Why can I not find the repair procedure in my manual for track rods ?

FastLife91

Torque Junkie
Points
57
Location
England
Car
Ford Focus mk2
Only got track rods and track rod ends replaced in December. they need doing again !

I am a novice to repairing cars atm but I want to give this a shot, one of the reasons being is because I want to learn.


My car manual explains how to replace track rod ends but I cannot find the repair procedure to replace the track rods themselves ??
any ideas ?
 
What's wrong with the track rods? The track rods are part of the steering rack so are usually only changed with the rack.

Track rod ends don't wear out in a few months so something else is wrong.
 
Well all you’d need to do is to disconnect the battery so you don’t blow the airbag, centre the steering wheel and tie it so you don’t break the clock spring or the ribbon by spinning the wheel round while you’re working, jack up the car, support the engine, remove the engine mounts, drop the exhaust, drop the subframe, disconnect the outer track rod ends, disconnect the steering column from the rack, disconnect the rack mounting bolts and the hydraulic pipes (assuming it’s a hydraulic rack and not electric). Then you can spend a few minutes mopping up all the hydraulic oil that’s spilled on the floor.

Once you’ve done that, remove the rack then take all your measurements for rack centring and cross travel. Next you can remove the inner boots, unlock the special locking tabs, unscrew the ball and socket joint from the end of the rack using the Ford tool and check all the rack seals for leakage and remaining life. Next gauge the wear between the pinion gear and the rack teeth paying special attention to the areas 45 deg either side of straight ahead. Assuming that’s all right go ahead and fit the replacement inner ball joints again using the special tool and a suitable torque wrench. Now you can centre the rack and change over the outer track rod ends making sure of the cross travel measurements.

Reassembly is more or less the reversal of the dismantling sequence but watch out for the hydraulic fluid restrictor which probably fell out of the rack when you removed it and make sure you put it in (a) the right hydraulic port and (b) the right way round. If the rack has a single bolt holding the two pipes onto the rack be very careful you don’t over-tighten it since aluminium threads strip easily.Oh and when you replace the subframe make sure it is properly located in its mounting points and any special washers re-fitted to the correct points.

Once you have everything back together you may have a couple of warning lights showing in the dash (like the vehicle stability control system etc) so you will probably have to take it to a Ford dealer to have the steering zero point angle set and other adjustments made like the tracking. That’s a rough idea, no guarantees of completeness or accuracy. Best of British!
 
Well all you’d need to do is to disconnect the battery so you don’t blow the airbag, centre the steering wheel and tie it so you don’t break the clock spring or the ribbon by spinning the wheel round while you’re working, jack up the car, support the engine, remove the engine mounts, drop the exhaust, drop the subframe, disconnect the outer track rod ends, disconnect the steering column from the rack, disconnect the rack mounting bolts and the hydraulic pipes (assuming it’s a hydraulic rack and not electric). Then you can spend a few minutes mopping up all the hydraulic oil that’s spilled on the floor.

Once you’ve done that, remove the rack then take all your measurements for rack centring and cross travel. Next you can remove the inner boots, unlock the special locking tabs, unscrew the ball and socket joint from the end of the rack using the Ford tool and check all the rack seals for leakage and remaining life. Next gauge the wear between the pinion gear and the rack teeth paying special attention to the areas 45 deg either side of straight ahead. Assuming that’s all right go ahead and fit the replacement inner ball joints again using the special tool and a suitable torque wrench. Now you can centre the rack and change over the outer track rod ends making sure of the cross travel measurements.

Reassembly is more or less the reversal of the dismantling sequence but watch out for the hydraulic fluid restrictor which probably fell out of the rack when you removed it and make sure you put it in (a) the right hydraulic port and (b) the right way round. If the rack has a single bolt holding the two pipes onto the rack be very careful you don’t over-tighten it since aluminium threads strip easily.Oh and when you replace the subframe make sure it is properly located in its mounting points and any special washers re-fitted to the correct points.

Once you have everything back together you may have a couple of warning lights showing in the dash (like the vehicle stability control system etc) so you will probably have to take it to a Ford dealer to have the steering zero point angle set and other adjustments made like the tracking. That’s a rough idea, no guarantees of completeness or accuracy. Best of British!


wait, what ?!

Did you read the thread title ?

disconnect the battery ,
Subframe removal in order to replace track rods and track rod ends ends ?!??!

Complete rubbish
 
Yes, I read the thread title, it says "Why can I not find the repair procedure in my manual for track rods?"

If you want to change the track rods you have to remove the steering rack. Simples.
Of course if you know better than that then what are you doing on here asking for advice?
 
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