Ok, first what a great forum! Too bad I didn't read first before falling in love with a well flogged '96 2.8 FWD. On the up side I got it for cheap.

Here's my delemia.

I just had ALL 8 control arms replaced and the kit that my independent mechanic ordered came with new tie rod ends as well so he did me a favor and put them on as long as he was there. Afterwards I noticed that I can see movement on the threaded stud embedded in the rubber part of the tie rod end. We compared it to the old ones that came off and the new ones appear to be even softer!

Is this normal? Being and old Muscle car guy I'm not used to having any movement in my steering linkage!

Is there something better?

Thanks in advance.

OrYgun A4

 

welcome to the forums, oregona4! there shouldn't be any play in the new tie rod ends....i strongly recommend getting the heavy duty tie rod ends from www.ecstuning.com
they are a very large company, and there's a good chance that your mechanic ordered your aftermarket kit from them. in any case, whoever sold your mechanic these tie rod ends should replace them if there is indeed play. in the future, you'll get more, faster responses if you post in the A4 section, anything regarding the a4 is relevant for that forum, and it gets much more traffic than any of the others on this site.

 

I recently replaced my tie rod ends and was surprised that the top bolt doesn't screw in real tight. Before replacing the new ones, I noticed how loose that bolt seemed and cranked down on it. I just bent the washer and it still wasn't in real tight. The new ones were the same way even with new bolts. I don't recall seeing movement, but I just know that that particular bolt doesn't have a real tight fit.