Track rod ends.
Another
venture for the Consortium. These are made in the UK by a small
company that has been making this type of component since 1972.
They are a little more robust, and arguably better quality, than the
replacement components usually found. Sold in pairs only (L/H +
R/H). No problem to fit a larger track rod end - plenty of
room. The Flavia unit has a greasing nipple too, so should last
for ages. This was not thought necessary for the 2000 TRE, which
does not wear at anything like the same rate as Flavia TRE's.
Flavia
track rod ends
- OE right, new left. £35 a pair, + p&p, to
Consortium members. Non-members must add 10% to these prices.
Cheques in advance (jn £ sterling), payable to "The Flavia and
2000 Consortium Ltd." , and must include p&p for 1000
grammes. Only sold in pairs. [will fit S1 Fulvia]
2000 track rod ends - OE right, new left. £30 a pair, +p&p, to Consortium members. Non-members must add 10% to these
prices. Cheques in advance (in £ sterling), payable to "The
Flavia and 2000 Consortium Ltd.", and must include p&p for 1000
grammes. Only sold in pairs. [will fit S2 and 3 Fulvia]
Notes on fitting Flavia track rod ends.
1)
Raise the front end of the car. Level ground, handbrake on,
rear wheels chocked. Remove front wheels. Support well -
axle stands under subframe at two points on each side.
2) Mark
each outer track rod so as to be sure which is which. Remove
cotter pins, undo each castellated nut a few turns, then break taper joints
with a splitter. There is room for a lever type splitter to work at
both ends. If you intend to renew the centre tie-rod at the same
time, then this will mean using the splitter inboard through the space
behind the engine, feeding your socket extension down past the battery
and brake master cylinder.
3) Record the length of each outer
track rod. One method is to nail a block at one end of the a
length of timber, butt one track rod end against it, then use another
block against the other TRE to help mark a pencil line on the wood with
a carpenter's square. Nail another block of wood to the second line. Do this for both track rods. The
theory says these measurements should be the same, but they might not
be.
4) Dismantle each track rod, and clean up.
Reassemble using the new TREs. As the new units are not
dimensionally identical to the OE TREs, and as you will need to have
the front wheel tracking checked as the very next job, it will be acceptable in the interim to set the lengths again to those measured, or to an average of the two measurements.
5)
Before final refitting, it is as well to be sure that: a) the
track rod ends will rotate freely in the track rod [this will be appreciated by the chap
checking the front wheel alignment]; b) the holes provided for the new
(always!) cotter pins are large enough [drill out if not], and c) the
castellated nuts will screw onto the taper pins easily.
6) Using
castellated nuts has the advantage that you do not have to find a way
of
preventing the taper pins from rotating as you screw them on. The nyloc
nuts provided will find another use elsewhere. This is a matter
of personal choice - you can use the nylocs if preferred. It
will be necessary to use a suitable washer under the outboard
castellated nut - all threaded lengths on these new TREs are generous.
7)
Be sure to allow the TREs to align with the arms on the steering
and the wheel hubs: these are not on parallel axes (included angle
approx. 25 degrees). Nip up the back nuts
so that the taper clamps on the centre rod are locating the adjusting
thread tightly. You may wish to leave the locking washers unbent
at this time, pending final wheel alignment. It is actually quite
awkward to ensure that the included angle remains at approx. 25 degrees
when carrying out final tightening after front wheel alignment.
There is some merit in being prepared to remove the track rods
again after alignment, checking the angle, then finally
tightening the back nuts and bending the locking tabs on the bench.
8) Flavia TREs
can be topped up with grease if this is thought necessary. The
steering will feel tight initially, but will free up with use.
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