Recently bought new Sonata- noticed drifting to right early on. Have had 3
alignments (one after replacement of lower right control arm, as
recommended by alignment tech, not Hyundai). Cross camber barely out of
spec, other camber and caster readings OK but not optimal for road crown.
Still has slight drift to right. Hyundai dealership has been great, but
now Hyundai is deciding on installation of aftermarket caster/camber kit
so alignment can be corrected. Hyundai attorneys deciding if this can be
done (liability). I'm concerned about future tire wear and handling. Any
others with this problem? Thanks- (Otherwise, no complaints- 3500 miles.)

 

On Mon, 18 Oct 2004 05:28:29 -0400, "EBSteve"
<scross0823@nospam.msn.com> wrote:

>Recently bought new Sonata- noticed drifting to right early on. Have had 3
>alignments (one after replacement of lower right control arm, as
>recommended by alignment tech, not Hyundai). Cross camber barely out of
>spec, other camber and caster readings OK but not optimal for road crown.
>Still has slight drift to right. Hyundai dealership has been great, but
>now Hyundai is deciding on installation of aftermarket caster/camber kit
>so alignment can be corrected. Hyundai attorneys deciding if this can be
>done (liability). I'm concerned about future tire wear and handling. Any
>others with this problem? Thanks- (Otherwise, no complaints- 3500 miles.)

If they're going to install aftermarket parts which are better than
the factory parts (which they most certainly are) then I wouldn't
complain unless they want you to pay the difference.

 

Excessive cross-camber shouldn't cause a tire wear problem as long as each
wheel's camber is within spec. The aftermarket parts aren't necessarily
"better" than factory. Most likely, the strut mounting bolts are thinner
allowing the strut to be moved to bring the car into alignment. I
wouldn't want to do it to my car.

Has it been established that it's not a radial tire pull and that the
struts or other parts are not bent?

 

Latest update- took car to Hyundai dealership to confirm alignment issue-
same as before. Hyundai will NOT authorize installation of caster/camber
kit due to liability. Next step rests with Hyundai District Mgr. Radial
tire pull was ruled out initally, before any alignments were attempted.
Bent parts have not been mentioned by mechanics, but dealership's Service
Mgr. says they'll "replace the whole front end" if they have to.

At issue here is 1) Car really does drift- apparently most Sonatas (but
not the one I bought) are assembled at the factory to (at least partially)
address this- otherwise, many others would be complaining. 2)
Tolerances/fits will get looser with time, so I don't have a feel for how
handling (and tire wear) will be in the future. 3)I paid for a new car,
not 99% right, but 100%. (It's the principle...)

I guess I don't know how far I should pursue this... All I know is, it's
not quite right. (Service Mgr. and salesman both bought 2004 Sonata's,
though theirs were 4 cyl.'s- neither of them indicate they have this
problem.)

Thanks for your replies...

 

On Sat, 23 Oct 2004 09:02:31 -0400, "EBSteve"
<scross0823@nospam.msn.com> wrote:

>Latest update- took car to Hyundai dealership to confirm alignment issue-
>same as before. Hyundai will NOT authorize installation of caster/camber
>kit due to liability. Next step rests with Hyundai District Mgr. Radial
>tire pull was ruled out initally, before any alignments were attempted.
>Bent parts have not been mentioned by mechanics, but dealership's Service
>Mgr. says they'll "replace the whole front end" if they have to.
>
>At issue here is 1) Car really does drift- apparently most Sonatas (but
>not the one I bought) are assembled at the factory to (at least partially)
>address this- otherwise, many others would be complaining. 2)
>Tolerances/fits will get looser with time, so I don't have a feel for how
>handling (and tire wear) will be in the future. 3)I paid for a new car,
>not 99% right, but 100%. (It's the principle...)
>
>I guess I don't know how far I should pursue this... All I know is, it's
>not quite right. (Service Mgr. and salesman both bought 2004 Sonata's,
>though theirs were 4 cyl.'s- neither of them indicate they have this
>problem.)
>
>Thanks for your replies...

Have you checked into your state's Lemon Law?