Replacing tie rod ends and bearing hub

[Woods-Rider]

my stock inner tie rod ends are shot so i need to install some new ones (moog was recommended by some people) and a new drivers front bearing hub is in order as well (any suggestions on a brand?). my question is, how hard are these to replace yourself, any special tools required, time it takes? i know ill need a frond end alignment afterwards, but if i could save myself some dough by doing the install myself that would be great.

 

[Woods-Rider]

So i got some inner tie rod ends and ordered the hub. i have a question on the TRE's though. to remove the tie rod stud-to-steering knuckle connection do you need a jawed puller tool or is there some other way to get these out? i tried using a hammer with piece of wood between the bolt and hammer but it didnt budge. need help.

 

[metalmacguyver]

the ideal tool is a pickle fork. its basically a two pronged wedge that you drive between the TRE and the knuckle with a hammer to separate them. you could easily improvize something to do the same thing. good luck.

 

[MAKG]

A pickle fork will work (with a hand sledge).

My favorite tool for this job is, however, a Pitman arm puller.

 

[Woods-Rider]

Got the pitman arm puller and it worked excellent. i have another question. when removing the inner tie rod end can you use a pipe wrench on the rack and pinion to keep all the pressure from prying on the inner TRE from transferring to the rack and pinion? it doesnt really seem like a good idea to me, but neither does letting all that torque go to the racka and pinion either.

 

[Woods-Rider]

So I've done all i can until i figure out how to get the inner tie rod ends out. don't know if i can just put the wrench on and give'r hell or if i need something to hold the rack and pinion (something like a pipe wrench) as to not transfer all that torque to it. had to take off the rotors and calipers to get the pitman arm puller around the steering knuckle.

also found this when i got the drivers side outer tie rod end off. gonna have to make a trip to Napa tomorrow morning to get a new one.

I just really need someone to tell me how to get the inners out.

 

[Sasquatch_Ryda]

You will need an inner tie rod removal tool like this kit:

http://www.mytoolstore.com/astro/asthan14.html

 

[Woods-Rider]

that doesnt look like it does anything special. i can get a wrench on the inner tie rod if i turn the wheel all the way to the side im working on. does that tool hold the rack and pinion or something?

 

[Woods-Rider]

Got inner tie rod ends in and replaced the one bad outer with a greasable one.

here's the pry bar needed to get the inners out. part of an old swing set lol.

Got new hub in. look at how shiny it is.

took it in for an alignment and they said there is some negative camber they cant adjust due to my torsion crank. (kind of annoying since fixing my camber was the whole reason for the new tie rods and bearing hub). they also said that if i take it home, crank them down (hopefully i have enough room to do this) and bring it back within 30 days they will realign it for free. so i got it up on blocks and cranked the pass side down 1.5 turns then went to the drivers and saw this.here's the pass side (center bolt).

here's the drivers side. both were taken from approx the same relative angle. you can tell that the drivers is about 7* or so off from vertical. its also up in there farther and i cant tell if its just cranked more or pushed up.

i cant tell if the bolt is bent or if the whole torsion bolt housing it at an angle. the bolt was in there pretty good so i sprayed some WD40 on it to see if that helps and now i'm waiting for it to soak in.
anyone ever have this happen before and if so what did you do about it?

 

[Woods-Rider]

I measured the distance each bolt was sticking out of the adjuster plate (whatever the threaded thing is called that holds the bolt) and the pass side was about 1/4" longer. i cranked the drivers out 4 turns farther than the pass side till they were even in length thinking this would get me close to the same ride height on both sides. wrong! the drivers side was about 1.5" lower than the pass when back on the ground. is this common for the bolts to be in different amounts to achieve the same height? anyone know how far the bolts typically stick out when stock? i cranked them about 4 years ago when i didnt know what i was doing. i know i did each the same but didnt record how many turns i did. now i want to bring it back to stock if i have the room for the tires but dont know where that is.