(04 f150 supercrew FX4 new body style)

Had a shop change my oil because its cheaper to do that than buy it and do it myself. They informed me that my tie rod was bad and needed replaced. I have been holding off on this for awhile. Truck has 104,xxx on it so I know it needs to be fixed. I dont have a lot of knowledege with the steering componenets though. Is there 2 tie rods or just 1? I do have UCA's and LCA's which I will replace once I tackle this, truck does have year old struts on with a 2 1/2" leveling kit, but contemplating on just buying the quick lift struts instead for a better ride, also what else should I replace while im down there? Much help and guidance would be appreciated, thanks.

 

Check my thread for "Lower Balljoint Replacement" and that will lead you to the steps necessary to replace practically all front suspension and steering components.

I have both inner and outer tie rod ends that I will be replacing and writing a DIY guide in about a week or so when I have time to get around to it.

 

thanks, I read your thread and it was very informative. Im not sure if I have inner and outer tie rods... Since I will have everything apart up front, think it would be a good idea to replace the wheel hubs too?

 

You have both inner and outer tie rods. I don't have pics to upload but you definitely have them. The outers go bad before the inners do. I simply decided to replace both of mine at the same time. Doing so saves me about $500 on labour. It will still need an alignment after. I would not recommend replacing the hubs unless they show signs of play or excessive wear. Usually they howl like Taylor Lautner in Twilight before they need to be replaced.

 

I have to laugh at this, that was funny. Are you a Twilight fan?

And thanks, Ill look at rockauto.com and see what they have to offer.

 

Since you are already have the truck apart for your lower and upper control arms, you already have the front end opened up and and it would save you and extra alignment. I too am interested in see the inner tie rods. When I looked at mine, it looks like the rack and pinion with a boot over what would be the inner tie rod.

 

ill probably just replace the UCA's and LCA's along with both tie rod ends and hopefully that'll last me a while. I do have the 2 1/2" leveling kit so I know its putting more strain on my ball joints. The CV axles dont need to be changed while I have it apart those are fine, so no need to worry there. Unless you guys think I should go ahead and replace those too.

 

I bought both my Moog inner and outer tie rod ends from RockAuto. You can go with any brand you wish but I highly recommend something with a grease fitting if you're planning on keeping your vehicle for over a year, and Moog has the best aftermarket steering parts that I have used.

I've never seen Twilight and I'm not a fan of that kind of s*t. I'm a Tradesman, not a Tradestween or Tradeschick!

I'll post a pic of the inners shortly.

You are saving a considerable amount of money on labour by doing this yourself, but I only recommend replacing certain wear parts if necessary. The choice is entirely up to you, but I would recommend checking for excessive play in your upper control arms before you decide to replace them. Also, with the money you save and considering you have a levelling kit, you may opt for an aftermarket upper control arm from Icon Vehicle Dynamics, Total Chaos Fabrication or ReadyLift. They are adjustable, indestructible and allow for a better alignment so you don't put more stress on the rest of your front end steering/suspension/drive components. Your lower control arms do not need to be replaced unless they are bent/broken/cracked. You simply replace the lower ball joint. Follow this link to my lower ball joint replacement thread and if you follow that then you can replace practically anything in the front end.

https://www.f150forum.com/f4/lower-b...cement-203204/

 

Here is what the inners look like. When installed on the truck they are covered by a protective rubber boot. The boot needs to be removed in order to access the end which allows removal. These inners also require a special tool, either an inner tie rod removal tool or a crowfoot wrench.

 

thanks for all the input buddy. I feel that if I do replace the UCA's then I wont have to worry about it down the road. Thanks for everything again. Whenever I tackle this, Ill let ya know how it went.