Tie Rod Ends

[steve3140]

I am getting ready to replace the tierod ends in my 1992 accord. (I have already replaced the bearings and upper / lower ball joints).

My inclination is to go ahead and replace both the outer and inner tierod ends, However, my hayes manual doesn't seem to mention the inner tierod ends, rather it appears to be more related to the steering gear. I have looked at the exploded parts view and know there is dust seals and associated retaining clips to deal with for the inner tierod end?

Should I go ahead and replace both or is it a case of the outer tierod ends being the part that wears out and the inner ones usually arn't the problem?

Thanks -

[jeffcoslacker]

Outers usually wear first. You check them by grabbing the tie rod end with the front off the ground and try to force it up and down against the spindle. any vertical motion is unacceptable. Sometimes jerking the tire in and out along the steering axis while you push and pull on the tie rod end will help make it move. Also if the joint is locked and won't swivel, it's bad.

Inners have a more side to side motion when they have slop, you can feel it if you hold the tie rod close to the inner's dust boot and force the back of the tire in/out in an abrupt motion (like steering back and forth, but you don't really have to change the steering angle to feel it)...with your hand on the rod, you'll be able to feel the pop coming from the inner (if any)...you can squeeze the boot and feel it directly too, but I don't reccomend that because sometimes the boot will split on one that old.

If they seem ok I'd leave them be. It would suck to replace them, then have the steering rack fail at some point in the future, and just be replacing them again since they are part of the rack assembly.

Measure the tie rod ends from the center of the stud to their inside end...relying on number of threads it's threaded on can burn you sometimes, some aftermarket parts have slightly different dimensions and your alignment will be too whacked out to even drive it to a shop to be aligned.

If the new part measures the same as the old ones, then you can go by number of turns you thread them on....otherwise you need a measurement from the center of the stud to a mark on the tie rod itself before you remove it, then match that measurement when the new one goes on...

[steve3140]

Thanks - Thats exactly what I was looking for