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Steering angle sensor reset? Had alignment done.
- Thread starter infinkc
- Start date
This reset on the 3 just re-centers the steering rack assist force. But the car learns this on it's own as you drive as well. After 50-100 miles of driving, it should have self learned. You don't have to do this process after an alignment, it just speeds it up a bit.
This does not fix an off center steering wheel. Is your wheel off center when you're going straight, or does the car pull to one side when you release the wheel despite straight being straight? The first is just a bad alignment, the second may be the reset process. Just drive it some more if it's the second one.
This does not fix an off center steering wheel. Is your wheel off center when you're going straight, or does the car pull to one side when you release the wheel despite straight being straight? The first is just a bad alignment, the second may be the reset process. Just drive it some more if it's the second one.
By bad alignment, you mean alignment of the steering wheel itself, right? I mean, the steering wheel being centered is nice, and alignment shops failing to get it there is arguably bad, and correct me if I'm wrong here, but it has no effect on the actual alignment specifications AFAIK.
Most people would think of an "alignment" where the car goes straight when the wheel is clearly off center as not a good alignment- but you are generally correct that in minor cases it doesn't impact the technical alignment of how the wheels are pointed. In extreme cases it does when your tie rod lengths start getting really different from one another, but that's not really the case we mean.
However, in cars with some types of power steering, there is a center for the steering rack to which it wants to return. If that's not aligned with the wheels, the car will pull with your hands off the wheel because the rack will try to center the wheel, but that isn't "straight" for the wheel alignment.
Tesla has an auto-calibration process to re-center the steering rack so it doesn't pull even if your wheel needs to be turned to go straight. Tesla's service menu also makes getting the wheels straight really easy since it shows the steering wheel angle. It's pretty neat.
This sounds cool, but one would still have to disconnect something in order to straighten the wheel after a 3rd party shop finished an alignmentwith it slightly off-center, correct? I mean, if I can get in the service menu and fix the wheel without having to go physically disconnect and reconnect anything, sign me up...
You don't disconnect anything during an alignment. The centering of the wheel is done by adjusting the two tie rods on the front axle. If they screwed that up, the right way to fix it is to have the car re-aligned with the wheel straight. You can't pop the steering wheel off and put it on at an arbitrary angle for instance.
If you want to do it yourself, you just adjust the tie rods the same amount as each other until the wheel is straight.
Has that always been the case? Decades ago, I was told by an alignment shop who gave the car back with the steering wheel far off center that they couldn't fix it without realignment because they had to disconnect it. Maybe that was the guy in the front making up the reason because he didn't know the technicals, but back then, there were also times when I saw my vehicle being aligned with a 2x4 jammed between the steering wheel and the floor to hold it in place during alignment. Would have been a 90's vehicle.
Also, not that it matters, but once upon a time (before airbags), you certainly could pull the steering wheel off and put it back on at an arbitrary angle (including re-centered), as I've actually done that in 60's vehicles. Perhaps it wasn't the best idea for one reason or another, but it was definitely possible.
You certainly CAN remove and recenter the steering wheel - I know because I did it when I switched from a normal wheel to a third party yoke. You DO have to deal with handling and unplugging the airbag (a bit scary), but at that point you can put the wheel in just about ANY configuration.
Heads up, the clock spring is sensitive. Too far out and you’ll have no more thumb wheel controls or stalk use.
Fair point. The mounting ring has MANY small spokes, so you have very fine control over orientation. I agree that you should err on the side of very small adjustments.
The steering wheel is splined, so you can't put it back on in arbitrary angles, only small increments. Many steering wheels will also only go on one way- they are clocked such as having one of the splines missing.
But this is not the way you align a car. You don't "disconnect" anything on a Tesla to align it. You center the wheel, then adjust the tie rods, which is just loosening and turning threads.
But this is not the way you align a car. You don't "disconnect" anything on a Tesla to align it. You center the wheel, then adjust the tie rods, which is just loosening and turning threads.
Yes, this is true- you can't fix it without a realignment, like I said. That "realignment" just doesn't involve any disconnection or removal of anything.
If the wheel has never been off of the car, this IS NOT the way to fix a horrid alignment.
Take it to tesla, have the steering angle sensor set at zero, THEN have an alignment done. The ADAS use the steering angle sensor, if it’s off too much AP and many other things won’t work.
Not arguing the point - just stating that statements that it's not adjustable are just wrong. It is. But the right way to do it is via the realignment procedure.
Awiner
Member
Centering the steering wheel after or *IF* an alignment already is correct and within spec is as simple as adjusting each left and right tie rod the same amount.
If pulling left (steering wheel left), lengthen the right side tie rod and shorten the left side tie rod.
Opposite is pulling right (steering wheel right), shorten the right side tie rod and lengthen the left side tie rod.
If you ARE getting a steering wheel angle sensor malfunction, Tesla will have to address that.
If pulling left (steering wheel left), lengthen the right side tie rod and shorten the left side tie rod.
Opposite is pulling right (steering wheel right), shorten the right side tie rod and lengthen the left side tie rod.
If you ARE getting a steering wheel angle sensor malfunction, Tesla will have to address that.
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Generally unwise unless you have experience with alignments. Eyeballing turns on a tirerod are a good way to set your toe wrong which is going to cost somebody more in the long run.
I'm with you that you need to know what you are doing, but "eyeballing" turns on a tie rod is accurate and easy. Throw a piece of tape on it and you can clock it within about 1/30th of a turn.
Given a whole turn is only half a degree, I don't think 0.02 degrees is going to cause major issues. No quick alignment shop is even aligning within that anyway.
I've done the eyeball method and it works in a pinch but it matters I don't have exact numbers off the top of my head but next time I put the car on hubstands and string it up I'll write them down.
That being said, yeah, I agree no quick shop is gonna care. What Tesla considers "acceptable" is a joke. Hell, they don't even align their cars from the factory.
No kidding. A good friend just got a M3P, and the wheel was like 10 degrees off. I checked the alignment, and the toes looked like this:
+0.5° 0.0°
+0.4° -0.6°
Again, not talking about eyeballing toe. Just that if you trust that your toe is fine, but your steering wheel is not centered, you can center it by turning both tie rods the same amount. You're not gonna mess up toe by more than 0.02° doing this.
But yeah, why have to do this- if you paid for an alignment, this shouldn't be your problem.
Do you think I need an alignment done after I adjusted my toe rod on the front?
Adjusting toe IS doing an alignment.
Why did you adjust your toe?
Unless you know exactly what you are doing, yes, if you adjusted the tie/toe rod on your car, you now need an alignment.
