How to Replace Tie Rod Ends WITHOUT Losing Alignment

In this Instructable you will learn how to replace tie rod ends without losing alignment. As a result you may be able to save hundreds of dollars, with less than an hour of work.

Please feel free to watch the video, or read the Instructable, according to your personal preference!

Required Tools:

1. Jack
2. Axle stands
3. Lug wrench / Wheel brace
4. Spanners
5. Hammer
6. Penetrating spray
7. Torque wrench

Optional tools

1. You may like to clean your brake rotors with brake cleaner after this job
2. You may need a heat gun or propane torch to help free seized components
3. You may need a set of snips, pliers or your other preferred tool for removing split pins

Required Parts:

1. Tie rod end/s (Usually it makes sense to do both sides together: if one has failed the other can be expected to follow)
2. Some threaded rod / Some other straight edged item such as square profiled wood (This is to make our "alignment indicators" - read on to see more)
3. Duct tape
4. New split pins if necessary (May be supplied with the tie rod ends)

Apply handbrake very firmly.

Apply parking brake if applicable.

Chock rear wheel with bricks or similar.

"Crack" wheel nuts.

Jack up car.

Place on axle stands.

Remove wheels and place under vehicle as an extra safety measure.

Replacing tie rod ends using standard methods almost always messes up the vehicle's alignment.

Even if care is taken during a DIY tie rod replacement job - for example, counting the turns taken to remove the old tie rod end and replicating this when installing the replacement - there is always the need for the extra expense and hassle of having the alignment redone by a garage after the parts have been replaced.

However, we can avoid this by fitting alignment indicators before we start the work, and using throughout the job to ensure that the alignment remains the same.

In my case I used duct tape to tape a 1 meter (3 ft) length of threaded rod to the brake rotors (discs) on each side of the car, and marked the position of these on the floor - in my case using a small stone to make scratch marks.

Due to the geometry involved, the alignment indicators amplify any potential measurement errors, so this is far more accurate than trying to take measurements at the tie rod end area. For example, a 0.5 mm (20 thou) difference at the tie rod end, translates to circa 1 cm (400 thou) difference at the end of the indicator.

N.B. The longer you make the Alignment indicators, the more accuracy you will have. 3 ft is a good length to aim for.

Spray penetrating spray on the securing nut of the tie rod end (at the steering knuckle - adjacent to the brake rotor) and also on the locking nut on the inside end of the tie rod end. Leave for a few minutes to work. (You may also wish to clean the thread areas with a wire brush - this is determined by personal preference and how much corrosion is present.)

It's easier if you loosen the locking nut first, while the tie rod end is still secured. You will need spanners for this and you have flat areas adjacent to the locking nut onto which you can engage your tools.

If you have trouble at this stage you can try fitting locking pliers in place adjacent to the nut (bracing it against a supporting structural member) then holding a spanner on the locknut and hitting it with a hammer. This will usually free the locknut.

If you still can't loosen it, heating the locknut with a propane torch / heat gun will expand it slightly and help you to break it free.

Remove the split pin if fitted, then loosen the nut securing the tie rod end. If you leave the nut in place rather than removing it fully, you can tap the top of the nut with a hammer to break the tie rod end out of the tapered attachment point at the steering knuckle.

The nut can then be removed and the tie rod end can be unscrewed and removed from the vehicle.

To fit the new tie rod ends you just simply screw the tie rod end into place while monitoring the alignment indicators.

Insert the tie rod end into position on the steering knuckle and check if the toe in - toe out is correct as per the indicator. If the marks are not aligned, just rotate the tie rod end and re-insert until the indicator is aligned perfectly. You will see the accuracy of the alignment indicator method at this stage.

Once the tie rod end is perfectly adjusted, fit the locking nut at the steering knuckle end, torque to specification, and fit a new split pin if necessary on your vehicle.

Tighten up the locking nut while holding the outer tie rod end with a spanner.

Repeat Step 4 on the other side of the vehicle and you now have brand new tie rod ends!

Remove the alignment indicators.

Clean Brake rotors (discs) with brake cleaner if you like. (Duct tape residue won't last longer than the first 2 seconds of braking, so this step is optional...)

Refit wheels and hand tighten nuts.

Raise vehicle, remove jack stands, lower vehicle.

Sequence tighten and torque wheel nuts / bolts.

Congratulations, you have potentially saved yourself hundreds of dollars with what will probably have been less than an hour's worth of work.

Please leave a comment below if you have any feedback, or if this helped you out and would like to encourage me to keep making more Instructables!

Cheers,

Chris :-)