pulls hard at 30+

I have a 04 malibu sunsetter and the steering pulls hard to the right at speeds above 30 and pulls harder the faster you go. Maybe steering cable going bad?

Is this new or has it always done it?
It sounds like the rudder is tweaked to load the steering.

I just bought it so don't know if it has always been doing it, rudder and fins look straight, I do notice the steering is very easy to turn compared to other boats, like I can spin the wheel and it will keep going.

Sounds like everything is just as it is supposed to be. Often times, on ski boats the rudder is preloaded to the boat track truer when you are on a pass through the buoys. You can get rid of the pull by changing the shape of the rudder slightly. Newer Malibu's have an adjustable tab on the back of the rudder to do just that. If yours does not have one it is done by using a file to slightly reshape the trailing edge.

normal...my vride will turn on itself at 30+mph...there is a way to adjust a Malibu rudder without filing.

(Message edited by johnsvt on October 04, 2008)

they preload the rudders to get rid of play in the steering wheel so soon as you turn the wheel the boat turns without hesitation

Have you looked at your rudder yet? On most of the newer Malibus there is usually a small square adjustment tab. You can loosen the allen screw on the top of the rudder & move this tab to adjust how much torque steer your boat has.

Doesn't have the adjustment tab. I greased the fitting on the rudder to see if that helps any, my Mastercraft steering was a lot more stiff and never pulled. I will try it again this week.

The old school way to adjust your rudder is to file the trailing edge of the rudder.

Here is a writeup in Waterski mag about the procudure.

And an old thread about it on the MC forum, including some pretty basic how-to

It not very hard & a little bit will go a long way. Since your pulling right, you'd want to grind on the left side.

(Message edited by bill_airjunky on October 05, 2008)

My sunsetter is the same way. I didn't notice any issues until I replaced my steering cable. Now it pulls to the right if I am going fast and let go of the steering wheel. I never really thought about it, just the way it is.

Thanks for the links, I think I will just leave it and get used to it now that I know its not broke.

Yeah its a good thing, if it didn't have some resistance the boat would wander from right to left while you tried to drive a straight line. You can tone it down but definitely don't want to eliminate the pull completely.

if you have a malibu you do not want to file on the back edge of the rudder. This will ruin it and do nothing to make it pull the other way. There is a distinct difference to the style of rudder on a nautique compared to a malibu.

Wedge shape(malibu) vs blade(nautique)

For those that need their own proof, this will be evident when you look at where each manufacture places their tab for adjustment on the newer boats. as mentioned it is supposed to pull, and the fact that your 'bu steering is so smooth you feel the load on the rudder.

To re-compensate, take an angle grinder with a flap disc sanding wheel and lay flat on the left side of the rudder. Do little bits at time putting the boat back in the water each time to check. The sweet spot to grind is 2" in from the back and 4" down from the top post.

For nautique blade style rudders you would grind the back trailing edge, but that's about the only one you would.

However, beware what you are asking for. With the load the steering is tight and precise, taking away that load(which makes it pull) will make the boat somewhat "loose" feeling at higher speeds. Would be like driving an older pickup down the highway where you can wiggle the wheel back and forth and no direction change.

Hope that helps!

I completely disagree. I ground my rudder on my '98 Malibu VLX and it drives just fine. It no longer pulls to the right and tracks great. It's no different to drive than the 06 X-star which is the other boat in our rotation. If your boat is flopping all over ther is probably something else wrong...

Not true Stephan. None of my three Sangers pulled one bit. Also, with PP on, I can point it in a straight line and don't even have to be in the drivers seat and it'll track straight just fine.

(Message edited by wake upppp on October 11, 2008)

Ok... I drove another 04 XTI just like mine and the steering is very tight and doesn't pull at all and no signs of any grinding on the rudder. I did notice the 3 fins on his boat are bent slightly out in a staggered pattern, is that helping or has he bent them and doesn't know it? My biggest thing now is how loose my steering is... almost like there is no cable attached.
His is just like (wake uppp)s I can get out of the seat and it will drive straight to the other side of the lake at 40mph. Is there a way to adjust the tension or tightness of the steering cable?

You can't adjust the tightness but you can take out play.
My D215 is the same as Sparky's Sangers. At 25mph it's pinky finger steering even for a 90° turn but it never wanders. At 40 the steering force is higher but it doesn't pull.