagnosing my steering shake issues which were solved by mounting a new set of Michelins and a very good road force balance coupled with proper wheel centering/ mounting technique.

Vehicle history is;

2012 Exec (second owner)
72,000 kms
20" Rims (some curb rash on the front wheels)
275/45/20 (Michelins Brand New)

The issues I'm having is my steering requires a lot of effort and constant attention to keep going straight more so then any other vehicle or Volkswagen I've ever owned, I do understand the Touareg is a little more sensitive to road surfaces and road crowning, however I feel as if I am not constantly correcting the steering wheel the vehicle will wander all over the road which takes away some of the joy of driving the Touareg.

After initially glancing over my most recent alignment I thought everything seemed to be correct and in spec and was going to take it to the dealer to start diagnosing possible steering rack issues. However on a second more thorough glance I noticed the SAI angle to be a degree off (side to side) and from my understanding its suppose to be the exact same side to side and any variance might point to bent suspension components.


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I found the following information about SAI from another alignment site.

'S.A.I.:
Purpose
1. Keep wheels In straight ahead position
2. Help. wheel return from turning
3. Improve directional stability reducing the need for
additional positive caster
4. Helps In placing more load on larger Inner wheel bearing
5. Assist In maintaining straight line control when braking
On vehicles with long short control arms, the average S.A.I. Is 7 to 10 degrees. On strut suspension, the average S.A.I. is from 10 to 17 degrees. This may explain why some vehicles with a large amount of camber difference don't seem to pull.

QUICK CHECK
S.A.I. and Included Angle

* Is a directional control angle
* Is a built In angle

a) * On vehicles that have camber adjusters on bottom of the strut, S.A.I. angle does not change.
* If S.A.I. angle Is wrong on this type of front end. It would indicate a bent shock tower, bent lower control
arm or bent cross member, etc.
b) * On vehicles that have camber adjusters at the upper or lower control arm, or at the top of the struts, S.A.I. will
change, but Included angle will remain the same. If INCLUDED ANGLE Is Incorrect, a bent spindle or MacPherson strut Is Indicated.'



My question is since I'am having difficulty keeping the Touareg straight and since SAI shows a variance of 1 degree 10.9 vs 11.9 alongside the included angle. How would I be able to diagnose the culprit suspension part, would an alignment shop or specialist shop be able to diagnose the issue?

Also does my alignment look correct!?

Is it likely that I have a defective steering rack instead?

Any help at all would be greatly appreciated,

Cheers

Gary

 

[roalco]

The issues I'm having is my steering requires a lot of effort and constant attention to keep going straight more so then any other vehicle or Volkswagen I've ever owned, I do understand the Touareg is a little more sensitive to road surfaces and road crowning, however I feel as if I am not constantly correcting the steering wheel the vehicle will wander all over the road which takes away some of the joy of driving the Touareg.

I think the opposite is true, I have found my '12 with stock 20" rims to be rock steady and precise at all speeds , and in all conditions, highway (up to 140kph), gravel, heavy rain, slush and snow it doesn't pull and it tracks like it's on railroad tracks, much better than my old XJ12L Jaguar, which until I got the treg, was the most stable car I had ever driven. If your tires are in good condition, and your wheels are true and balanced correctly, I'd be suspicious of your entire front end, starting with potential damage caused when the front wheels were curbed.
That said, when I took delivery of my treg, new, it was winter and I immediately had 17" rims and snows fitted at KalTire, and they did a full computer alignment and corrected a few of the stock settings which were out. But flipping back and forth between summer and winter change overs for the last 3 1/2 years, my alignment hasn't needed to be redone, neither has it ever experienced steering wheel shake.

 

[BenTDI]

I'll agree with roalco, I have a 2012 Exec with the 20" Pikes Peaks and had both the stock Goodyear LS2's and now Continental DWS with almost 20,000 miles on them-never been rotated, and my TDI is still dead-on and has none of the issues you have with your 2012.

I had steering wheel shake when I first got the truck but all it took was to adjust the PSI in all the tires and I made sure all the lugnuts were torqued to 133 ft lbs and I was fine.

I had the shop put on new tires and didn't even bother with making sure they torqued all the lugnuts to 133 ft lbs and I still got no SWS.

 

[fincher]

Mine sometimes wants to drift right ever so slightly (crown?). I do not rotate my tires. I do keep one hand one the wheel. I do get alignment checked every 6-9 months and check tire pressure often.

 

[nickm]

Same story as the other guys I'm running 20" Scorpion Verdes. Typical german rock steady at any speed.

Yes it is super sensitive to crown in the road but its consistent and you know what to expect.

I'd be sniffing out bent suspension components, there are a lot of control arms under there...maybe previous owner damage.

 

[fincher]

Running 20" Continental DWS tires. Like 'em a lot.

 

[Terapin]

My 2012 TDI Exec with 20's was always dead on (after initial alignment from purchasing dealer). Exceptional road feel for sure, but dead on alignment and no SWS. Yes, the Touareg would wander right if in the right lane and wander left if in the left lane, and on the flat would go straight. Unless the wife "curbed" it (easy to do with 20" rims)...at which point it was $300 to $500 for an alignment and fix the rim...then it was straight again.

 

[Newegg]

Since the tires are new I would want to rule out the possibility of a bad tire. Rotate tires front to back and see if that resolves the problem. If it does you have a bad tire. Good luck.

 

[M Diddy]

Since the tires are new I would want to rule out the possibility of a bad tire. Rotate tires front to back and see if that resolves the problem. If it does you have a bad tire. Good luck.

^ This. Had the same issue on my 03 Jetta back in the day. New set of tires had a bad shake anytime I hit 60. Had it balance, re-balanced, and even road forced balanced, but the shake remained.

Company (can't remember the name) replaced the tire and no more shake. It can happen sometimes.