Tie rod question:

[CrawlingEye]

I've been reading up on suspension mods and it seems that with our (strut) style suspension system, if the tie rod is kept in line with the lower control arm, you can create a bump-less system. Now, our tie rod connects from above, not below. The question I'm posing is this: Would you still be able to align the car with the tie rod connected from the bottom?

Anyone try it?
Thanks

[Cyorke]

You should be able to without a problem. If it is going to line up straigh after lowering and such. The tie rod itself is jsut a threaded sleeve with a jam nut to secure it once in the correct position. I have not ever personally done this on a vehicle but have known people with lifted trucks that did it to help keep everything in line as close to factory as possible.

[CrawlingEye]

the reason for doing it is simple: when lowering the car, the tie rod and lower control arms' positions move, this creates more bump-steer.

if it can be done with factory parts rather effectively, why not?

[CrawlingEye]

my real concern for this is if the strut is unloaded (dip in the road) or something, would the tie rod hit the front sway bar and it looks like it may alter the amount of alignment you can give the car, would it be enough to get it back to spec?

[CrawlingEye]

bump, anyone tried it?

[jakro1972]

If You Look Closely At Your Tie Rod End, The Stud Should Be Slightly Tapered And The Spindle Will Have A Mating Taper Like Drill Arbors And Chucks Have So That They Fit Snug And Won't Spin! I'd Hate To See What Kind Of Grinding Occurs When Those Two Opposing Surfaces Meet!