Just bought brand new front right tire. My steering wheel is tilted to the left when I am driving straight. (no pulling whatsoever)

Question

Any info would be highly appreciated.

I just bought a used pre owned one owner 2016 vehicle with an accident free carfax. The car has 22,000 miles, therefore the tires have 22,000 miles on them. The other day I hit a large pothole and blew out the front right tire beyond repair (btw, it is front wheel drive if this matters). I located the exact same size and model tire (brand new) brought the wheel to the tire shop and they replaced the old with the new. They then mounted the new tire and balanced it.

I got home put the new wheel/tire back on the right front, the car drives dead straight. Unfortunately the steering wheel is a bit cocked to the left (I know it's no biggie, but I just bought the car and I am curious). There is no pulling to either side at all.

Now my question is, could an old left front tire combined with a brand new right front tire be causing my steering wheel to be slightly cocked to the left? I do apologize about the detailed story, but any advice would be truly appreciated.

Thanks a ton, B

Answer 1

The issue is the steering wheel is clocked wrong due to the hit to the front tire (yah, I know that's a "duh" statement on my part, lol). You need to get a front end (or even a four wheel) alignment. When you take it into the shop, they'll straighten the steering wheel as part of the alignment. If you hit hard enough to cause wheel or tire damage, it's a very easy to cause some type of alignment issue even if the car doesn't pull.