Hi all,

My car failed its 6 monthly warrant of fitness (safety check) due to what the tech called (a loose right inner steering joint). Would that be the inner tie rod he's referring to? Would simply replacing the tie rod tighten it all up? Suggestions on how to approach this please? thanks

 

maybe that one was too difficult without seeing it. I should have asked him what he meant when i had the chance.

Imagine the wagon (95 na) on a hoist and he jostles each wheel. The front steering has what he thinks is too much movement. What are the common culprits? Could it be the steering rack since its sort of "inner"?

 

I would think he meant the inner tie rod. You can jack up the car on that side and see if there is play. If there is, then you know it is the tie rod.

 

I wouldn't go by what the safety ck guy said; who knows if he's qualified?

Either you ck it out yourself or take it to a good indy volvo tech and have hime ck it out. Then go from there...

 

unfortunately, I have to take it back to the same guy who will sign off on the check so I can drive it again. He's qualified to do the inspections but doubtful that he's a full mechanic. I can fix it with whomever though if I can't sort it.

I had one wheel jacked up and didn't find any movement when i tried moving it around. In the morning I'll put both wheels in the air and see if I can find anything.

 

Your talking $18 and $13 parts here. Replace them, align it and call it done.

 

I can't find any movement in the inner tie rod. It all seems tight. It's about a 3 week wait for parts from the US so I don't want to waste time and money getting something that isn't going to work and have to re-ship. $13 and $18 sounds pretty nice from my neck of the woods. Sadly shipping is anywhere from $30-$120.

Does the steering rack often have excessive movement in it? I'm just trying to understand what all the possible culprits are. Not finding movement isn't helping of course.

 

Is there any possibility that you can take it back to him and have him show you specifically what he thinks the problem is? I mean, if he's failing it, he SHOULD be able to tell you WHY he is failing it.

 

The steering rack is a solid rod so any movement would only come from the steering wheel gear (which would be a floating steering wheel) or the inner/outer tie rod ends.

I agree with ibified, get that guy to tell you exactly what he is seeing and where.

 

so I lifted the front end again today since a tyre went flat overnight. I did find some movement. It's only marginally more then the left side. I'm assuming its the tie rod. I'll try and source one locally. Is there anything else I need?

There is a dust boot over top of it. It's secured with a spring clamp on one end that is easy enough to remove. How is the other end secured? I couldn't get a good enough look at it.

As far as removal, is it just a matter of loosening the nut and then unscrewing the tie rod (keeping track of the number of turns while I'm at it)?

I am slightly confused though. Since it essentially looks like a solid piece of metal screwed into both ends, how will renewing it solve the movement problem? Or does the inner rod have a ball joint between the threaded ends?

Thanks

 

just called the dealer for a price. $220 plus 15% gst is the regular price for the tie rod. Ouch. He was kind enough to drop it to $150 plus gst since it has sat on the shelf for 3 years. Still ouch.

 

I've ordered the inner and outer tie rod. Getting the outer off is easy enough but the inner is giving me trouble. Has anyone here removed one with a simple open ended wrench? Or do I need one of those sleeve type removers?

 

I used the pipe wrench. The inner was easier to remove than the outer one, since the tightening nut was "welded" shut.

Measure everything before removing, and try to re-install at those measurements, so you could drive it to the alignment shop. You will still need alignment regardless of how close you get to the original measurements.

 

The tightening nut is frozen on mine as well so I'm trying to remove both inner and outer as one unit. I don't have a pipe wrench but I think I can track down a 31 or 32 mm wrench to use. Do you remember what the torque was on it? I'm guessing I will be hitting the wrench with a hammer to loosen it.

You didn't find the sway bar got in the way?

 

Yes, you can use a open-end wrench (15mm if I recall correctly) on the end of the Inner Rod (close to the nut), but I think it would be easier with a pipe wrench (plumber's wrench). Here in the States, it is sold in hardware stores for $5- $10. Not sure in NZ. I am sure though that you will not have a problem. Make sure you remove the plastic clip that holds the plastic boot and slide the plastic boot outward so you can get to the "head" (thicker part) of the inner rod. That's where you use the pipe wrench on. One snap (no hammer needed) and it will turn counter-clockwise (looking into the steering rack).

Although you don't need to, the frozen nut can be loosened with the help of a heat (butane) torch.

Are you replacing both sides?

 

just replacing the one side at the moment so it will be legal for the road. The other side is still ok for the time being.

I tried using a heat gun on the nut with some pentrating lube but no dice. I'll try loosening it when its all out. I need to retrieve the boot so it has to come off one way or another.

I'll try the pipe wrench idea. I just bought a 32mm spanner and quickly realized it was a waste of $22. The spanner is too wide to engage. Looks like the old inner tie rod has bite marks from a pipe wrench anyways. Back to the hardware store I go.

 

You can also cut the rod between the boot and the nut, so you can get the boot out. Do it in place. It is actually easier. Use a grinding stone or hacksaw.

 

The pipe wrench worked on the nut and the inner tie rod. Thanks for that. Sadly when I went to the parts store to make sure the new matches the old, the inner tie rod didn't match. It was shorter and had a different thread. Oddly enough, the outer was spot on and it was supposed to be a matching set. I'll try a specialty power steering store tomorrow. I really don't want to cough up what the dealer wants so that's a last resort.

 

To update the previous thread, I just had a look at IPD and their inner tie rod. It mentions a TRW brand rack. The inner I was going to buy today was meant to fit that steering rack. What is the other type of rack is there. I thought there was only one since FCP doesn't mention a distinction.

When I checked my rack a couple days ago, mine wasn't stamped with anything but volvo. Anyone know how many variants of the steering rack there is? Mine was made in France if that helps identify it.

 

I recall seeing a thread some time ago about how to identify which rack you have. Try searching here, VolvoSpeed and Matthew's Volvo site. Yes, I do remember TRW was one of the two.