My first post.

Here goes... My 2018 Crew short bed, 2WD with stock Michelins on 20" PVD rims is following the slightest rut (just found out what that phenomena is called). Bone stock suspension.

With truck only, no load at all, its bad, with a load its terrible. If the ruts are bad and would effect everyone, it will pull hard enough to make a normal person uneasy. I just got back from a trip and I am motivated to get it to the dealer; I can't stand it any longer.

I want to have alignment spec in hand when I go.

I have read that more caster (+4.0 or more (if possible)) and a slight be more positive Toe could help. (+0.20) Bimmer drivers seem to have a lot of issues with this based on google searches when running high performance tires.

The truck also at times will idle very low and almost stall at idle.

Anyone have such issues as these?

I have searched the forum and very little info. I suspect not many know to call "hunting, following the ruts or grooves, swerving" tramlining

 

Its a new term for me too. I did some searching and found this but its a generic article about tramlining.

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiret....jsp?techid=47

 

My 2014 4runner did that when I put cooper tires on it.
By lowering the tire pressure on the LT tires, I got rid of some of it.

 

Are you sure it's the alignment? Do you know about pull / drift compensation in your steering system? Not to open a can of worms but trying to save you from chasing your tail. That was one thing I bought up as an example with the dealer when I first took my truck in for this problem. Although it went right over their heads.

https://www.f150forum.com/f118/2016-...429311/index3/

https://www.f150forum.com/f118/forsc...434605/index2/

This link gives a good summation of my alignment experience:
https://www.f150forum.com/f118/train...404876/index2/

 

Usually a tire issue. Try rotating your tires front to back.

 

Try adjusting the PSI and see how it drives, up or down about 5psi to start with and then smaller changes when you notice some improvement.. I run 43 in the front, 42 in the rear, but I have GY tires on my FX4.

Wife's car did this, and I adjusted the tires down in PSI, reduced the "rut wander" to a much more tolerable level.

 

I would agree with this along with potentially lowering your tire pressure if it's higher than 36-38psi.

Not every tire made is perfect. You could easily have a bad tire. IMO the last possibility is the alignment.

 

I've never heard that term either, I thought at first it was a new company with a sprayin bedliner.
Hunting and following ruts always worked for me.
How deep are these ruts it sounds like you're getting caught in?
I've had vehicles in the past that you were always steering, a little more toe in or out always seemed to help.

 

Just want to make sure I read all the conditions correct - truck has some miles on the factory michelin's. this problem popped up recently - in the area you always drive in (normal commute, weekly runs etc)

SO did you recently have the tires rotated? has the vehicle been serviced?


Typically if you have a bad tire either out of round or bad belts when you suddenly put it on the front it can cause the steering to drift because the unevenness in the tires wants to roam.

Imagine the belts have a gap and when that gap hits the road and the tire flexes - the area on the side bends outboard say. this will cause a tug.

Now like some others have said tire pressure is a big thing too - some tires really don't like to be full up hard. so reducing the air to let them flex at the tread line helps.

OH and bmw drivers have oodles of issues most of which are in their heads - so you have to be careful reading though that. HOwever I will say this - as I see it often - people that are new to a sports car and all the compromises that are in one - which comes with wide tires - aren't really ready for the way the car drivers on public streets. Wide tires tend to "trammel" more because they happen to cover more imperfections in the road at one time. Think difference in a 215, 245 and a 275 section tires. 215mm = 8.5", 245mm=9.6", 275=10.8" or 11. So a person goes from a relatively normal car with an 8 inch tires up to something with 275 stock rear tires and they gained alot of area of contact patch on those bad roads.

So note I asked if this happens alot on roads you know well - sometimes the road is bad or summer heat makes the road wavy. (big issue down south on soft asphalt) So it might really just be the road you're on. So if this is happening in your F150 on the road you know, but doesn't happen in anyway in the corolla (I don't know what else you drive) you own on the same roads at the same rough time of day. Then yes I suspect you have a bad tire maybe 2. Try lowering the pressure to placard pressures (they probably rose a few PSI over the summer) - and see it if got better, and if not drop 2 PSI below placard and try again. I don't like getting too far away from placard spec pressures if running the stock sized tire.

 

...nor had I until I rented a four door Jeep Wrangler, not long after they came out. I fought the Jeep for 2.5 days on the interstates of Michigan. It grew really tiresome. Not sure if it was the tire set up, how the road was constructed, alignment or what, but I was glad to be out of it back at the airport. Hopefully, that's not an ongoing issue for them.