2010 Chevy HHR pulls to the left
 

Guys,
This may or may not be the right place for this, but I'd bet there's a few wrench monkeys on here that might have some insights....

I've had a 2010 HHR since late 2015. I picked it up right with only 15K miles on it. It had some minor damage to the lower front cowl, which the dealership fixed as per the sale, and it had a pull to the left, which I assumed an alignment would fix. 7-1/2 years and at least a dozen alignments later, it's still pulls to the left. Alignment readouts show it's in spec, but it's obviously not. It also pulls the wheel to the left when I accelerate away from a stop. Since the body damage was on the right side, at the bottom edge, I am thinking the car was curbed or hit a rock or whatever, and knocked something out, but, so far, nobody's been able to root it out. The constant pressure on the wheel to make it drive straight and the cost of tires is getting really old. It's been a great small cargo vehicle for my small machining business, as well as my daily driver, but I'm preparing to upgrade to a 2500 as a tow vehicle for the family, and I really need to get this fixed so I can sell it. Thoughts?

Thanks. Brad.

Did any of the shops do a 4 wheel alignment? I'm wondering if the rear is out of wack??

Collapsed inner lining in front brake hoses? Kind of rare and usually leads to obvious brake overheating and drastic pull when brakes are applied. If you have a IR temp gun, scan the front rotors after a drive and see if one side is significantly hotter. Swap tires around and see if anything changes. 4-wheel alignment for sure.

Easy to swap front brake lines out with new ones; and not a bad thing to do at that age anyhow.
You could use your laser temp gun, and compare brake rotor and caliper temps side to side after a good 30 minute drive, and see if one side is hotter or than the other which would indicate dragging. It could also be in the rear axle.
Is it wearing brakes on one side more than the other?
How are the half shafts? Could one be slipping somehow?

UnderPsi,


https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...b06e8f76b.jpeg
This was done at Dayton Tire today. They didn’t make any adjustments.l or charge me. I’ve been told about the rear being tied out, but another shop (Acme Spring) I was referred to indicates there is “no way” that .06 degrees is enough to make it pull like it does. I’ve got an appt with Acme tomorrow to let them have a look at it. He actually mentioned motor/transaxle mounts. Sounds odd, but they know more than me, so…

The HHR, and the Cobalt it was based on, don’t have provisions for a 4 wheel alignment. The rears are “non-adjustable”. Apparently the rear wheel hubs can be shimmed, but it sounds like quite the process.

I’m 99% sure it’s not the brakes. I’ve done them every time they’ve been done, and I’ve never seen any abnormal imbalance in pad wear.

Thanks. Brad.