Tie Rod Grease Fitting
08-11-2006, 10:28 AM
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Tie Rod Grease Fitting Hi guys, curious about something...I'm replacing my tie rod ends; the stock ones don't have a grease fitting, but the replacement's do. Should I screw in the grease fitting on the replacement, or leave the opening as is. The reason I'm asking is that the grease fitting doesn't screw in 100%, it screws in maybe one turn then stops. That leaves either a big chunk of it hanging off or else I'd have to screw it in hard enough that it would widen the opening in the tie rod end. I know this is probably pretty obvious, especially to a lot of guys who work on older cars. Thanks for the advice.
08-11-2006, 01:14 PM
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It NEEDS the grease fitting. It should go in all the way and "bottom out" on the round piece above the threads. If it doesn't go in easily, I would contact the manufacturer. You need to be able to grease these!
08-12-2006, 01:25 PM
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Ok, I went ahead and got the grease fitting put in, but now I've got another problem. The tie rod stud that sticks out that you hook into the steering knuckle, it won't rotate. I took a look at the old tie rod stud and it spins around fine, but the new one won't budge from it's straight vertical position. Any ideas on what I'm doing wrong?
08-13-2006, 10:31 PM
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JDubs, seriously good help man. Appreciate it a bunch, I got them in and it looks like they're ok. Calling the vendor tomorrow to make sure, but do you (or anyone else) know if the tie rod ends from MOOG come pre-greased; there was a little in there but I'm not sure if it was fully greased. And when I do grease them, how do I tell when is enough?
08-14-2006, 08:00 AM
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The grease that is in them is just enough for assembly and to protect it during installation. I grease until the rubber boot starts to bulge or the grease comes out of the top (opposite the grease fitting). This is usually less than 4 or 5 pumps of a grease gun. Don't do too much, or you can damage it. You can grease everytime you change the oil if you do a lot of driving. Otherwise, once a year is good.
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08-14-2006, 07:28 PM
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Hey JDubs, thanks again for the help. I only have one last thing. I got the tie rods in and aligned the car and put in some grease. I could actually watch and see the seal inflate and it felt different to the touch. (This was my first time using a grease gun & grease fitting...it took a little bit to get the nozzle on the fitting and until I did, I was piling grease onto the floor!! lol!) I called the vendor where I bought the tie rods and they said I should put grease in until it came out slightly, that it was impossible to damage the seals with them. I went ahead and it took about 4 pumps until a little grease oozed out of the seal. It looks like it's holding the grease all right. Does this sound ok to you? I was always paranoid about too much grease, but right after I wiped the grease off, I felt the seal and it still felt snug. I did one side, wiped, felt, and then went to the other side, and the seal felt the same on both sides (those being the one I filled and hadn't filled yet).
08-14-2006, 09:12 PM
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Sounds right to me. Sometimes with older cars, you need to be careful because the rubber boot can split. I suppose with brand new parts, it won't hurt. You certainly aren't gonna damage the tie rod with grease!
