Is it harder to maintain lane center the older you get?
- Thread starter The motor guy
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I thought it had to do with your back. Like if you're back is messed up it throws you off in situations like this?
I’d say yes but I only lane center in a center lane. The right lane especially is destroyed by semis where I live, and there’s less hole on the edge of the road. Left line left lane, right line right lane. The heaviness of the assist makes a huge difference for me. Heavier stays straighter. I just got out of a Mustang rental with lane keep that couldn’t be completely disabled. I did get bumped back towards the center 20-30x in the 400 miles I drove it. About 1/2 of those times it was bumping me away from where I was trying to be.
Interesting, I have found that my 2016 CRV-ex with 17 inch rims is one of the easiest cars to maintain center on the road that I have ever driven.
When I first got it it took me a couple of days to realize that I was constantly pulling the steering wheel a slight bit to the right when I was on straight roads. I didn't notice it during a test drive because the test drive didn't stay on straight roads very long. I bought it used in February of 2020 with 19,877 MI on it. I called the dealer up and told them that it needed an alignment. They said to bring it in but if it didn't need it they would charge you for the alignment. The back left wheel was out of alignment just enough that it showed to be out of alignment. They used a hunter alignment machine that measures some of those angles down to one tenth of a degree and some of those angles down to 1/100 of a degree.
I think one of the reasons the one I have now is a nicer vehicle to drive and maintain Center while going down the road much easier is that it has a lot less miles on it and the front end parts are a lot tighter and don't have much slop in them, and the rims are much bigger and have less rubber between the rim and the outside diameter of the tires, and the hunter alignment machine that was used is a much better alignment machine than what the shop I used to go to used. When I put a new set of tires on it recently I took it to a shop that had a hunter alignment machine and I could definitely tell the difference after they were done with it. The same exact back left was out of alignment just a little bit after driving it for about 19,000 miles. I guess I was getting used to it as it gradually became out of alignment but when they put it back in alignment I could definitely tell that attract much nicer.
When I first got it it took me a couple of days to realize that I was constantly pulling the steering wheel a slight bit to the right when I was on straight roads. I didn't notice it during a test drive because the test drive didn't stay on straight roads very long. I bought it used in February of 2020 with 19,877 MI on it. I called the dealer up and told them that it needed an alignment. They said to bring it in but if it didn't need it they would charge you for the alignment. The back left wheel was out of alignment just enough that it showed to be out of alignment. They used a hunter alignment machine that measures some of those angles down to one tenth of a degree and some of those angles down to 1/100 of a degree.
I think one of the reasons the one I have now is a nicer vehicle to drive and maintain Center while going down the road much easier is that it has a lot less miles on it and the front end parts are a lot tighter and don't have much slop in them, and the rims are much bigger and have less rubber between the rim and the outside diameter of the tires, and the hunter alignment machine that was used is a much better alignment machine than what the shop I used to go to used. When I put a new set of tires on it recently I took it to a shop that had a hunter alignment machine and I could definitely tell the difference after they were done with it. The same exact back left was out of alignment just a little bit after driving it for about 19,000 miles. I guess I was getting used to it as it gradually became out of alignment but when they put it back in alignment I could definitely tell that attract much nicer.
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That might not be you. I can still slot my f150 into a narrow space, centered and straight, in reverse. My son’s civic, however, neither one of us can get it straight, forwards or backwards. Once we realized it, we tried 3x hard to park it straight and centered. It became a joke. Neither of us can do it. Something about how we see the exterior lines from inside.
Noticed the same here so i started backing into spaces using the backup camera which has helped. Next vehicle will have surround view.
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They have crappy mirrors on these tiny cars too.
Yeah the "round" cars have awful sight lines, particularly in reverse. Hard to figure out where your corners are.
All three lanes, too! Use 'em all!
My F150 is the vehicle I struggle with. My Rogue, no problem, but the F150 is my daily driver!
Get a little bit of toe-in on the front wheels. a little bit of camber and caster also help. It won't affect wear if kept sensible but straight line stability and rough road stability will improve no end
Rear anti-sway bar transformed my f150. Where before it had zero wheel feedback, now it has a very good feel to it.
I first would get a proper 4 wheel alignment.
I completely agree!! I upgraded the rear sway on my scion tC and it made the steering much more accurate and stiffer in steering feel! But what about maintaining the road crown? It takes less effort to keep it on a badly slanted road.
One more thing to consider.. if a car doesn't track straight down the road, check the rear alignment. I've found that on a fwd car, the rear alignment is what makes the car track straight, thrust angle I think it's called on the alignment specs.
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They always put too much on my truck. End up with slanted tires come replacement time.
I do not drive at night unless I have toooooooooooooooooooooo....my spring chicken days are over at 78...................
