The 24 Hours of Lemons Forums → Lemons Tech → Tie rods
Are tie rods safety items, or do they come off the $500? Thanks.
I dont see anything in the rules that would lead me to believe tie rods are considered a safety item or are excluded from the budget.
There's nothing safe about a tie rod. If it's not listed in the rules as a safety item, it isn't one.
I'll stick my neck out here and voice my opinion: Don't ask don't tell.
It's not like a tie rod is a performance item either. If they're so worn you're worried about failure... just fix the damn things. It's worth risking a whole penalty lap.
There's nothing safe about a tie rod.
Until you break one...then you might have a little off....
I'm with the don't ask don't tell plan.
I spent a long time cleaning out our ball joints and regreasing them. I was pretty proud of my efforts.
Then we did the Test & Tune.
I guess the sockets or balls were pitted cause they went from seeming good to total crap almost immediately.
We rushed to the parts store and changed them at the track.
While neither is listed as safety. A failure could cause a major accident. So if they are bad, you should change them.
If you get some penalty laps, they are better than a serious accident.
I'm going to replace them, I just want to keep an accurate account of where I spend money for my BS inspection. It's bad enough I pulled the short straw and have to wear a wedding dress that day.
nice.
Being a PA safety inspector, a worn out, bent, or binding tie rod end would fail PA SAFETY inspection. Therefore, I would say that tie rods, ball joints, or any suspension item could be replaced with a stock component without much question, provided you don't complete a total front end drop. Then again it's not my race, I'm in it for the fun.
In order to change our mini from drum brakes to disc brakes required different hubs/uprights that used a different style balljoint so we put in new the balljoints that came with the uprights. We did, however, put in used, repacked wheel bearings. Which for 2010 wheel bearings are now considered part of safety--- go figure.
We also made our own adjustable suspension arms/tire rods using-- get this-- used heim joints. They're a little sloppy, but better than running the factory 2-degrees positive camber.
--Spank
Being a PA safety inspector, a worn out, bent, or binding tie rod end would fail PA SAFETY inspection. Therefore, I would say that tie rods, ball joints, or any suspension item could be replaced with a stock component without much question, provided you don't complete a total front end drop. Then again it's not my race, I'm in it for the fun.
But where is the limit? (not directed at you - more rhetorical)
Blown out suspension bushings wouldn't pass either - but those can't be replaced under the rules. The object is to find the "best" $500 car that you can and make that into a race car. Cars that you buy for $500 and then need to spend $2000 to make them drivable are $2500 - not $500.
I may be able to put something together from heim joints taken off some parts around the shop, I think Pull-A-Part can provide enough decent joints. Tie rod assemblies are $40 each, a center link $75 new, I can't kill the budget on that. We are much more concernted with making a car that has been sitting 5 years reliable. All of the bushings are good enough to run, and an idler arm bushing is $12.
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