Okay, I know that California doesn't have the best roads, but does anyone else experience a lot of pulling by the front wheels while they are braking on uneven or broken pavement. I swear, sometimes if I let my hands off the wheel while braking normally to come to a stop, my RX-8 would jump three lanes...

I'm taking my car to the dealership for the second CEL and first oil change today and would like to know if I should mention this braking problem to them or if it's normal...

THANKS FOR YOUR HELP!

 

I've had that happen several times (not 3 lanes worth, though).

My Service Tech mentioned that it's the DSC/TCS overcompensating with brake force on one side. This causes counter steer.

As a test he told me to turn off DSC by holding the button down for 5 seconds. I drove this way for a few weeks and low and behold, no phantom steering wheel pulls.

Any thoughts?

 

I remember hearing a long time ago the best way to check your alingment was to let you hands off the wheel and brake. If it went straight, you were fine.

So if that statement is true, alingment would be something to at least check.

 

I understand alignment, but the car is only pulling while braking NOT all the time. I have experienced this problem before and it has been caused by a brake system problem, not alignment issues.

huhsler, thanks for the tip! I will try that at lunch today before I take the car in.

 

i have and to continue to have this on occasion, it is always on the same stretch of road(s). search my posts for the thread about it we had going awhile ago. but it is "normal" in the sense that there is nothing wrong with the car. its a combination of the dcs,abs, big wide tires and grooves/ruts in the road. but mostly it is the tires and grooves.

 

I havent noticed it at speed on open roads. I do notice considerable pull sometimes as I slow below 5 mph. Just as I come to a spot, I feel a tug pulling the car to the right.

 

Again, as I stated, this is ONLY while braking to come to a complete stop. It usally occurs in the last 5-20 feet of the stop.

 

Here in Spokane we have some of the $#!++iest roads out there. I have experienced no such problem but if I did that would be an instant turn around and trip to the dealer. If the DSC/TC and ABS systems are over compensating while in normal driving conditions what is it going to be like if you really need them? ABS is designed to keep you stable while braking and the DSC is there to keep you stable while cornering and if you are being pulled to the wrong side while trying to avoid a car or going too hot into a corner you will be in serious trouble.

 

I've experienced pronounced darting with the OEM tires -- which can included stops. When I switched to my 245/50R17 winters most of the darting disappeared.

Is it every stop or just on certain heavily traficked roads?

 

wide low profile tires will cause this problem on roads with swells or grooves in them. so hold on to the damn wheel when you drive or you wont be on the road long, in my civic i vould actuall drive down some roads that had really big ruts in them without holding on to the wheel accelerate and i would go right decelerate and i would go left but it depends on the road and the grooves. if you dont believe me then fly out here and i will show you.

 

You aren't alone. I feel the 'pull' also (exactly like you described). I assumed it was normal. ???

 

The car seems very sensitive to roads where depressions have been made by high traffic or overweight trucks. It's particularly noticable when nearing the end of a stop.

Could it be that the sensors in the electric power steering get a little too helpful under these conditions?


- Eric H.
2004 '8 titanium
1976 Alfa Romeo Spider

 

Every road in So. Cal is heavily trafficed. lol Yes it's mostly on roads with uneven or broken pavement. But again, this is only happening while braking to a stop.

 

Same here, I feel the pull on the wheels when coming to a complete stop, and only when I am turning (turn lane) usually. I am going to try turning off the DSC to make sure everything is fine.

 

Me too. Usually at the same stop lights, I think always to the left. If I'm driving with one hand, there's a definite, "Woaha!" moment.

 

A lot of sports cars do this. It's a mixture of things. As mentioned earlier, part of it is the wide, low profile tires. The car also has a stiffer suspension. All of this means that the car is less able to compensate for the ruts you sometimes encounter in pavement. You usually find this at intersections where cars sit. This explains why you notice it under braking. Cars with taller tires and softer suspension basically soak up these imperfections better.

 

yea i have experienced this at the same places to and from work.

 

First, I've never heard of checking your alignment by taking your hand off the wheel while braking. I have heard of checking your alignment by taking your hand off the wheel while cruising (on a flat, un-crowned, surface.) It would seem to me that looking for pull to the right or left while braking would tell you about the brakes, not about the alignment.

That out of the way. If the abrupt pulling that you describe occurs ONLY on crappy roads, then it's probably due to some interaction between the tires and the crappy roads. Why or how this would only occur during braking is beyond me but if you're only seeing it on ragged roads, that tells me the roads are an integral part of the underlying cause. If, on the other hand, you're seeing this intermittently (or consistently) on smooth surfaces as well, then obviously it's not the road-rut syndrome (at least not exclusively) and I'd suggest that someone check it out.

I've only got about 10 days with my 8 and I've not noticed the described pulling yet. Then again, most of the roads where I live are pretty-well maintained. I drove my last car for 3 years (wide tires/ABS/traction control/rear-wheel drive) and never experienced what you described on even the crappiest roads. I should re-state the last sentence. I have experienced steering wheel pull on bad roads but it got no better nor no worse as a function of braking on those roads.

Since you're talking about your well-being and potentially the well-being of others, not to mention the cost of repairs if this IS a mechanical defect, I'd recommend having someone check it out. At least get it checked and documented at the dealer. That way if the dang car takes you into someone's yard some day when you hit the brakes you can at least stand in the court-room and say you had the car checked out.

 

Yeah, what FirstSpin said.

Rutted roads can be a real bear to hold your position in your lane. Sometimes, I have to wonder what I look like to other cars around me. I must look like some kind of retard, jerking around, trying to hold her in the position that I want to be in. It is embarasing sometimes! I've just chalked it off to the low profile tires & a tight suspension, but the DSC question that came up here has caught my curiosity. Is the DSC making this situation worse? I never even considered that...

 

With huhsler's advice, I drove around all day yesterday and today with the DSC and Traction Control off (holding the DSC button for 5+ seconds to get both dash lights to come on) and I have to say, I love this car so much more without the electro-nannies. The car is more free, it's hard to describe. It sticks to the road, doesn't freek out on broken pavement, rutted roads or odd road bumps. She just glides over everything.

Now I just gotta figure out how to have the car start without the DSC and Traction Control on and how to get rid of the lights in the dash...Hmmm...Probably not possible...

 

The Miata I drove before the 8 would follow ruts and at speed would skitter across rough pavements. The 8 in comparison is docile. I think the really tight suspension setup on the Miata passed all the road information to the driver. Some people consider it skittish and alarming while others consider it communicative and interesting.

The 8 does follow ruts and is skittish, but all the sports cars I've driven seem to be like that. GT and sedans are very composed on less then ideal pavement. I think it's perception. People who feel that the 8 is too communicative are looking at the 8 as a GT. I think the 8 is right between a GT and a sports car. I wish the 8 would tell me more of what's going on, but I come from a very harsh riding '94 Miata R package, so almost all GT cars don't chatter enough.

Hmm.. I need a way to switch the car between GT (finger tip steering and soft suspension) when I'm carrying the family around to sporty mode (firm grip on the steering and car tells me whether I've run over a dime or a quarter) when I'm driving alone.

Anyways to bring this back to the thread. I find the 8 extremely stable. Yesterday coming into work I experienced my first dry pavement ABS engagement while trying to avoid a car that entered my lane unexpectedly. No vibration on the steering wheel, slight hum on the brake pedal, and I slowed with no drama.

 

I have the GS Canadian model with no DSC or TC or anything on it and it happens from time to time and since day one. So it has nothing to do with electronics and TC, i believe it's the combination of wide tire, stiff suspension and tilted roads like others have mentionned.

 

I would like to offer my insight here. I live in Spokane, WA. ie., the crappiest roads in North America. I have also lived in Portland, OR. and Norhtern Los Angeles county, CA. just drove to Utah for Thanksgiving through Montana and Idaho. I know crappy roads when I see them. My RX-8 handles the roads just fine as long as the tires are properly inflated and I will even say that the 8 does better than my M-3. I haven't noticed any pulling on braking or anything for that matter that would suggest to me that the car has issues with ruts or poor road conditions. I did notice with my M3 that when changing lanes in heavily rutted roads that there was a moment where the car didn't want to move over and then slam! you shot across the lane into the lane you were turning into. The RX-8 does not do this or I somehow managed to get a better suspension and steering package than the people posting here. If you are experiencing this problem take your car to the dealer and demonstrate it for them because there is something wrong with the car. I have 2,100 miles on my car and I drove half the time on the stock wheels and the other half on my winter wheels and tires.

 

hi stangmatt66 ,

When I first got my car, I noticed the front driver's side rotor was scored in 3 places. I had the whacky hard pulling while braking happening from time-to-time that your described. It did not always happen and I could not correlate it to bad roads.

After around 700-1000 miles, I noticed this annoying pulling had stopped and the rotor scoring was gone - so visually inspect your rotors for scoring.

I now have around 2500 miles and have not had it happen again.

regards,
rx8cited