Hey guys I have a 1992 Mustang G.T, and it’s been making a piping noise when I turn my wheels deep, and floating all over the road. I jacked it up and I’m thinking it’s the tie rod on driver side but I’m not sure, parts store asked if it was upper or lower but I don’t know I’m going to upload a video any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Fox Tie Rod
- Thread starter Case
- Start date
Inner or outer maybe? Inner tie rod is attached to the rack and pinion inside the boot. Outer tie rod thread onto the inner and attaches to the spindle.
89ripper
Founding Member
Yes with steering wheel locked it will move around 5 inches side to side, but I don’t know how to check if it’s upper or lower.
gkomo
now i can hopefully expect to receive the shaft
Edited: I need to replace my passengers side inner tie-rod. I bought the tie-rod and an adjustable tie-rod/balljoint removal tool. Is it a fairly easy swap?
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Five inches??? Is that steering wheel movement after it’s locked or you can grab a wheel/tire and move it that much?
If it’s the wheel/tire then it sounds like the rack and pinion should be replaced or you have an other components wire out like the whole front end.
If it’s the wheel/tire then it sounds like the rack and pinion should be replaced or you have an other components wire out like the whole front end.
89ripper
Founding Member
When you move the wheel ( and 5 inches does sound crazy) you need to see what component(s) in the suspension has play. Get a friend to help so you can better diagnose.
Try to focus more on precise details. Five inches is all overthe road, but it is a tell tale sign of an outer. Look into counting the threads for the outer. You probably will still have to get a alignment so do the other side too. If you follows directions you will save hundreds of dollars
I hope for your sake the five inches of movement is side to side not up and down. Now with the cars front wheels off the ground and on jack stands for safety, remove the cotter pin from the outtter tie rod and lessen the nut but keep it two or three threads on then hit the nut with a hammer to get the tie rod broken loose from the spindle. Now remove the nut and grab The tie rod and wiggle it , should have resistance not flail like a limp noodle. If its loose you need to replace it,not a difficult task to do.
So with the steering wheel locked what is moving 5”? Are you grabbing the wheel/tire and moving it back and forth or ???
If it were 5 inches you would probably have crashed by now.
Simplest way to check is to jack the car directly underneath the ball joint (without hitting tire or wheel) Grab the wheel at 3 and 9 o'clock and move side to side. You aren't trying to turn the wheel, just see how far it goes with no resistance. That will do the tie rods.
Then take a long crow bar place in under the wheel from the side of the car (perpendicular) put the tip on the ground just past the wheel and pick up on it so the middle is under the tire. If it goes up and down, it's the ball joint.
Now the reality is that the car is 30 years old and if those parts are original you probably want to replace as much as possible considering that you will need an alignment. It would suck to replace one part, align the car, then need another part a few months later.
So ball joints, tie rods, steering rack, control arm bushings and throw in struts should all be checked at one time.
Simplest way to check is to jack the car directly underneath the ball joint (without hitting tire or wheel) Grab the wheel at 3 and 9 o'clock and move side to side. You aren't trying to turn the wheel, just see how far it goes with no resistance. That will do the tie rods.
Then take a long crow bar place in under the wheel from the side of the car (perpendicular) put the tip on the ground just past the wheel and pick up on it so the middle is under the tire. If it goes up and down, it's the ball joint.
Now the reality is that the car is 30 years old and if those parts are original you probably want to replace as much as possible considering that you will need an alignment. It would suck to replace one part, align the car, then need another part a few months later.
So ball joints, tie rods, steering rack, control arm bushings and throw in struts should all be checked at one time.
