2001 V70 2.4T Tie Rod (Outer) Replacement

[E170_Driver]

Hi Everybody,

My V70 has been experiencing a front wheel shimmy at different speeds, but mostly noticeable when traveling on the highway. The problem has been getting worst over time and it was finally time to do something about it before I would do some serious damage to the car.
I first had the tires balanced, but realized quickly that the issue was not resolved. After conducting some research I next placed the blame at the outer tie-rods and this is my write-up for replacing them. Tie-rods wear out with time at the ball joints and therefore become loose causing the front wheels to shimmy. Please be advised that I am by no means a professional mechanic, but follow directions from manuals and websites like this one.
I called the next closest dealership in Lexington, KY and got a quote of $350 for replacing the outer tie rods for both sides. Next I got a quote from a Volvo shop in Louisville that replaced my timing belt last year; once again the number was close to $300. Next I did some reading upon the subject and FCP Groton had both the LH and RH for a total of $39.90; I ordered them on Friday and the UPS truck showed up today, Tuesday morning.
Here are most of the parts…tools, hydraulic jack, jack stands and 2 new tie roads (fake Persian carpet not necessary)…


First loosen those lugs…


Then jack the car up at its appropriate places and place some jack stands under some strategic points to catch the vehicle in case the hydraulic jack fails…


…and one in the front…


…make sure to secure the rest of the vehicle…



For this task I was armed with Matthews Volvo…


…and this great manual…


…the secured job site without the wheel…


…here is the culprit…


…a side view of the tie-rod…


…a closer inspection of both ends of the tie-rod…


…and the joint that wears out and the reason for replacement in the first place…


…for all I know, the tie-rods on my vehicle have never been replaced, therefore the connections were extremely rusted and I needed the help of some PB Blaster; great stuff…


…In order to loosen the nut on-top of the tie rod ball joint one needs to use two wrenches; one to keep the ball joint from turning and the other to undo the nut. As mention before, the PB Blaster makes this task much easier…


…once the nut is undone the tie rod ball joint drops right out…


…next comes a very important step; it is vital to remember how far the tie rod was screwed into the inner tie rod and therefore when loosening the nut on the inside end of the outer tie rod, make sure to just turn it one revolution out; when placing the new tie rod back into place, you will have an estimated position on how far to screw it in; in this picture I used a wrench to undo the nut and turned it ONE revolution out, a slight gap can be seen (on top of the black end of the outer tie rod)…


…in order to undo the outer tie rod (once again rust has settled in for the past years) one has to use two wrenches; the first to keep the inner tie rod from turning and the other to get the outer tie-rod undone. Once it starts turning count the revolutions it takes to undo the outer from the inner (23 revolutions in my case)…


…and VOILA, the old tie-rod is out…


…great comparison between a used old worn outer tie-rod and a new one…


…here is the new equipment…


…I first turned the new one in (23 revolutions), then attached the ball joint back into place and tightened all the nuts back into place…


…and the wheel back in place…



After double checking all the nuts, bolts and connections, I took the car for a test drive and much of the vibration was eliminated, but I decided to replace outer tie rod number 2 as well; here it is after installation…


Once again test drive and although I was very careful making sure I placed the tie rods back into place the way I removed them, the steering wheel was just not right turned to the left slightly in order to keep the car straight, which is an obvious indication that the front wheels are not aligned correctly. But the main concern I had was the wheel shimmy and after replacing both outer tie-rods, everything is extremely smooth. Tomorrows task is to align the front wheels with the help of this great write-up…
https://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/forums ... 54&start=0
I will conclude my write up upon completion of the alignment…

In conclusion for today I can attest that once again by doing a little research one can save lots of money by fixing the problem of front wheel shimmy yourself. The task in replacing both units took me about 1 hour. With the help of the Haynes manual and this website I was able to get rid of an annoyance and a potential future serious problem. This replacement is certainly not very difficult in nature and anybody who is handy with tools can accomplish what I did today. In addition the price of the two tie-rods compared to have a shop do the job, one saves somewhere close to $250.
As with my previous posts, if there are any suggestions on how I could have done this better or possibly I missed something, please let me know.
Back tomorrow with the alignment results.

Jan

[1foren]

Nice Job. Based on the pics. Looks like your lower control arm bushings are next.

[E170_Driver]

…continuation of my task eliminating an annoying front wheel shimmy. Well, after the new tie rods were installed and the main problem was solved, it was evident that the front wheels were out of alignment. As per recommendation from the Haynes manual and this website, one definitely ought to get an alignment done, but once again I was determined in getting the job done myself with the help of this great write up…

https://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/forums ... 54&start=0

…I headed to the local hardware store and got all the tools and equipment for about $25: 48” level, a Carpenter Square, zip ties, masking tape, a plumber bob and 3 decorating bricks that totaled half the height of the wheel; other items I already had in my garage were a Sharpie marker, two wrenches and a measuring tape.


The exact way to perform the task at hand can be read in CN90s write up mentioned above, but I can attest that one needs to have some patience and a little time. Including the setup of the masking tape on the garage floor, the entire alignment process took me about an hour, then add about 30 minutes to a couple of test drives and tie rod adjustment and then another 30 minutes for garage cleanup…I would recommend 2 hours for first timers as I was today.


The hardest thing to accomplish was when holding the string of the plumber bob and keeping it from moving back and forth in order to mark the masking tape correctly…once again be patient.


In my case the left wheel was completely straight, while the right wheel was toe out by 3mm and therefore moving the vehicle to the right when driving. Both wheels need to be ever so slightly toe in and I took the measurements for the 1998 V70 of 2.9 mm +/- 0.9 mm which are pretty close to my 2001 model (if there is a completely different number for the 2001 model please let me know). The steering wheel was straight and I started on the left wheel which needed to be moved only by 3mm toe in…first I unscrewed the nut on the end of the outer tie rod while keeping the inner tie rod from moving with the help of wrench number 2…


…then turn the inner tie rod (in my case clock-wise to push the outer tie rod further out which results in the toe of the wheel to turn in) and then measure the wheel again until you get a 2.9 mm +/- 0.9 mm toe in setup.


Do the same for the other wheel until the setup is complete. I did not get the results right away and had to go through the inner tie rod setup a number of times until the wheel was just right.
When I finally went for my first test drive I noticed that the steering wheel was just slightly slanted to the left in keeping the vehicle straight…back to the garage, I adjusted the left wheel with 2 full revolutions on the inner tie rod further toe out and the right wheel 2 full revolutions in the direction of toe in…important to keep the turning of the inner tie rods the same while the alignment is being maintained. Once again out for a test drive, but this time I had to keep the steering wheel ever so slightly (when I say slightly I mean only a person who drives this vehicle all the time will notice, but I am part German and therefore it needs to be PERFECT) to the right to keep the vehicle straight. Back to the garage and I adjusted both sides by one revolution the opposite direction from last time there you go…the car drives perfectly straight and no more front wheel shimmy.
Once again a job done with much thanks to this website and over $400 saved which includes the tie-rod replacement and front wheel alignment. I have taken the car to 70 mph and as mentioned before the shaking is gone and time will tell how good the alignment job is by observing the wear and tear on the tires. All I can say is that the car drives straight and doesn’t shimmy, therefore objective achieved. The real test will come this weekend as I am heading out to work gain to Indianapolis and as always, I will report back.

Hope this helps to some of us Volvo DIY mechanics…

Jan

[E170_Driver]

Nice Job. Based on the pics. Looks like your lower control arm bushings are next.

1foren,

I don't like to even think about that one...YET anyways.

Jan

[drosser]

How are those $39 4 year old tie rods working for you? Any reason not to buy those and get the genuine Volvo ones?

[bigbrain]

I did this recently too....unfortunately for me it turned into a bit of a nightmare as the outer rod and inner rob would not separate on one side. I tried cutting it off which then made things a lot worse for me so in the end I resorted to changing the inner rod too. Inner rod came out easy enough but fitting a new one requires resetting the torque so I ended up making a special tool up out of flat bar and welding a nut to the side of it for the torque wrench socket....all in all a total nightmare.

Great write up though....I guess my advice would be to make sure that the inner and outer rods can be separated before going too far.

[vtl]

How are those $39 4 year old tie rods working for you? Any reason not to buy those and get the genuine Volvo ones?

I believe he bought Meyle. Turn around and run as fast as you can from Meyle. 2001 OE (TRW) rods replaced in 2010, what can advertise them better?

I replaced inner and outer rods in wife's 2002 V70 (built in 2001) few weeks ago. Internal ones were OK, no slack, but put new Lemforders. Right outer was weak, but no play. Left outer had torn boot a year ago, I replaced it with Meyle. A year later ball joint in Meyle was beyond what you'd expect from only year old part. Replaced by TRW.

Also, if tie rod causes shimmy drive, it is usually inner one. But they don't fail often, first thing to check is front LCA bushings.

[vtl]

I did this recently too....unfortunately for me it turned into a bit of a nightmare as the outer rod and inner rob would not separate on one side. I tried cutting it off which then made things a lot worse for me so in the end I resorted to changing the inner rod too. Inner rod came out easy enough but fitting a new one requires resetting the torque so I ended up making a special tool up out of flat bar and welding a nut to the side of it for the torque wrench socket....all in all a total nightmare.

If you want to keep inner rod, stuck outer rod can be carefully cut along rod with Dremel minisaw, then pried with a screwdriver, and rod can be removed then.

Inner rod is easy job with tool like Lisle 45750. This one has a crowfoot, which would fit, but it is a bit too thick, so I ended up grinding out excessive thickness.

[2002V70XC]

Inner rod is easy job with tool like Lisle 45750.

I used this one without problems:
CTA Tools 4014 Inner Tie Rod Tool
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/140946687343 ... 1497.l2649

[lizardheart]

Anyone know where all the images for this are? Kinda hard to use without them....