P500 Pulls to the right

[559Pioneer500]

Hey all, I just put new 14” wheels and 26” tires on and it is pulling to the right now.
i don’t think that would do it, but also I got stuck today on atree stump and had to use the winch to get it out. It put a lot of lateral stress on the front wheels when I was pulling it sideways away from the stump. Would that have bent anything?
or perhaps made the steering wheel not be on center anymore? I ordered some toe plates to check the toe in, but they don’t arrive till late next week.
Thoughts?

 

[HUCK]

Hey all, I just put new 14” wheels and 26” tires on and it is pulling to the right now.
i don’t think that would do it, but also I got stuck today on atree stump and had to use the winch to get it out. It put a lot of lateral stress on the front wheels when I was pulling it sideways away from the stump. Would that have bent anything?
or perhaps made the steering wheel not be on center anymore? I ordered some toe plates to check the toe in, but they don’t arrive till late next week.
Thoughts?

If it was pulling before you winched it check your rear tire pressure . If it wasn't before but was after you obviously bent something .

 

[559Pioneer500]

If it was pulling before you winched it check your rear tire pressure . If it wasn't before but was after you obviously bent something .

I’ve got 17 psi in the rears and 19 psi on the fronts

 

[alloutdoors]

This is a "crude" way of checking alignment, see picture below and apply to Pioneer. Basically, you want to see if the distance from left to right are the same in front and behind the tires. If not, you have some adjustment options or look to see if something got bent while winching the unit out.

 

[559Pioneer500]

I ordered some toe plates but I might give this a try if I can’t wait.
is is common to bend things when winching?

nothing looks bent. I was thinking maybe the steering wheel came off center somehow since the wheel was locked all the way to the right when I winched it. But it was in very soft and deep dirt.
Mia it possible for the steering rack to slip and cause the steering to be off center?

and I think I remember it pulling prior to winching it. I only had one short drive prior to that. Only thing I changed was the wheels and tires. So maybe it bent when torquing them down?

 

[NitroxDiver]

It’s not likely you bent anything but it’s not impossible. When you say it pulls to the right does it actually try to turn right when You let go of the wheel or is it just the steering wheel is off a little? Those tire pressures are a lot higher than what most people run. I think the OEM ties had 10psi and I’m only running 6-7 psi in my 27” tires. Not that the high pressure will make it pull but it will ride better and have better traction if you lower the pressure.

 

[NTCPrezJB]

I ordered some toe plates but I might give this a try if I can’t wait.
is is common to bend things when winching?

nothing looks bent. I was thinking maybe the steering wheel came off center somehow since the wheel was locked all the way to the right when I winched it. But it was in very soft and deep dirt.
Mia it possible for the steering rack to slip and cause the steering to be off center?

and I think I remember it pulling prior to winching it. I only had one short drive prior to that. Only thing I changed was the wheels and tires. So maybe it bent when torquing them down?

I don't think you could bend something torquing down wheels if you tried. The lugs would almost certainly snap first. You could not have a wheel seated properly against the hub, but I will give you more credit than having done that and then asked here about potential issues.

You can certainly bend stuff while winching. It isn't exactly common, but most P500's are running 3,500 pound winches. That's definitely enough pulling force on an object that doesn't want to move to cause damage.

Tie rod's are generally designed to fail (ie bend) so that more expensive components don't. A-Arm tabs on these P5's are known to be weak points as well though. Look closely at those frame tabs as well as the tie rod's and you should be able to find the culprit.


Brand new the steering wheels aren't always straight and they aren't always in a reasonable alignment. So it is possible you just noticed because you were worried as well. I don't know. I can only throw stuff out and see what sticks from here.

 

[Mudder]

I’ve got 17 psi in the rears and 19 psi on the fronts

Is that normal psi? Run 8 psi in my 27s. If the wheel was stuck hard, the winch force could have been transferred to your suspension or steering connections. Something to really consider with 4500 - 5000 lb. winches.
Is there mud or something stuck around that wheel?

 

[559Pioneer500]

It’s not likely you bent anything but it’s not impossible. When you say it pulls to the right does it actually try to turn right when You let go of the wheel or is it just the steering wheel is off a little? Those tire pressures are a lot higher than what most people run. I think the OEM ties had 10psi and I’m only running 6-7 psi in my 27” tires. Not that the high pressure will make it pull but it will ride better and have better traction if you lower the pressure.

Ok so I took it out on the street just now and it doesn’t pull when I let go of the steering wheel. But the steering wheel is off center and it wasn’t like that before I put on the new wheels and tires.
I think the toe in or out might be off since when I was on snow it would pull left and then right depending on which tire had more traction.
I’ll try to check the toe right now

 

[559Pioneer500]

Is that normal psi? Run 8 psi in my 27s. If the wheel was stuck hard, the winch force could have been transferred to your suspension or steering connections. Something to really consider with 4500 - 5000 lb. winches.
Is there mud or something stuck around that wheel?

No mud stuck anywhere. It’s a 3500lb winch. Seemed to be off center before that a little too. Going to check the toe on it

 

[559Pioneer500]

Is that normal psi? Run 8 psi in my 27s. If the wheel was stuck hard, the winch force could have been transferred to your suspension or steering connections. Something to really consider with 4500 - 5000 lb. winches.
Is there mud or something stuck around that wheel?

I’m not sure what I should be running. The tire shop had them at 26 psi when I picked them up. At 16-17psi they seem super soft and deformable. They are the Maxxis Big Horn OG tires. Not sure what I should run in them. I read somewhere that it should be 14-18 with these tires

 

[Mudder]

I’m not sure what I should be running. The tire shop had them at 26 psi when I picked them up. At 16-17psi they seem super soft and deformable. They are the Maxxis Big Horn OG tires. Not sure what I should run in them. I read somewhere that it should be 14-18 with these tires

Maybe someone will chime in. 26 psi seems like that was to set the bead.

 

[Mudder]

No mud stuck anywhere. It’s a 3500lb winch. Seemed to be off center before that a little too. Going to check the toe on it

I have used a string, front to rear on another ride, 1/8 difference on front. I found a similar post by member @Smitty relating to his P1000.

“Strap the steering wheel straight, measure the back side and front side of the tire lines, adjust both side equally (tie rods)until you have the toe in (front you desire) I run an 1/8 inch toe in, this is the quickie method. Example front measures 60 & the rear of the tire measures 60 & 1/8, be close to 1/8 of an inch toe in in the front. Be careful, most stock alignments are set with a big toe out in the front to keep people from flopping but wear badly on pavement. Chime in guys.”

 

[HUCK]

Ok so I took it out on the street just now and it doesn’t pull when I let go of the steering wheel. But the steering wheel is off center and it wasn’t like that before I put on the new wheels and tires.
I think the toe in or out might be off since when I was on snow it would pull left and then right depending on which tire had more traction.
I’ll try to check the toe right now

Don't worry about it . My steering wheel was in line 100% with 26" tires on stock wheels . Switched to 27" Terabites on the same rims and now the steering wheel is off and I have no idea why but it doesn't hurt anything . I asked about tire pressure because if 1 rear tire is low it will cause the sxs to pull . BTW I run 8lbs in my tires . Try it . It will ride soooo much smoother .

 

[Raghorn]

Maybe someone will chime in. 26 psi seems like that was to set the bead.

Yeah, I agree.

Silly question, but does the sidewall have an operating range? I just had to reset the bead on my Honda Recon, and the tire said something like "30 psi to set the bead, no more than 8 psi to operate" right on the sidewall. It would be worth checking.

 

[NitroxDiver]

Ok so I took it out on the street just now and it doesn’t pull when I let go of the steering wheel. But the steering wheel is off center and it wasn’t like that before I put on the new wheels and tires.
I think the toe in or out might be off since when I was on snow it would pull left and then right depending on which tire had more traction.
I’ll try to check the toe right now

It may be a little squirrelly with that much air in the tires. I would drop it down to 10 psi or less and see how it feels. I find that sometimes my wheel is not exactly centered and it seems to change from time to time depending on how I have it loaded. If the new wheels have a different offset it may be loading the suspension a little or magnifying the alignment problems. I know it’s annoying to have the wheel off center but I would ride it some more and see if it’s consistently off the same amount and the same direction, you may find it changes from time to time.

 

[Mudder]

Good news is if all checks out, just unbolt the steering wheel and center. Had to do it after adding power steering. Good luck.

 

[pFive]

Check the front upper A-Arm mounting tabs, if they are torn your wheel goes off center and it pulls.. Also, a broken rear axle makes it pull to one side, but that is a very obvious pull.

 

[559Pioneer500]

Don't worry about it . My steering wheel was in line 100% with 26" tires on stock wheels . Switched to 27" Terabites on the same rims and now the steering wheel is off and I have no idea why but it doesn't hurt anything . I asked about tire pressure because if 1 rear tire is low it will cause the sxs to pull . BTW I run 8lbs in my tires . Try it . It will ride soooo much smoother .

Just checked the Maxxis website. Shows Max 7 psi. I guess I’ll have to deflate them a little bit and try again

 

[KYhillbilly]

delfalte them and dont worry about the steering wheel, like others said once you change tire size the steering wheel will be off center. If it bothers you then unbolt it and put it back on straight.