Long wheelbase vehicles such as Newell coaches require alignment of drive (and tag) axles in addition to front axles. The thrust angle of the rear axle(s) must be adjusted close to zero or, if possible, eliminated to correct a dog tracking situaiton. The Newell Service Department utilizes the latest Hunter axle alignment equipment which is designed to perform highly accurate total axle alignments. If your coach wanders, we suspect you may also have a front axle alignment issue. You may have a "toe-out" condition. Changing from conventional to radial tires generally requires the toe-in to be set at minimum. We recommend 1/32". In summary, a complete alignment, in your case, two axles, is recommended. Once you know the alignment is correct, if you still have a problem, further checks can be made. Swapping front tires side-to-side has been known to cure some wandering problems. With the relatively light Cat 3208, the weight front vs. rear axle is not the problem. We built a number of two axle coaches with much heavier 8V92 engines. These coaches handled just fine. You indicate that your steering gear is "tight." If you have trouble curing the wandering, you might also have the steering gear checked by a competent mechanic, and rebuilt or replaced if necessary.
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