I recently bought a 2018 CPO Macan S and noticed shortly after I picked it up that the steering wheel was off center....

Just curious if there is anything special about the alignment on this car that should have made this so challenging?....

There are two ways to adjust the steering wheel alignment. The easiest is remove the steering wheel, and rotate it one or two splines in the direction you want, and then bolt it back on. But sometimes, the splines don't allow a fine enough adjustment, and the steering wheel is either slightly too far to the left, or slightly too far to the right. That may be what happened in this instance. When that's the case, the next step is to adjust the tie-rods on the front suspension. Normally, this is fairly easy to do as well, although it's a bit of trial and error, and you have to re-set the toe part of the alignment at the end. The thing about this that can be a little more complicated on a Macan is that some systems (like Adaptive Cruise Control, for example) have to be re-calibrated any time the alignment is adjusted. So in the end, it's not especially difficult, but it is more time consuming. Hope that helps.

 

Very helpful, thanks. The advisor alluded to splines on the steering wheel that limited adjustment opportunities. I now better understand the multi-step options involving steering wheel placement and then tie-rod adjustment. Hopefully they get it right next week. Thanks

 

The REAL question is why the steering wheel is out of alignment. Just how badly did that car hit the tree?

 

This thread suggests that 'steering wheel alignment' is done electronically: https://www.macanforum.com/forum/en...com/forum/engine-technical-discussion/150649-my-experience-icarsoft-por-ii.html


Not sure if/how that is possible when I assume there is some form of direct mechanical between the steering and the wheels!

 

What SoCalS5 said above is spot on. It’s essentially the same as most other vehicles.

No real magic to it. Yes it does involve a bit of trial and error, although the Service Advisor’s claim that it’s a delicate adjustment is sort of silly. Seems like merely an excuse for a shoddy job to me.

 

Step number one in an alignment is center the wheel. Then adjust your toe in at the tie rod ends.
Nothing new about this (or Porsche specific) in the past 100 years or so.

Dealer aligned my new (to me) CPO car shortly after I got it because the car was wandering on many surfaces. Turned out to be badly cupped tires.

Right as rain now.

 

That’s one thing that drives me nuts, among others. I’m so OCD about the wheel being straight.

 

If that the only thing then you are doing okay. I'm OCD about everything when it comes to my cars. (Actually I'm OCD about everything.) :|

 

Firestone can do the alignment and has a lifetime alignment package for around $160. Well worth it