Tie rods on aging BMWs should be replaced to avoid failure and to make your alignment guy happy. There is nothing more upsetting for an alignment tech than a seized tie rod.
The tie rods in your vehicle translate the movement of the steering wheel through the rack and to your wheels. Oftentimes when a vehicle is beginning to experience some higher mileage, the tie rod ends begin to fail. This causes slop in the steering wheel and knocks and creaks in the steering system. Catastrophic tie rod end failure can cause serious damage and danger as the tie rod end keeps the wheel path straight.
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If you hear a loud clunk when you turn your steering wheel, or have loose steering or inconsistent tracking, the problem could be a worn idler arm bushing. Bushing failure will allow excessive up and down play of the drag link/center tie rod on passenger side, resulting in inconsistent toe setting.
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