2006 Volvo S60 AWD - mechanic recommended tie rod replacement, do you agree?

[FMradio]

Hello, when I had my car in for a wheel alignment not too long ago, the mechanic there advised me that it was a big struggle for them to adjust the tie rod and they had to use a torch to heat up the part since it was so stuck. They managed to align the wheels in the end.

They advised me that next time I come for an alignment, the tie rods need to be replaced beforehand because they probably won't be able to adjust them again. He said due to the age and road salt, corrosion and wear made the tie rods stuck and difficult to break loose. (And I may have forgot his exact words, but it had to do with the struggle they had to adjust the tie rod) I should've asked more about the justification of replacing the tie rods (maybe I didn't want to be too paranoid about their trustworthiness)

I plan to DIY this repair if the tie rod needs to be replaced, and I figured that I might try removing the wheels and inspecting the tie rod myself based off of Chris Fix's video to see if there's any wear or damage. Then choose to replace based on the observation. I hate to doubt a real Mechanic's judgment, though I figure if you guys recommend checking myself, then I will do that. I got the alignment at Pep Boys.

Do you think I should trust the mechanic and not waste my time looking at the tie rod? It would save me some work because I'd just have to research the repair and buy the kit from FCP Euro to install (which would be some adventure since I don't have much experience working on cars, but not too complicated of a job from what I heard)

Thanks

[scot850]

You will never rest until you look yourself. It takes 2 minutes to have a look. Clarify if they meant both inners and outers. If one is badly rusted the other won't be far behind. Outers are fairly easy to swap if they are not rusted solid, but careful soaking in PB Blaster or like (not WD-40) for a few days and also wire brushing the threaded portions may make the job easier.

Neil.

[cn90]

About 99% of the time, it is rusted and seized together.
You can spend hours and hours heating the joint or...
The Inner tie rod is not that expensive.
Best is to replace both inner and outer using only quality stuff like Volvo, Lemforder or TRW etc.

[erikv11]

I'd look at the tie rods, both sides. Plenty of seemingly trustworthy mechanics give reports to car owners that turn out to be wrong, for one reason or another.

Post up pics here and I guarantee you will get some good helpful opinions on whether or not the rust is out of hand (good chance it is, to be fair).

[jonesg]

its already aligned, its not as if you need to align in every time to inflate the tires.
If theres no slop why change a perfectly functional part.
I would wait until the ball joints or drop links need swapping out, otherwise you're paying for repeat work that isn't necessary.
Maybe loosen it now and apply some anti seize., cinch it back tight again.

Those guys sound lazy, I always had to put acetylene on my 1 ton truck tie rod threads, its part of the job.

[abscate]

I start every tie rod job by heating the screwed in end on the outer. Propane for about one minute , cool for 10 minutes 2-3 cycles. You can do that a few days before the job and it will help

[cn90]

Or some PB Blaster etc repeatedly for 1-2 wks before doing the job. it takes a long time for PB Blaster to get in there bc if the road salt corrosion etc.

Some years ago, while changing both inner and outer and made sure I applied grease into the adjusting nut area. After 5-6 winters, it is seized anyway.

Another way to handle this is at every oil change, apply 2-3 drops of oil at the adjusting nut area for fun...

[abscate]

My BMW buddy put me onto Ford Nickel anti seize as a top shelf product for things like this.

Available here, of course, Permatex version version

https://www.amazon.com/Permatex-77124-N ... 69fdeef107

[FMradio]

I'd look at the tie rods, both sides. Plenty of seemingly trustworthy mechanics give reports to car owners that turn out to be wrong, for one reason or another.

Post up pics here and I guarantee you will get some good helpful opinions on whether or not the rust is out of hand (good chance it is, to be fair).

Thank you so much everybody. Here are some pictures I took. I'm sorry if the focus is off on some of them. I'll take some better pictures if you guys don't like these ones.

[FMradio]

its already aligned, its not as if you need to align in every time to inflate the tires.
If theres no slop why change a perfectly functional part.
I would wait until the ball joints or drop links need swapping out, otherwise you're paying for repeat work that isn't necessary.
Maybe loosen it now and apply some anti seize., cinch it back tight again.

Those guys sound lazy, I always had to put acetylene on my 1 ton truck tie rod threads, its part of the job.

I should've remembered exactly what they said. Sorry I don't remember. Maybe there was another reason for the recommendation to replace, not just laziness. Even though I had the alignment done, the car still doesn't track straight, actually. I haven't brought it back since I bought a lifetime alignment, and I figured there may be a problem with the tie rods so I'd ask everybody's advice.

I hope to DIY the tie rods as a learning experience! (if they are indeed bad)

My great Volvo mechanic replaced the stabilizer links a few months ago (aka "drop links"?). Do you recommend replacing the ball joints at the same time as the tie rods, or only if there's symptoms that the ball joints are bad?

Somebody told me that if there's play in the wheels when the car is jacked up, that's a sign that the tie rods may be bad. If I feel play in the wheels, am I good to assume the tie rods are bad? (assuming likely isn't the greatest idea, though)

Thanks!