So my inner tie rod is bascially shot. The boot is ripped. Anyone know how much it would cost to replace?

 

you want to do it yourself?

the boot being ripped doesn't necessarily mean the tie rod is shot either......not yet anyway

 

Doing the inner tie rod requires a special tool that's rather annoying to operate. You can try it yourself but you will definitely need the use of the tool, and the boot is a PITA to get off and on.

 

yea i figured i got quoted $150 for the whole job with labor

 

that isn't bad since the tie rod might run you around $40-50 and the tool around $60-$ 80

it's get worth it to do youself if it's more than one.....

 

tool? wtf tool?
you simply unscrew the old inner rod end and destory the little square clip if you have to..

when you install the new rods just clamp the new clips into place using some channel locks and you're done. takes 30 min to replace both, but then you'll need an alignment afterwards.

BUT since the only thing that's damaged is the boot, just buy a new boot and replace it and you'll be fine. pop the outer tie rod off the knuckle and count the turns as you unscrew it from the inner tie rod. put the new boot on and reassemble the tie rods using the same number of turns. easy enough. should take 10-15 min.

 

I needed the tool, no way I could get the rod off without it.

 

what tool? I don't see anything listed in the FSM for it...
just did these last week on my 240 and had no problems doing it. they were identical to the rack on my '93 Max as well... I would suspect the 4 gen is same as the 3 and the 240... and the z...

 

from wirelessdude04's sig, I'm guessing he has a 4th gen.

I just bought the tool because I was doing both of them, and I'm not sure how I would have done it without the tool, just from a clearance standpoint. I'm not sure you could get a wrench in there to get any leverage on it to break loose the inner tie rod. motoervae has a write up, it was very helpful to me.

 

Maybe it was this writeup

http://www.cardomain.com/ride/348507/13

Matt, this tool:

 

Uh, you will need the tool. I haven't done it on a third gen or a 240, but you NEED the tool for a fourth gen. There is so little space in there it's not funny.

 

you can rent the tool from autozone along with a gear puller to seperate the tierod from the knuckle.
inner and outer tierods can be had from rockauto for 30 a piece plus shipping.

 

"ahhhhh Eye si," said the blind man...
There's a lot more clearance on the 3g and 240. the front subframe is in the way on 4 and 5 gens so you can't get a wrench on there.

on the 3 gen and the 240, there's enough room to get a open end/crescent wrench on the square part of the inner tie rod.. not so on the 4g obviously, and the 5g is very similar.

 

I tried for like 20 minutes with a buddy to find a way to get that sucker off, I wound up going to Autozone and renting the wrong tool , so we gave up and put it back together. Later I was working on my car at a different buddy's shop and I came upon the right tool. I happened to still have the inner tie rod in the trunk so I got all excited, busted it out and replaced that bish (no homo).

Even with the tool, a lift etc though it was still a pain to get the damn boot off (twist wire that you have to cut with no space or light, new one came with a ziptie thank god), and a pain to get the new tie rod in since the tool fitting kept falling off the back of the damn tie rod.

Anyway, don't expect it to go off without a hitch, that's all I'm saying.

 

Yes. Passenger side goes slower than the drivers...

 

thanks guys will keep you informed about what i do

 

The inner tie rod tool that is available for rental at autozone is too small for my 98, nor does it include the crows-foot which is most definitely required for removal.
I'm currently SOL because my outer tie-rod was damaged when I beat the damn thing with a hammer to get it off (after the gear puller and pickle fork failed to do the job)! To add to my own troubles after five hours of oiling, turning and beating I could not separate my inner and outer and had to cut them apart; so now it's all new parts or my car goes nowhere.
Needless to say, until I get that Lisle tool kit I'm stuck. I'm going to wait for daylight to try an alternative, perhaps an auto-adjustable (aka fordwrench) will fit (the only cresant wrench I had with a bit enough mouth ~1and1/8" had too long a handle to do anything with). Maybe I can fabricate something, but regardless...not just any tool will work.

 

sorry to hear, seems like they'd have something that would work.

 

[QUOTE=headloss;6124038To add to my own troubles after five hours of oiling, turning and beating I could not separate my inner and outer and had to cut them apart; so now it's all new parts or my car goes nowhere.[/QUOTE]
Shops I've used had to use torches to heat up the rods when they're that stuck together. I had to replace the outers only cause we couldn't align anymore since they were so rusted.

 

I hate rust! My passenger side LCA bolt is rusted where it connects to the wheel under the cv-joint. It wants to strip and the only tool that will fit onto it is a basic open ended 19mm; a 6pt closed end or socket can't be used. I tried one of those craftsman extreme grips (3/4" was close enough to 19mm) but that didn't work either. It looks like I'm stuck reattaching the damn thing.
But I'll try a torch before all hope is lost.

I've given up on my driver side inner outer tie rods, I'm not about to take a hacksaw to another set...I'll just let a shop figure it out.
On the bright side, I got the inner tie rod tool first thing monday morning from a specialty store and was able to finish the passenger side.

Personally I don't think the inner tie rod replacement is a worthwhile project for the at home DIY'er, at least not on the A32. It's too difficult to get the inner and outer seperated, and then you need the special tool to remove the inner, and then you have to replace the lockwasher (which requires a punch and hammer to put a divot in order to correctly attach to the drive-shaft but you can't get a punch in there), and then you have to find a way to fasten the boot in the back where you can't see wtf you're doing, or if its even sitting correctly.

Having just done it, If I had to do it again, for $150 I would let someone else do it.

 

Replacing the boot only wouldn't be that bad (assuming you can get the outer tie rod disconnected from the inner in order to fit a new boot on). Based on my experiment it would take you about an hour to get the new boot attached. The hardest part to getting the boot off was removing the wire-fastener in the back.
Just pack grease around the ball joint and pack a bit more into the small end of the new boot and reattach the boot fasteners.

 

from the sounds of it, I completely understand your opinion.

I replaced both the inner and outer, and took my LCA's off and had ES bushings pressed in.

my biggest and only complaint was the boot, because they one advance sold me didn't fit right.

to loosen some of these things, I would take my craftsman rachet, and stick the last link of my floor jack on the end and just have at it. I also sprayed liquid wrench everywhere.