Assuming all things are set up correctly with one exception, the front tire wear on a 2005S500 4MATIC was normal (flat across)on the left, but the right tire showed wear on the inside, which way would the car drift going down aflat road? My dealer has been trying to resolve an issue with drift and pulling to the right.The most recent 'fix' was to rotate the tires around until the drifting was minimized (not cured). Iam wonderingif this tire placement is merely masking the problem of drifting to the right.

 

could be worn outsuspension components that are causing your tire wear.

 

IMHO the only way to know what is going on is to measure vehicle geometry using MB procedure.

This requires that the vehicle be correctly set up (sills level etc.) then measured on a 4 wheel laser rig.

If one tyre is wearing on the inside and the other not then it appears that you Camber is different side to side = worn bushes/joints etc or the results of accident damage.
"Tracking", the degree to which the front wheels point inwards / outwards impacts tyre wear and vehicle stability BUT by definition this impacts BOTH wheels the same.
If the car does not go straight when the steering wheel is pointing straight ahead then the vehicle has been incorrectly set up.
MB's are VERY sensitive to being set up using the correct procedure.
On some MB's the rear suspension is also adjustable in a very similar way to the front.

Bottom line. What is the geom data on this vehicle? Determining geometry correctly is not a quick job and therefore relatively expensive.

Avoid "Tyre shop" tracking since these places do not use the correct procedure which requires at least 4 wheel equipment.

So if your dealer has been working on your car did they use equipmentas I have suggested and if so what were the results?

Stuart

 

Hi Stuart and thank you for your thoughtful comments. Following are the results of the alignment. Keep in mind the car still drifts to the rightand the front tires have different wear patterns as noted in the original post.

2005 S500 4MATIC Sport Package with AMG wheels, 39K on the odometer, recent purchase CPO car
LF camber -1.05, caster 5.23, toe -.08
RF-0.47, 5.24, -.021
LRcamber -1.23,toe 0.22
RR-1.21, 0.23

Can you recommend a MB shop in the Philly area that is a cut above when it comes to wheel alignment and troubleshooting of pulling and/or drift problems?

 

Hi,
I'm impressed. The data is available.
OK. So there is a difference between the LH and RH Camber. Does -0.47 mean 47 minutes or 0.47 of a degree? A degree = 60 minutes?
The results as presented show a 0.58 degree difference LH to RH which I would consider outside spec. and could easily be causing the problem. If however the difference is only 18 mins (0.28 of a degree then may be the difference is just inside tolerance).
Unfortunately I don't have the spec to hand. What does the dealer say the MB spec should be?
I assume it is the LHF tyre that is wearing on the inside.

I suspect the front lower track or Torque control arm has had a whack against the kerb at some time. Any kerb marks on the wheel?

If you are able to get the spec we can confirm exactly where you should be looking. Afraid my WIS is running.

Can't think why the dealer didn't look at the figures!

Stuart

 

I asked for a copy of the dealer's print-out from his alignment machine so the numbers would be standard for MB. I have to assume it is within tolerance otherwise they would not have been happy with the results and shared them with me. The tire wear is as follows: LF5 flat across, RF6 on inside (7 on outside), LR8 (new), & RR4 flat across.

I ordered a shop manual today. I hope to find the alignment specs listed in the manual.

...and thanks again for everyone's comments. I value the opinions posted in this group.