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Have You Noticed All The Crooked Pickups

nunnnunn Forums Admins, Member, Moderator Posts: 36,085 ******
edited September 2002 in General Discussion
Very often, when driving behind a pickup truck, I notice that the rear wheels are not tracking behind the front. The rear is offset to the right or left by a couple of inches.

It's not an optical illusion. These trucks will leave two separate tracks after driving through a puddle.

It seems not be a particular make, but it is usually an older truck.

Is this something that just happens as the vehicle ages, or am I looking at a lot of poorly-repaired wrecks?

SIG pistol armorer/FFL Dealer/Full time Peace Officer, Moderator of General Discussion Board on Gunbroker. Visit www.gunbroker.com, the best gun auction site on the Net! Email davidnunn@texoma.net

Comments

  • snake-eyessnake-eyes Member Posts: 869
    edited November -1
    It's called dogtracking I believe. The frame is bent. Either the truck was in a wreck or overloaded. Here is how you check:
    Measure the distance between the front hub center on the right said to the rear hub center on the same side. Compare that with the left and you will be able to tell if the frame is straight.

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  • Evil ATFEvil ATF Member Posts: 1,195 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I never understood the appeal to offroading.

    I don't baby my rigs, but I don't take them out in the hills and intentionally beat the crap out of them either.

    To each his own, though.

    Stand And Be Counted
  • TazmuttTazmutt Member Posts: 862 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    My guess is always poorly repaired wrecks when I see them. If they are "lifted" and do not do it properly with extended pitman arms, etc they will track offset also. I get a kick out of following them but tend to find myself pulling left or right with them

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  • ATFATF Member Posts: 11,683 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    A broken center bolt in one of the rear springs is the most likely cause.



    ATF
  • jltrentjltrent Member Posts: 9,344 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
  • 25-0625-06 Member Posts: 382 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    I have noticed this also, but I believe the reason on unwrecked vehicles is for some stupid reason the manufactures make the rear ends about two to three inches narrower than the front end and this makes it look like they are not tracking straight. Why they do this is any ones guess. They sure are fun to drive on a muddy road. I defy anyone to drive a 100 yards in a straight line.
  • TOOLS1TOOLS1 Member Posts: 6,133
    edited November -1
    Sometimes it is due to wear in the rubber bushings in the supension. Just a little wear will make a big differance across the width of a rearend. Also sometimes the axels are not installed square with the frt end. I have seen a 1/2in differance from the factory. When I used to do a lot of custom truck work, I would always make sure this measurment was dead on.
    TOOLS

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  • nordnord Member Posts: 6,106
    edited November -1
    You're all correct... Sort of, anyway.

    Chrysler is probably the one most noted for this quirk, but others did it too. Assuming no wrecks, no bent frames, and no broken bolts or worn bushings, the measurement across the rear axle will be a couple of inches +/- less than across that of the front.

    The reasoning is simple, but I think it's an engineering answer to a question that was never asked. It all has to do with turning radius.

    In a turn the rear axle will track inside the front. In theory this could prevent a vehicle from clearing a curb (or worse) in a turn. If the rear track were to run inside the front, then the problem would be less in a turn situation.

    Follow such a vehicle down the road and get a look at both sides. You'll see both front tires hanging out an inch or so. On damaged vehicles it becomes even more obvious because one side might appear to track but the other will be twice as far out as normal.

    If you really want to see something funny, take a look at a Duster or Demon out of the mid 70's. They rode low enough so that you have to really look, but once you do... What a laugh!

    But there really is a method to their madness.

    Nord
  • JustCJustC Member Posts: 16,056 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Another reason is that if for any reason the rear was loosened or taken out, it was not lined back up properly when reinstalled. This happens quite often when someone puts a lift kit on the vehicle. You must choose a point of reference on the frame and measure back to the rear on both sides. When the measurement is the same on both sides, you can tighten the U-bolts.

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  • sodbustersodbuster Member Posts: 2,305 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I bought a Dodge Pickup new in 1980. It dogtrailed. I would even have truckers point it out to me on the C.B. radio as I was going down the road. I always thought that it was because one side of the axle was slightly 'foreward' of the other side. The amount of dog trailing depends on the 'angle' of the rear axle.

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    Edited by - sodbuster on 09/21/2002 21:30:38
  • v35v35 Member Posts: 12,710 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Checking diagonals would be a better way but hard to do.
    The diagonals should equal each other in length.
  • cowdoccowdoc Member Posts: 5,847 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I notice it the most on chevy pickups anybody else notice that? i know chevy frames are more rigid so if they are twisted they dont come back like a ford frame does...ford frames will flex more and come back to original position ...i have owned both and noticed this.
    doc
  • DancesWithSheepDancesWithSheep Member Posts: 12,938 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I notice most politicians track the same way.

    Often the mind believes it is thinking, when it is only passing from one metaphor to the next.
  • REBJrREBJr Member Posts: 1,210 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    The manual on my old 89 f-150 stated that the front wheelbase was wider than he rear wheelbase and dogtracking was a normal condition, on beveld roads, my GMC 4x4 was the same way, it looked like the front and rear tires were different sizes- the front was even with the outside of the body, and the rear were underneath. Neither of them were wrecked. It also has to do with the fact that the highways down south have more of a slope or bevel for rain runoff and the condition is more noticeable there. -Ralph

    Nothing very, very good or very, very bad lasts for very, very long.
  • paboogerpabooger Member Posts: 13,953
    edited November -1
    We don't have that problem up North, we just take off the wheels, put the truck up on blocks in the front yard, right beside the one holer, and use it for a chicken coop!!!
  • wundudneewundudnee Member Posts: 6,108 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I had a new 1966 Ford F-100 and was following it one day when my wife was driving it. It appeared to be dog-tracking and I was pretty disgusted as the truck was new. I swung over so I could see how bad the other side was and it appeared to be dog-tracking the other way. Thats when I discovered that all Ford pickups of that era had narrower rear ends. And yes, it left two different tracks. I wish I had the old crooked thing back.

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