Hi Greg,

I forgot to mention that the bus did this crazy
steering thing with the old tires and with the
new ones as well.  The new ones are Firestone
Firehawk Indy 500 205/70R15.  I run Michelin 195/75R14s on my 87 GL which does fine (I've
also had those Michelins on Billy Bones).  He
steers wobbly with any tires I've put on him.

Thanks again.

Warren Lail
88 Westy "Billy Bones"
87 GL "Long John"

----- Original Message -----
From: Greg Potts <Greg@pottsfamily.ca>
Date: Monday, March 22, 2004 4:00 pm
Subject: Re: steering question

> Hi Warren,
>
> My bus did that before I put a nice set of 185R14 Continentals
> under
> it. So did my Dad's Vanagon westy.
>
> If you're running tires with a single-ply sidewall and/or a load
> rating
> less than 1400lbs, the tire sidewalls will flex under heavy loads
> and
> cause the van to understeer.  If the tires are under-spec I would
> start
> shopping for replacements.
>
> Happy trails,
>
> Greg Potts
> Toronto, Ontario, Canada
>
> 1973/74/79 Westfakia Conversion **Bob the Tomato**  LY3H
> 1977 Sunroof Automatic L63H/L90D
> http://www.pottsfamily.ca/westfakia
> http://www.geocities.com/busesofthecorn
>
>
> On 22-Mar-04, at 4:24 PM, Warren.K.Lail-1 wrote:
>
> > Now that I've got Billy Bones up and running (more
> > than a hundred miles today with no problems), I
> > need to address another issue that I had almost
> > forgotten about.
> >
> > When I bought this van, it steered sort of
> > strangely. When you come around a corner it does
> > not straighten up on its own.  Instead, it will
> > continue to stay turned and it is stiff.  I had
> > the van aligned (all four wheels - I stood
> > there and watched).  So a new alignment did
> > not solve the problem.  What's worn out or
> > damaged under there that's causing this problem?
> >
> > The power steering pump leaks a little bit,
> > but the reservoir is full of fluid and the belt
> > is tight.
> >
> > Thanks,
> >
> > Warren Lail
> > 88 Westy "Billy Bones" (we've signed articles)
> > 87 GL "Long John" (he's calming down)
> >
> >
>
>