Inspecting my car today in preparation for my Wilwood brake upgrade, and I noticed that the bushings in what appears to be my tie rod are completely destroyed. I haven't seen these for sale at any places (poly ones I mean) so what should I do about replacement ones, and how do I go about replacing these?

Also, I have noticed some looseness in my steering since I've owned the car. Could this be the culprit?

 

The best way to find out if they are worn out is to jack the front of the car up. Have someone hold the steering wheel while you wiggle each wheel with both hands in a 12/6 and 3/9 o'clock position. If you feel looseness, you should be able to see/feel the slack in the balljoint.

 

If the boots are cracked (assuming you are referring to the ones at the steering knuckle), you need to replace the tie rod ends. After the boots are cracked, they let in moisture/dirt and the joint destroys itself, soon. If they are the original, non-lubable[new word] ones, you should probably replace them anyway.

 

I mean the piece that this part seems to replace:

http://www.lmperformance.com/3115/2.html

I guess that is the tie rod boot?

Would that cause steering looseness?

Do I need a pickle fork/ball joint separator to fix it?

 

Yeah that is the boot for the tie rod end. The tie rod end can become loose or they can get very tight. It just depends on how they wear. Mine were gettting so tight that they would hardly move.

The way I get tapered joints loose is to hit the flat part of the steering knuckle, on the side of the joint, with a ball pein hammer. The shock will vibrate the joint loose in most cases. If necessary, you can back up the other side of the knuckle with a bigger hammer.

 

I replaced mine recently,I took my BFH and tapped the top of the threaded shaft, popped right out.
You only do this if you are replacing that tie rod end.
Hot Tip: Loosen your adjuster nut first.

 

Doesn't the car need to be aligned after replacing them?

 

You can get them close by checking the length of the rod to the center of the stud before you take the old one off and then measuring the new one. You should have the alignment checked afterward.

 

Thanks, Im getting mine done after work today and figure I might as well be armed with some knowledge.