MD80 CREW HAD AUTOPLT CAPTURE A RADIAL EARLY AND TURNED OFF COURSE.

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ON DEP AT DFW WE SET UP TO INTERCEPT THE RANGER 022 DEG RADIAL. IT WAS MY LEG FROM DFW TO EWR. WE WERE CLBING TO 10000 FT. OUR FIRST CLRNC ON 118.55 WAS A TURN TO 080 DEGS. THE NEXT CLRNC WAS TO TURN TO A 350 DEG HDG TO INTERCEPT THE RANGER 022 DEG RADIAL AND CLB TO 17000 FT. WE SWITCHED TO ZFW ON 134.15. WE WERE THEN CLRED TO FL230. THE VOR CAPTURED EARLY AND THE AUTOPLT ROLLED US OUT ON A HDG OF ABOUT 020 DEGS PARALLEL TO THE 022 DEG RADIAL. I WAS CORRECTING JUST AS CTR CALLED AND HAD US STOP CLB AT FL180. THE CTLR ASKED OUR HDG. THE FO REPLIED ABOUT 020 DEGS. THE CTLR THEN SAID SHE DID NOT NOW WHAT HDG WE WERE GIVEN BUT TO TURN TO 340 DEGS TO INTERCEPT THE 022 DEG RADIAL. SHE THEN CAME BACK AND ASKED WHAT OUR LAST CLRNC HAD BEEN. THE FO SAID HE WAS NOT SURE. I TOLD HIM I WAS CORRECTING BACK BUT HE WAS CHANGING FREQS AND COMMUNICATING 3 OR 4 TIMES WITH ATC. I WAS CONCERNED THAT HIS RESPONSE TO ATC MAY HAVE CAUSED THE ATC CTLR TO FILE A RPT. DURING THIS TIME WE DID NOT SEE ANY ACFT CONFLICTS AND GOT NO TCASII WARNING.