was looking under the front and one of the tie rod ends grease pack (not sure what it is called) is ripped open and no grease. Is this something I can do in the driveway with it on the ground and will I need any special tools. Think I will need a pickle fork but not sure if i can get by without out it by hitting it with the nut threaded on. also not sure if the whole end needs to be replaced or if I can just replace that part (the threaded bolt with the grease pack - looks like a ball joint)

the long story - truck has been in twice because it pops real bad when I turn the wheel real hard mainly left. noise in the front right wheel. the dealer had 3 people drive it and 2 mechanics look at it (this last time) and they agree a noise is there but they could not find anything. Of course i researched the threads here and the ball joints and sway bar busings are fine. But I looked at the steering and the tie rod end appears to be bad (definitely exposed). Not sure why the dealership did not find this and our other local dealership is a lot worse. Not sure if this could be causing the popping sound - but I am obviously going to fix it or have it fixed. Any input appreciated - very frustrating, Mike.

 

On each side there's inner and outer tie rods, these can be replaced separately, aside from the wrenches, all's you need is a pickle fork. And of course you'll need to have it alined when you're done. Yes, you can do this on the ground, there's no need to jack the vehicle up to replace these. You could also have a bad idler arm or pitman arm, an alinement shop will tell you whether or not these are bad when you take it in for the alinement.

 

Thanks Madsonp - I will look closer at rhe idler and pitman arm. I just noticed this while I was looking around. Hoping this will remedy my problem - but it needs to be fixed regardless.Hopefully NAPA will have a pickle fork i can borrow. Was not aware I would have to have it aligned since all I plan on replacing is the actual ball joint type thing. now that I have searched though, it looks like the entire end does get replaced. Thanks again, Mike.

 

I would be hesitant on taking to the dealership for the alinement, or any work for that matter, if they didn't notice your tie rod being bad. I'd take it to a trusted alinement shop first thing, and they can tell you which specific components are bad, and they won't aline it until they're replaced. They'll give you a quote (parts and labor) to replace the parts. You can usually get the parts cheaper yourself. Go back and get your vehicle, then you can go and get the parts and change them out yourself, taking it back to get it alined after you replaced the parts. If you do need to change the pitman arm out, that'll require you purchase a pitman arm puller such as this one - Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices
It says this works for tie rods also but my experience shows pickle fork works better for those.

 

can just lower ball joints be replaced or does the whole arm have to be replaced

so - took it for an alignment (told them in advance about the popping issue). They called and said they seached all over and could not find what it was but they definitely heard it also. Next problem - they could not do the alignment because they said the lower ball joint on the driver side was loose (keep in mind was just at the dealer a week ago so they could search for this problem). Even better supposedly the lower ball joints can not be replaced and the entire lower arm (Moog) is $900 his cost. Someone please let me know if the lowers can be replaced (thought only the uppers could not). Also he showed me his cost because it was evident I was not real happy. To top it off, the axle seals Ford replaced a few months ago are leaking again. Hoping you guys can answer me on the lower ball joint question. I may post a new thread for that asking - I see a lot of guys talking about ball joint replacement but looks like they are old body style. Thanks in advance, Mike

 

The lowers can be replaced, they're pressed out. The uppers are replaced as a whole A arm assembly, at least that's the way it is on my 99. Maybe someone with an 06 who has experience with this can answer better than I about your particular year. If not, call a couple of other alinement shops and ask the same question. $900 sounds way out of line to me for one ball joint. I would also price the part yourself, I've noticed these shops charge twice as much as you can get the parts for yourself, at NAPA for example. The wife took her expy in for an alinement and it ended up needing a idler arm and both inner tie rods which I got for half the price she was quoted for parts, then I replaced the parts myself saving quite a bit of money, she worships me now. So, I take it you replaced your tie rod then, right ?

 

update - the story keeps getting worse. It is back at the dealer. Needs lower ball joints (they will only replace both). both outer tie rod ends (they quoted me $293, so I said no) and the axle seals are leaking again. They slipped a little also and said they have written down they replaced one outer axle seal and pinion seal but corrected themselves quickly (I was charged for both axle seals and pinion seal a month ago). Estimate was $1200. after several phone calls and discussions it is down to a reasonable price - I am just concerned about the quality of work I am getting now, hopefully this will end well. They brought the price down by using third party parts but then found the could only do that by replacing the entire lower control arm - so they are using ford parts now (not ecstatic about that). So to answer my own question - you can replace the ball joints with only ford ones otherwise the control arm has to be changed out, according to ford. Thanks for your help madsonp, Mike. I guess at least now I'll have a one year warranty on most of the front end - doesn't help me if the truck is in the shop though.

 

I'm not fond of having any dealership work on my rigs; I have found very good local guys that I would trust. But then I do 99% of my own work, basically anything that requires really special tools I leave to them. I have had nothing but headaches from all of the local dealerships.

As for the tie rod ends, easy job to do, the control arms are a little more difficult. Normally the upper A arms are just about $100 each, and the lower ball joints about $40 each. DO NOT BUY CHEAP ONES!. My parts house only had one Moog joint and one cheaper one ($15ish) so I bought them, and in less than a year the cheap ball joint boot had split and the grease is oozing out.

If you do not have a pickle fork for the tie rod ends, just use a long crow bar and a BFH. Put the crow bar into a position that will allow a downward pressure on the tie rod end, and hit the end of the attached arm(not the tie rod end); usually a couple of good wacks and the joint pops out.

 

I think they're pulling your leg on that one.

 

Im sure they are!

 

Just to update you guys - the truck is back and it appears the popping sound is gone also. They changed lower ball joints and outer tie rod ends as well as redid the inner axle seals. I will crawl under this weekend - pretty sure they used ford parts. the bill was reasonable - they just matched the other shop that was going to do it (kind of surprised). Thanks, Mike.

 

I've done the upper and lower on quite a few Expeds, Explorers and F150s. You replace the upper as an assembly as it is more cost effective to do it that way. The lowers are different unless the bushing are shot. Problem with the lower is the curved shape of the lower arm. The pusher tool won't mount squarely so it just slips off. I jack it up and put tow jackstand under the control arm(one on each side of the ball joint). You remove the big snap ring and beat the ball joint out with a 3lb maul. For some reason the tool doesn't slip off when pushing the new ball joint in.

 

Yes, they are pulling your leg. I just replaced both the lower and upper ball joints on the right side of my van. Time consuming but possible.