Tie rod end setups grip vs drift
 

Im in desperate need of new tie rods and im not about to just pick up whatever is cheap. Ive been looking into Peak, SPL, Ikeya, Tein etc.... My question is what do you guys run for drift or auto x? I mean whatever is good for drift should be good for auto x i'm assuming, perhaps not?
Also with the S and Z chassis compatibility it makes it a hard to chose what will be best.
Also ride height and bump steer adjustability come into play.
After all these factors it has left me quite clueless as to an ideal setup that wont break the bank too much.

The setup ive been contemplating most is the Ikeya inners with Peak Pro outers (the heim joint is at an angle compared to the rod to compensate for lower cars?).
Any input would be greatly appreciated. Please specify what inner/outer tie rods you have brand, S or Z chassis, and what you use the car for grip or drift.

-240_fun

Although I do love Peak Performance stuff, I would not suggest getting the outer tie rod ends. I snapped one pulling out onto the street. They might have updated their design, but you need to contact them. Currently, I'm running Tein inners with SPL outers. Both seem to be very high quality. SPL parts sells them for a decent price.

I don't drift, but I'm against the idea of harder tie rods for drifting. Simply because most drifters are not that good and will undoubtedly hit a curb one day. The harder tie rods don't have the give of an OE unit, causing damage to the rack. I'd rather replace a tie rod than a steering rack if it was me. Being an autocross advocate, the OE rods are fine with SPL rod ends, and only because these give you the added bumpsteer adjustment not present with OE ends.

yes i completely agree a tie rod would def be easier to replace. One thing with the SPL outers is IDK what inners to use! idk if theyre compatible with s13/14 or z32/33 or all or whatever!

I have Tein in the front, inner and outer tie rods. really nice parts. i slid sideways into a curb at 40mph once and destroyed a bunch of parts, but my suspension, steering and linkage was fine. front sub-frame not so much but whatever.

Tein also seems to be the best value with a name brand but it doesnt have a heim joint end and no bump steer adjustment correct? Right now despite how low my car is I have very little bump steer so for my own setup the Tein may be the best bet?

regretfully bump steer cant be reliably corrected in the 240 suspension geometry but it normally isnt that intense. but the tie rod is by its nature a heim joint.
and speaking of name brands i have been finding that Megan racing is some really good parts for really cheap. i have their rear toe links and they are big and beefy and coated nicely etc... good equip for the price.

I did use the megan outer tie rod ends before with no issues but I only did one event on them so i have no real time behind them.
And yeh it is a sort of heim joint that makes sense. hmm The Tein are looking the best right now

I had a Megan Racing tension rod fail on me after a few hundred miles. The threads on the heim completely ripped out of the tension rod body. I wouldnt buy suspension components from Megan again. This is the second time ive had an issue with their products... even the exhaust I bought from them had to be modified to fit my S14 correctly. Skip over Megan, they still make garbage. Dont be fooled.

I just broke a brand new peak performance outer tie rod with the bumpsteer spacer at a drift event.

The threads that go through the spindle and where you bolt it down just sheared right off, i'm pretty sure this happened because the car is pretty low, but it seems as if this one was defective.

You usually know what's up, but I'd like to point out that a tie rod should never have any "give" in it. That would mean its worn and needs to be replaced, just like a balljoint. A tie rod end is essentially a greased heim joint.

I ran Tein Z32 inners and SPL outers and loved it. A little better steering feel and corrected bump-steer. There were a few pretty hard hits with edges of roadways and such, and zero issues.

BTW, You can get SPL outers that fit Z32, Z33, and S14 inners, which are all that you could possibly need.

Seems like Z33 inners with spacers would do well in AutoX.

You read my statement wrong. There's two different parts in question here. I said nothing about the tie rod end having any 'give', that would of course be wear. The tie rod itself has this 'give' I mention, meaning that it's a softer metal, easier to bend. In an impact it's the first thing you want to absorb the force so that the energy doesn't transmit to the steering rack. A harder tie rod doesn't bend as easily, allowing other parts to become damaged.

Ah, I see what you mean.

ikeya formula inners and spl outters is you have the money. the ikeyas are by far the best inners out there for the price. you can pick them up from PSM for 120+shipping. the spl parts are going to cost ya but they are dope. if ur gonna daily the car also i wouldnt reccoment something with the bumpsteer adjustment on the rod end unless you plan on keeping them super clean. as much as i hate ksport there outters are actually pretty good.

So the tein seem to only be a hardened version of OEM inner and outers?
So from what im seeing SPL outers with an OEM inner should be wheres its at. S14 would prolly be my best bet for drifting since the s14 with bend/ break before the rack would?

I recommend the SPL outer and the Tein inner.
Tein is far beefier than OEM and they come with a steering angle spacer.

I use them with lover arms and control arms from Driftworks.

http://200sx.kicks-ass.net/shogun/img4aeb713999bf1.jpg

http://200sx.kicks-ass.net/shogun/img4aeb7144c4d88.jpg

http://200sx.kicks-ass.net/shogun/img4b65c11e0e07e.jpg

I think Matt Powers runs Ikeya Formula inners and OEM S14 outers because his MAX knuckles already correct bumpsteer. Seems to work pretty well for his drifting.

I'm not a big fan or spacers. They just don't seem safe and I've heard horror stories of people blowing their steering racks.

I'm using SPL outers with Tein Z33 inners and spacers with great success so far. I highly recommend the setup. They've seen some road course use and lots of daily driving. I really love the spacers because of the added angle for tight turns in daily driving. Realistically, I'll never be at full lock in a turn on a road course so there's no benefit there. I've yet to autocross and I don't drift so I can't comment on those aspects.

The bump steer correction is very helpful; I have very close to none. It's a night and day difference between the SPL outers and my old Tein outers that didn't have any correction.

I had tein inners with kazama outers for my s13..
this was in 04.
the kazama outers lasted for less than 6 months (the heim joint developed free play).

then i switched the outers with new s14 oem outers.

just get energy suspension polyurethane steering rack bushings, tein inners (with or without rack spacer installed), and NEW oem s14 outer tie rods.
that set up never failed me.

heim joints at the tie rod end get a lot of vibration, so over time they'll get worn out much quicker than a rubber ball joint. i don't know about peak performance or spl outers, but kazama ends in 04 sucked dick (i don't know how they are now, or if they are even still in business).
and as mentioned above, you don't want to damage your rack in crashes.

sorry to bring back an old thread but I haven't read anything regarding OEM style replacements, like those from an auto parts store or online. What do you guys think of these?

I'm more after reliability and cost than mitigating bump steer or curb attacks.

just put some "Duralast" outer tie rods on the other week after mine were found to be shot. IMO they are BETTER than OEM, they come with zerk fittings so you can actually add grease to them.

Any rod end that has a zerk fitting is going to be lower quality.

Also, who wants to get underneath their car with a grease gun every time they change their oil? Annoying.

expand on why that is? Overtime ANY grease will breakdown, isn't nice to be able to add new grease?

IIRC the higher grade stuff (like SPL) uses Teflon coating which is self lubricating.
But I could be wrong

Just get Tein inners and outer tie rods, they're cheap, better than OEM and without the optional spacer installed.. they are identical to OEM. I've got them installed and with the spacer for the extra bit of angle it gives, it's pretty sweet and all I do with this car is daily. Not really much of a noticeable difference other than that.

^^^^ why would you post if you dont do either of the sort gtfo

The sealed stuff uses higher quality grease, and it's sealed. That keeps dirt and moisture out. And I don't have to grease them.

Yes SPL uses teflon lined heims. I would recommend those over any oem style joint, Bumpsteer correction is really nice to have.

I'm on a tight budget but want to replace these, cause my joints are shot. Will Tein outers fit stock inners? Also, think the second link [OE style replacement] will do okay? I road race a few times a year.

Tein outers - $83

OE style replacements - $40

Tein outers fit s14/s15/z32/z33 inners, basically anything other than s13

i had some cheap oem replacements on my car for at least 3-5 years. and i road raced at steets of wilow and buttonwillow at least 5 times with them. never had a problem . when i say cheap, like 7 dollar inners and 12 dollar outers. wholesale.

now i installed peak performance outers and z32 inners or something. i personally feel there isnt enough thread from the inner tie rod into the outer. with that setup on my s13.

another thing i noticed is there are like 5 differents pictures of what the peak performance outer tie rods look like. cuz im trying to make sure they are installed properly.


anyway as of right now i dont really notice anything crazy better. i believe i still have bumpsteer. i just wanna make sure this shit is installed right.
if anyone has any pictures of it installed properly lemme know.