Dodgy or not?

[Ninja22]

Hi guys, I went for to get the tracking done on my Yaris 2004 1.4d and they said my inner tie rod ends were very tight and they recommended replacement. What does that mean? Thanks.

[sproutdreamer]

These get very rusty and often need a welding torch, lots of Plusgas and some welly to free before adjusting the track. I think after that the garage is advising you might as well replace the track rod ends with new for another £40/50 parts. However once they have freed them off ok it will be an easy job for you to replace them as and when they really need it. If you expect to keep the car a long time probably worth it, if not just leave it. Often the rubber gaiters start to wear and let water/grit in so perhaps a good preventative thing to do.

[Madasafish]

19 hours ago, sproutdreamer said:

These get very rusty and often need a welding torch, lots of Plusgas and some welly to free before adjusting the track. I think after that the garage is advising you might as well replace the track rod ends with new for another £40/50 parts. However once they have freed them off ok it will be an easy job for you to replace them as and when they really need it. If you expect to keep the car a long time probably worth it, if not just leave it. Often the rubber gaiters start to wear and let water/grit in so perhaps a good preventative thing to do.

Agreed..I pesonally would not want to spend any more than I have to on a 17 year old car...that's 3.5 years older than the UK average life of a car..

 

ohh our Yaris is 16 years old...  

[mrfixer]

On 8/15/2019 at 4:35 PM, Ninja22 said:

Hi guys, I went for to get the tracking done on my Yaris 2004 1.4d and they said my inner tie rod ends were very tight and they recommended replacement. What does that mean? Thanks.

The tie (or track) rods are two metal steering rods (left side and right side) which connect your steering rack to the front wheels, with a ball joint at each end of each rod (so four joints in total). This allows the rods to carry the steering movements to the wheels and to move as the suspension moves. To keep the inner joint free of dirt and moisture the inner assembly is enclosed within the rack gaiter (rubber bellows).

The outer (wheel end) tie rod is a ball joint on an internally threaded bar which screws onto the inner tie rod and can be threaded back and forth to set the front wheel tracking. This outer joint assembly is known as a track rod end.

The ball joints gradually wear out and develop 'play' which can be felt as knocking through the steering wheel. The MoT checks for this. If dirt or water enters a joint then they wear very quickly. Sometimes they go tight, as in your case, making the steering 'bind' a little. They should be replaced ASAP.

For a Yaris you can buy aftermarket parts quite cheaply. I would replace the inner tie rods and the track rod ends all at the same time. I would also replace the steering rack gaiters unless they have been replaced recently. All of these parts have to be removed to do the inner ends, so there is no extra labour cost.

A pair of inner tie rods plus track rod ends can be had for about £50. A pair of gaiters about £20.

I could do the job in 30-45 mins a side without breaking sweat, so well less than 2 hours labour. You also need tracking set at the end of the job.

[AL21784]

It's not a hard job to do yourself, the longest part will be lifting the car up and taking the wheels off. The only though part may be separating the ball joint from the hub, sometimes a little "Tappy-tap-tap" is needed, but it shouldn't take long to do yourself.

 

Alan

[mrfixer]

4 hours ago, AL21784 said:

It's not a hard job to do yourself, the longest part will be lifting the car up and taking the wheels off. The only though part may be separating the ball joint from the hub, sometimes a little "Tappy-tap-tap" is needed, but it shouldn't take long to do yourself.

 

Alan

Its his INNER joints that are tight - the ones on the rack. So he will need to remove the gaiters, tap back the locking tab and unscrew them, then refit. You need good access underneath and appropriate size spanners. I would also lube the rack at the same time.

[AL21784]

1 hour ago, mrfixer said:

Its his INNER joints that are tight - the ones on the rack. So he will need to remove the gaiters, tap back the locking tab and unscrew them, then refit. You need good access underneath and appropriate size spanners. I would also lube the rack at the same time.

I should probably read things first, in that case Jim is correct, it's still not a hard job as long as you can get under properly to have enough space to get the shaft undone.

Alan

[Mick F]

Decent trolley jack and a pair of axle stands should do it.  Unless you have those to start with, it's not an easy job on any car.

I cut my teeth on DIY car repairs in the old days, but nowadays I leave it to the professionals.  I'm not getting any younger. 😞

Mick