Removing whole track rod?

[Piggy]

sod off nial, seriously, we all treat Puggy the same as we would the rest of us, Im on this thread all day giving advice.....bugger it, if thats how I get treated for helping. sod it. I aint tip towing round anyones short fuse.

[Tom]

sod off nial, seriously, we all treat Puggy the same as we would the rest of us, Im on this thread all day giving advice.....bugger it, if thats how I get treated for helping. sod it. I aint tip towing round anyones short fuse.

Dont poke the mods my friend, you will get hit with the banning stick.

[Piggy]

mods are there to be mods, not gods.

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but appreciate the heads up tom

[Niall]

Im not going to ban him at all. I know you are very helpful especially with Puggys threads but it does seem like you two just bait each other for an argument. Just chill out People say things online and sometimes they dont quite come across right.

[Piggy]

Could do with a ban...I spend more time on here than I do building my GTd!!!

[Niall]

Could do with a ban...I spend more time on here than I do building my GTd!!!

Well what the hell are you doing replying? Why aren't you out in that garage!?!?

[Piggy]

coz I got ruddy heatstroke this weekend!

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be up at 5 getting a start on work so I have time to do some work tomorrow tho

[306Puggy]

Right, slight update to this thread. I have managed to get the waterpump pliers on the sphere bit like this:

   

I can grip it okay but the steering rack is twisting slightly as I try to undo the metal bulb end of the track rod. I am very wary of damaging the steering rack you see!

[Piggy]

you need to hold the tension then give it one big umph....to break the threaded tension.

you dont damage anything with those diddy grips!

[306Puggy]

Success!
   
Just for anyone else's information who needs to do the same job, the grips I used were 300mm (handle length) waterpump pliers with a 50mm clamping jaw. The best angle to use them at in the one shown in the previous picture. Also, the ring is infact a ring of teeth that engage slots on the steering rack when the track rod is fully screwed in. If you were looking for a circlip/snap ring like I was then you won't find one:
   

Just gonna get the new rod in now and a boot on it! Another job I can add to my list of completed jobs hopefully

Edit: just to make it easier if this job has to be done again, is it okay to put copper slip on the thread of the track rod since it has a mechanical locking mechanism and therefore there won't be a danger of it shacking loose?

[cwspellowe]

Could do with a ban...I spend more time on here than I do building my GTd!!!

Here's a tip.

Set up a new account as Scott. Start a thread saying how gay he is and that the forum is going to be dedicated to flower, and BOOM! Perma-ban.

Permanent until you cry to him on the phone about how mean he is anyway

[Piggy]

fyi: puggy, I didnt say it was a circlip, I said there were teeth to be flicked out on the securing ring, which looks like has fallen out obn the floor or is missing.
those 'teeth' on the track rod lock with the teeth on the seperate toothed securing ring. If those teeth 'locked' into the rack, you would never get it out, or in!!!

so no, no copper slip because as it stands you have no securing ring/clip at all!

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In fact the first ruddy line of the removal guide in the haynes manual says about the lockwasher, as does the first line of refitting!!

and you get defensive about us saying you dont read/listen!

[Piggy]

this is on a renault but its the same setup/locking washer as on the pug:

[306Puggy]

There was definitely not one of them on. Looks like I have been driving for years without one! Unless it is in part of the steering boot? Edit: just looked in the gaiter, not there either. But thanks for the heads up! Could have been in trouble there. Right, the part is called a "stop washer" and has the following part number on servicebox:

405825

Cost of £1.93 from Peugeot.

Just a case of getting there on the bus

[306Puggy]

Right guys, good news, it looks like the Lemforder unit ordered from carparts4less.co.uk comes with a lock ring mechanism.

   

   

Not the most obvious mechanism to use, any idea how they go together?

The Peugeot man is gonna be pissed, just ordered one for Friday! Just need some confirmation that this is the right part before I phone up and cancel my Peugeot order!

Edit: Looks like my gaiters also arrived! Set for tomorrow then, my day off as well!

Edit 2: It looks like the boot instructions say to add grease to the boot, is CV grease okay?

Edit 3: I've just remembered the groove on the rack, it goes into that, but in what manner?

[Dave]

I have got a serious issue with my TRE being totally seized and just chewing up the track rod... this has helped me get my head around how the entire rod comes out, cheers.

[Piggy]

Edit: Looks like my gaiters also arrived! Set for tomorrow then, my day off as well!

Edit 2: It looks like the boot instructions say to add grease to the boot, is CV grease okay?

Edit 3: I've just remembered the groove on the rack, it goes into that, but in what manner?

yeah, but wont need much grease, enough to slip the boot over. there should be grease in the joint already!

looks like that locking washer is different original, cant quite see how it would lock it, but as it is in the first picture looks right

[306Puggy]

I have got a serious issue with my TRE being totally seized and just chewing up the track rod... this has helped me get my head around how the entire rod comes out, cheers.

Heh, glad we could help! A picture does indeed help you to visualize things, I find the same.

Edit: Looks like my gaiters also arrived! Set for tomorrow then, my day off as well!

Edit 2: It looks like the boot instructions say to add grease to the boot, is CV grease okay?

Edit 3: I've just remembered the groove on the rack, it goes into that, but in what manner?

yeah, but wont need much grease, enough to slip the boot over. there should be grease in the joint already!

looks like that locking washer is different original, cant quite see how it would lock it, but as it is in the first picture looks right

Okay then. I will crack on as best I can and post pictures. I get really paranoid when it comes to things this vital so the fact that the mechanism is different is slightly worrying. I am tempted just to get the bit from Peugeot but a good quality manufacturer such as Lemforder wouldn't put a bit that doesn't work properly in it's item! I might put some threadlock on just incase.

Just from playing around with the washer I think the tension from the screwed in track rod is supposed to hold the washer down and therefore stop the trackrod from unscrewing.

[Piggy]

Yeah, use the bit that came with the rod!

Looks like a shamferred edge which will compress against the other washer, locking it in

[306Puggy]

Right, just been out to fit this, the slot on the ring doesn't seem to settle in to any sort of "groove" on the rack, it has ended up about 180 degrees opposite to the flat bit on the rack where I thought it was supposed to settle. I tried holding it in position with my fingers but as I tightened the end up more and more it wouldn't stay put and I can't get grips in there to hold the washer besides I don't want to damage it. I put some threadlock on the rod thread just incase:
   
I have tightened it up until the pliers were slipping, just to be sure! Just got to put the boot on now.

[Piggy]

did it not lock onto anything?!?!

[306Puggy]

No it didn't. It just wouldn't stay put and I couldn't hold it into position manually. But if it was going to lock it shouldn't have moved once the trackrod was threaded in enough. Might be worth waiting to get the pug part afterall? I can pick it up on Friday afternoon, just a bit of a trek to get there! Just don't wanna have to get the boot on and then off again! lol! So I might hold station for now.

[306Puggy]

Right then, time for an update. The washer arrived from Peugeot today. Luckily the parts man is friendly with me and he arranged it to be delivered to me at no extra post to myself which saved me the 10 mile round hike.

Now, onto the part itself. Well, it was far more what I was expecting from Piggy's description than what Lemforder supplied.

This is the side that interfaces with the track rod:

   

This is the other side that goes into the slot on the steering rack:

   

I started this job last Saturday so assuming I get done today it will have taken 6 days to replace a simple track rod end/track rod! I've got to undo the track rod because I fitted it to see if the Lemforder washer would do anything but it clearly didn't.

I can see why after all this hassle the last person to fit a new track rod chose to leave the washer out! But that is not advisable, if it comes loose it would mess the tracking right up and would have kept messing it up until the rod was replaced.

Edit: Disregard what I said about the groove on the steering rack, the tab on the back of the washer does NOT go in there, it just ended up no where in particular when I tightened the track rod. I think the washer just works off of simple spring tension.

[306Puggy]

Right, all done now. The worst part of this job is by far getting the boot on. I suggest doing it from underneath, there is very little access from the side. Also, the boot kit that I bought supplied cable ties (surprising for a Bailcast product) which I have used on CV gaiters with success and seem to be holding this gaiter on without a problem as well. One thing to remember is to set the steering wheel straight as well as the wheels, even though you need to get the tracking done anyway, I forgot to set the steering wheel straight now when my wheels are pointing (roughly) straight my steering wheel is 1/3rd of the way round Gonna have to put up with it until I get the tracking done though!