I had my summer tires installed yesterday, and upon inspection, the mechanic told me that my tie rods appear to be worn. He actually showed me some motion on the wheel when he rocked it back and forth in his hands while the car was on the lift. Mind you - this was not a Porsche mechanic, it was a Big O Tires employee. I do still plan to have my Porsche independent mechanic take a look at the car. A few questions I have are:

• Should I use OEM tie rods or upgrade them? The OEM parts appear to be priced reasonably, and I'm not sure there would be a benefit from an upgrade to an aftermarket part.
• Could this be something else - perhaps just something loose?
• Is there another good way to check/verify that my tie rods are worn?

The car drives normally, it doesn't pull or have any vibration in the steering wheel.

 

jack it up and grab the wheel/tire at 3 and 9 oclock positions and wiggle it. There should be no movement.

Or you can just take it to get the alignment checked and they should be able to detect any loose parts. Most alignment shops will check your alignment for free.

 

You can also grab 12 and 6 oclock to check for any worn ball joint issues as well.

On some cars, they are less pronounced when worn so some grab a big breaker bar or channel locks and wiggle it at the source to check for any play.

 

There was definitely some movement when the tire guy rocked the wheel with his hands at 3 and 9 o'clock. I just wasn't sure if it was the tie rods or if he was just moving the steering wheel. I'll try it this weekend with one wheel on the ground and see how it goes.

 

We have OEM as well as aftermarket tie rod ends available. If you have any questions, let me know.

 

I replaced one of my tie rods last week when I was replacing the strut mounts on my car, which were totally shot. The only reason I replaced the tie rod was the boot was torn (probably from my ball joint separator) and I figured it would start to corrode and stiffen up soon. The OEM tie rod was all of $60.28 from Sunset Porsche, so unless you are going to upgrade to a higher quality tie rod I would not even consider an after market/rebuilt tie rod.

 

I just did one of mine. I used an aftermarket brand that i trust called TRW.
It was exactly the same in looks dimentions and weight.

 

I may be wrong but I think TRW is an OEM supplier to Porsche. The are many suppliers to Porsche that also sell the same product on an "after Market" basis, where you get the exact same product but not in the box marked Porsche.

 

Is it a pretty easy DIY? I would assume it would throw my alignment off and I'd have to have it aligned right away. Also, I don't have a tool to remove them. It might just be easier to let my indy do it...

 

I just had the car up on the jack. One wheel on the ground, one wheel in the air. I grabbed the wheel at the 3 and 9 o'clock position and moved it back and forth. It moved. I noticed that the steering wheel was turning as the wheel moved. So, I locked the steering wheel and tried again. The wheel is rock solid. I'm beginning to question whether my tie rods are bad. My winter tires just came off, and they look great, with no abnormal wear. The steering feels solid, with no vibration.

I'll still have my indy check things out, but I am starting to believe that the Big O Tires employee was full of sh*t.

 

If you want to replace one yourself you will need a ball joint separator, not expensive at all. As for the alignment, I measured my old one and the new one, the same, and marked the setting of the arm and locking nut.

 

The movement may be very slight. You really need to be looking at the ball joint. You may see what you can't feel. Especially if you are not 100% sure what you are looking for this time.

 

It's already at the mechanic for a check and an alignment!

 

movement of a steering wheel is not a problem, problem is when you rock a wheel in a horizontal plane you get a certain amount of 'play' in the joint itself when tie rod is shot. i got it on my right side, it is impossible not to notice - and you can hear how this joint makes a bit of knocking noise.
try to 'jiggle' wheel fast - if you still get that little but distinct amount of 'play' - it is it, you need new tie rods.

i looked into service manual, to replace an inner part is not very simple process, so, i give up car to my mechanic. will see how much it will cost me. rod end assembly is a simple enough to do but i understood when there is an issue like this both inner and end parts must be replaced.

 

Although not rocket science, if you've never replaced any kind of ball joints before, it can be a real pain and quickly turn into a b1tch fest.

Having the right tools and techniques makes a world of a difference.

This tool is one of my most valuable when it comes to ball joints and tie rods. I will not do one without it. One of the best $20 I've ever spent next to my $14.99 Tool Shop Angle grinder...