steering wheel off center?

Any time you do work on the suspension, it is recommended that you get an alignment.

Generally, in my experience installing new McPherson it doesn't really change the alignment at all. In theory the parts should have identical geometry, but it sounds like either A- that is not the case in your situation or B- something else was inadvertently adjusted when the work was performed.

 

Well I'm assuming when you put the new strut assembly on you kept your front hub assembly your tie rod setting stayed the same you just undid the strut from the front hub at the two big bolts and then the three up top and the end link so you didn't touch your steering your toe your camber may not be completely seated if you didn't smack on the hub assembly after you put the bolts back in if you don't have camber or crash bolts installed You usually tighten them a little bit and then you smack it in so it's seated up against the strut assembly solidly and then you sock them down tight If you leave the hub out a little bit like it can you see it will move a little bit with the bolts installed You want to put it where it was when you undid it so to make me know on my cars where it is when I put the two bolts in I push my knee against the hub to push the hub against the ears that the bolts are running through then I tighten up the bolt so it doesn't move That's how I do all of the struts here on the property so when I take them loose and they pop out a little I need to make sure I put my knee on them and push them back in and tighten the bolts That's how my alignments done so when this adjustment is off you know that's an eighth of an inch or so that that thing is moving a little better what that amounts to in degrees is probably enough. I do know this my alignment guy tells me when I change my hubs or when I change a tie rod end the way I'm measuring and reapplying my tie rod end and putting everything back together he technically when he puts the heads on my wheels doesn't need to make an adjustment and rarely does He says that's how close or spot on I get it just in the driveway and I do have this checked when I replace struts tie rod ends and the like and that's what he's told me for 20 years .

 

Have you got a way to measure / correct the alignment? It's not a bad idea any time suspension components have been changed.

Firestone has (at least, last time I checked) this "lifetime alignment" program you can select. You buy that one time, and after that you can go into a Firestone any time and get the alignment rechecked. Handy for DIY.

Lots of things interact. You can find a handy flowchart on page 8 of this repair manual supplement.

 

Once you learn how to measure your tie rod ends and put them back where your alignment guy had em set when you took them off and pushing the hub all the way into the ear tabs before locking down the bolts and usually you'll get back to your original alignment to within like a 16th or a 32 of an inch

 

I would never only replace one strut.

And after I do - even though on this set-up it shouldn't matter much - I always get a shop to put it on an alignment rack.

That said, I'd swap the tires front to rear to see if anything changes. I had a weird tread separation once on a not-so-old tire.

 

The wheel alignment requires adjustment other than wheel balancing in this context.