Ryan,
Your alignment guy probably forgot to (or neglected to, because it is pain)
adjust the tie rod lengths so that the steering wheel was centered as well
as the wheels aligned. Your alignment is probably ok, but the off center
steering wheel will drive you crazy (maybe not). Call your guy and tell him
the problem, he should probably say, "bring it back in and he will fix it"
Make sure he checks the alignment after he fixes it. Take it back after your
trip.

Good luck, have fun on you trip.

Jim

Jim Henry
Durham, NC
85 RX7 GSL-SE
84 RX7 GSL-SE
85 RX& GSL-SE parts car
85 VW Westy Camper
95 Aurora (what a pig)
96 Olds 88 LS (I drive a lot of miles)
97 GEO lsi (wife's car)
86 RX7 (son's car)
Are there any others back there under the trees?

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM]
> On Behalf Of Ryan Dawson
> Sent: Thursday, June 10, 2004 2:35 PM
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> Subject: Alignment Question
>
> Hi Everyone,
>
> I recently replaced the tie rods on my 1984 Vanagon Westfalia
> and took it in for an alignment.  When I checked the
> alignment before taking it in, I figured there was a 3/8"
> difference between the front and rear of the wheel measured
> from centre.  The gentleman and the shop said it was about a
> 1/2", not a big issue.  The question that I have is now that
> I have picked up the van, when drive in a straight line, I
> have the wheel slightly cocked to the left.  Since I just had
> the alignment done, would this be an issue with the steering
> rack, or just the steering wheel, or something else?  Any
> thoughts are appreciated.
> I'm on my way for my camping trip in about a 1/2 hour and
> want to make sure that this isn't going to be a problem.
>
> Thanks,
> Ryan
>