Hi,

My 2009 Zetec S seems to have the issue of the steering following or tracking to natural curves in the road, bumps and rough road surfaces.

When the car passes over rough or angled road surfaces and I am not gripping the wheel tightly the steering wheel will pull to one side or the other.

On smooth and flat roads however this is not an issue, the steering wheel is straight and doesn't pull, the same goes for motorway speeds.

Is this natural for thicker tyres? I am more used to cars with thinner tyres and lighter steering. The model also has 17 inch alloys.

Is this just due to wheel alignment or something else?

You say you are use to cars with lighter steering ??? What might these be ? I've had my fiesta for 3 weeks now, and one of the first things I noticed is how light the steering is. The pulling in uneven surfaces you are having seems perfectly normal to me, as this would happen in most if not all cars. If (like yours) it steers straight and true on a suitably flat surface then I think you are worrying about nothing :D

I used to have a Citroen C1, which had much smaller tyres and the steering felt really light, not saying the Ford steering isn't light but just not as light as I'm used to.

Are you sure this is not a problem? The pulling is quite forceful if I am not holding the steering wheel correctly, and even then if I am I can feel it wanting to pull.

Is this common with a slightly sportier car and thicker tyres?

Wide, low tyres suffer somewhat from Tramlining - quite normal.

link

Suggest you check your tyre pressures.

I have a 60 reg S1600 fiesta and had a Clio 197 beforehand - both the same. Drags a bit every now and then, pulls off on bumps etc. I put it down to stiff suspension, low profile tyres etc but I'm no mechanic. My steering is also quite heavy! Don't worry!! :-)