It’s Under Control

Springtime road conditions in many parts of the country accelerate wear and tear on a car’s suspension components leading to vehicle control problems. Here are some tie rod end inspection and replacement tips.

The tie rod end is one of the two ball and stud components on the front end of a vehicle (the other is the ball joint). One end is threaded onto the inner end of the rack & pinion steering gear (as equipped); the other is fitted into the steering arm on the steering knuckle. The tie rod end is the outside component on each side of the steering rack that translates the rotary movement of the steering wheel into linear motion to steer the vehicle.

CHECKING FOR WEAR

Quite often, an outer tie rod end is thought to be worn for one of two reasons: (1) abnormal tire wear or (2) some looseness in the steering. To confirm that the end is worn, many technicians will have an assistant rock the steering wheel back-and-forth while they observe the movement of the ball stud in the housing. Movement indicates that the tie rod end is worn. But, it can be difficult to see movement. The best way to determine if the tie rod end is worn is to measure the movement with a dial indicator. Let’s review this procedure.

First, the entire weight of the vehicle must be supported by the tires and the suspension. Do not support the vehicle by any means except a drive-on hoist or alignment rack. Raise the hoist to bring the outer tie rod end to eye level. Mount a dial indicator to the front suspension. Position the dial indicator in the center of the tie rod as shown in Figure 1 (LH platform vehicle diagrams shown).

Zero the dial indicator. Install a U-bolt and equally tighten the bolt to 24 lbs.-in. (this will compress the socket). Note the reading on the dial, which is the end play in the socket. A new tie rod end will have an end play value less than 0.100 inches. The end play of a used tie rod end should not exceed 0.190 inches (check the specs for the vehicle being serviced). If the end play exceeds the specs, the tie rod end is worn.

REMOVAL AND INSTALLATION

Raise the vehicle, then remove the wheel and tire assembly. Loosen the jam nut on the inner tie rod end. Remove the outer tie rod end nut. On some vehicles, it might be necessary to hold the ball stud in place to prevent it from rotating. Using a special tool, separate the ball stud from the steering arm. One special tool that can be used is shown in Figure 2. Another special tool that can be used is a fork-type tool. This tool is placed between the steering arm and the tie rod end housing. Then, the end of the tool is hammered, driving the tool, which is tapered, to act as a wedge to separate the ball stud from the steering arm.

The tool shown in Figure 2 works in the following manner. The claw ends of the tool rest on the steering arm and the center threaded rod is placed against the end of the ball stud. As the center rod is rotated, it pushes the ball stud out of the steering arm.

After the ball stud is removed from the steering arm (regardless of the tool used), the arm of the tie rod end housing is threaded off of the inner tie rod end.

The first step in installing the new outer tie rod end is threading the arm onto the inner tie rod end. Do not tighten the jam nut. Install the tie rod end ball stud into the steering arm. Install the tie rod end nut, then tighten it to the specified torque. This will seat the ball stud in the steering arm.

Before the jam nut can be tightened, the distance from the inner tie rod housing to the center of the outer end housing must be set. This distance is actually the amount of toe and will be determined, as a toe measurement, on the alignment rack.

Install the tire and wheel assembly and torque the wheel nuts to the specified torque. Lower the vehicle to the ground and drive the vehicle onto the alignment rack.

TOE ADJUSTMENT

The front toe must be reset after one or both of the outer tie rod ends are replaced. Often the DIYer, and some techs, will try to estimate the toe setting. First, they make an accurate measurement of the inner end-to-outer end distance before the worn tie rod end is removed. Then, after the new end is installed, the inner end rod is rotated to set the inner end-to-outer end to the dimension measured with the old end on the vehicle. While this procedure sets the toe to a value close to the spec, it is not the spec. The vehicle can probably be driven, but abnormal tire wear and/or wandering might result. For best results, set the toe on an alignment rack.

Drive the vehicle onto the alignment rack and position the front wheels on the swivel plates. Center the steering wheel and lock it in place using a steering wheel clamp. Remove the boot clamp on the end of each boot covering each inner tie rod end. Be sure the jam nuts are loosened (Figure 3). Grasp both inner rod ends and rotate the ends back and forth to set the toe to the desired specification.

Note: When rotating the inner rod ends, do not twist the inner tie rod end boots; be sure the boot clamps have been removed before setting the toe.

After the toe has been set, re-install the boot clamps on the inner tie rod end boots. Remove the steering wheel clamp. Remove the alignment equipment and drive the vehicle off the alignment rack. Finally, road test the vehicle to verify the steering wheel is straight and that the vehicle does not pull or wander.