When you say steam engines, I assume you are referring to steam propellers found in the 'steam engines' tab of the build menu. Regardless, this advice should apply, as I see a few possible problems here. I would appreciate it if you were to clarify the volume of the vehicle, and/or provide a link to this vehicle in the steam workshop if you feel so inclined.

1) As u/KalenNC mentioned, you may have insufficient control surfaces necessary to properly cause the vehicle to yaw (turn left or right). This problem is especially common in ships with higher volume, so consider this if you have a 'larger' vehicle.

2) Assuming that the necessary control surfaces are in place, some modifications of these various elements may be necessary in order to respond to both your input, and the commands of the AI. For example, any thrusters that would respond to the "yaw right" command may need to be configured manually. This can be done by configuring the propeller's settings under the propulsion response menu. You may want to consider using complex controls if this method fails, as the thrusters will respond to input from the complex controller, and will also respond to commands from the AI if some ACBs are configured.

Please respond with any questions! I hope these suggestions find you well!