karrtoon

Hello, I have a bad inner right tie rod for my 2000 c230 kompressor. The car does not feel quite as smooth when I drive fast now. I checked with the dealership and they said I would need to buy the "entire tie rod assembly" (was about $230, included inner and outer tie rods with ends)

The only thing I have wrong is the inner right tie rod though, is it necessary to buy this entire assembly? They also quoted me at around $400 for the labor and to balance the car.

I went to some (very affordable) mexican guys down the road and they said they'd to it for $140, I'd just have to bring the part. But they did not mention anything about balancing the car, I'm not sure how they do it (with a machine or manually?).

What would be my most cost effective option for fixing this bad inner right tie rod? Do you know where I could find just the inner tie rod ends?

Your help would be appreciated, Thanks!

Ausmbtech

Yep, the tie rod assembly comes as one piece only.


As for who installs it, who makes you feel more comfortable changing it? The mexicans with a hammer or the dealer with the correct tierod joint removal tools for your vehicle?

Untertürkheim

If you are already getting worked up over a cheap repair like this, you had better sell the car quickly before you have to do any real work.

MBHustla858

ditto.



you can buy the tierod assy from a euro parts store for around 150. don't buy from the stealer.


good luck!

guanabara

my car has just been diagnosed with the same problem (99 C230K Sport 70K).

Dealer advisor and mechanic both indicated that it is sold as a single piece. If you don't replace it, the steering will continue to have more and more play on it. He showed me how much play it had while car was suspended on the lift.

Ultimately if that brakes then you can have a serious very expensive problem in your hands.

It also most likely causes uneven wear on the tires, as it did on mine.

get estimates from other dealers and specialized mechanics in your area.

Check on germanstar.net . Also mechanics should be able to get parts from the dealer with a good didscount, but most of them don't pass that on to the customer, effectively charging more for potentially less experienced labor than at the dealership.

guanabara

I just had the tie rod assembly replaced.
OEM part ordered from autohausaz.com for $138. Labor to replace $120 total 258. dealer wanted $522. As usual savings of 50%. Note that there are things that are reasonable at the dealers such as flushing brake oil for $108 all inclusive. With that you get lots of hints on things that need work.
Tackling the front disk pads next and then for the front flex disk they showed me as needing replacement. All routine wear parts when a car gets to the 60+ mileage range.
BTW: I had a complete alignment done for about $100, including the rear wheels.

Hapy New Year guys.

BTW: I bought the steering shock damper (<$30) and had it replaced at the same time as it needs to be disconnected from the old tie rod and that way additional labor was nil.
Also almost forgot, I had also the fuel filter replaced for a 0.2 hour additional fee. That helped a lot with slugness at start when stopped for a while. Car drives a lot better now. Old worn tie rod made old tires get fethering marks on the outside and I just replaced them by excellent Kunhos V rated tires with also higher loading specs than most tires the same size. The car is a totally new behavior now.

guanabara

BTW: if the mechanic you take the car to, does not have a tie fork or never seen one then go for the next one. Those old tie rods can get really ingrained in there and there is not a hammer that will take them out unless the tie rod fork tool is used to separate the rod from the insertion/fix points(4).
I don't think heat is a proper answer either. The correct tool is the answer always.

ghatala

Just bought a tie rod assy and the damper and also the idler arm bushing kit. They should be here on this wed. Total cost of under $200. I also purchased a toe slip plate for $140 called align-a-matic. From the looks of the job it isn't a very big one and the tool will pay for itself with the first alignment. The alignment tool has been used by my MB mechanic and works well for toe. It is a drive ove slip pate that tells you the toe in inches. I will let everyone know how it goes after next weekend.

guanabara

I had the idler arm replaced on one side recently too. The bushing was all worn out. You could feel the wheel moving a bit when turning and hitting a hole. It can be tough to replace the idler arm bushing. I hope the kit comes with some instructions or tools to make that easy. Let me know how that works out.
I am also interested to know how those toe plates work out, as paying 120 bucks for alignment and having to go back several times until they get the steering wheel straight while car going forward is not fun for me. Besides most places have the audacy to charge $120 for MB "special" alignment, when you know it is basically the same or even easier than most other cars (assuming you don't have any fancy air suspension,etc).

I have the old idler arm with the old bushing in case some one is interested in getting the arm and replacing the bushing at a much lower cost.

Note that I believe you will need to remove the springs to work on the idler arm. That requires some experience and the proper safety tool, etc. I hope you are either a mechanic or well experienced with that job.
All the best.