turbo tie rod kit

mb911 · mb911's Garage

a while back I found a screaming deal on these kits on ebay. 90 bucks. Any how got the kit says made in germany all over them and had castle nuts on the tierod end. The boots looked super cheap but did not think much of that at the time. SOmeone from the borad emailed me don't remember who and said they knew I bought them off ebay as he did as well and had terible luck with the boots. I decided I would not want the same situation so I bought new boots 7.50 each brand new OEM.

So the reason for the thread is to thank that person whomever it was for the heads up and to maybe help the next person.

All and all I did well on the kit 105 for a brand new turbo kit plus 6 bucks to ship. ALthough it would have been allot less hassle to just buy when ordering from our host. Lessons learned hope it helps someone else

Rot 911 · 02-12-2005, 06:41 PM

Did they come with the spacers? If not you will need to use some washers.

Early_S_Man · 02-12-2005, 07:30 PM

I think Leland Pate was the first to post about problems with kits associated with the boots ... about 3 years ago, but others have posted since!

aigel · aigel's Garage

I bought a crappy set from a local parts place, because the had a special. It was under $100. I was very happy, but only for about a year....

I just went ahead and bought a set from Pelican to replace the cheap set. The cheap set had the boots disintegrate, along with the rubber of the tierod end joints! The only visible difference between this cheap kit and what I got from Pelican now is that the cheapo kit came with nylon lock nuts, instead of castle nuts. I'd rather have castle nuts! The cheap kit was made in Germany too, btw. So, you have to rely on your supplier. We had this discussion before. Get your tierod kit from PP, period.

I will return the cheapo kit to the place that sold them to me. Even if I get my money back, I am stuck with the labor and an alignment.

George

alfizzo · 02-12-2005, 08:50 PM

my rack boots and tie rods end disintegrated also. now i have to replace them. that sux. 400 miles on them.

aigel · aigel's Garage

alfizzo:

Yup, same thing here. They were gone quicker than I could check on them. What a pain.

I went ahead and got a new kit instead of replacing the ends and boots... If the rubber is that bad, I don't trust the rest of the material either. The tierods are an achilles heel of your car. I don't want to be on the track with the cheapo stuff and possibly have it let loose.

George

zachsbug · 02-13-2005, 06:07 AM

I got a gift certificate from Pelican for Christmas so I ordered their tie rod kit. A few days later I saw the same deal on E-bay. After reading this post I'm glad I ordered from Pelican. I guess sometimes a good deal is not a good deal!

mb911 · mb911's Garage

my kit came with the washers and also the tierod ends come with castle nuts. I think the tierod ends are from hamburg technik. The quality of the tie rods themselves look top notch the boots always looked like they did not belong thats why I did not even try.

jet911 · 02-14-2005, 05:42 AM

In my mind there is only one kit to buy and that is from the OEM - Lemforder. They are a bit more, however every part is high quality.

FWIW - I too bought a set from a parts company that was selling on e-bay. The picture they had was of Lemforders. When I got the parts they were from a Germany company (Allmax). I contacted them and told them I was sending the parts back and wanted full re-embursment including shipping on both ends, or I would contact their states consumer protection agency and would file a complaint for fraud (baiting and switching). They complied. The difference between the quality of the two was quite noticeable, especially in the treads and the boots.

Get the real thing and you won't be doing it twice..

aigel · aigel's Garage

Jim:

You are the first one to put manufacturer's names with these. That's excellent. PP has the Lemforder stuff. I do not recall the manufacturer of my bad ones. I may find out soon, when I return them to the retailer where I got them from. For that return, it will be most helpful to know the cheapo brand name.

George

ArtechnikA · 02-28-2005, 11:42 AM

where would i find the manufacturer's name?
i bought a pair through AJ-USA (has supplied me with quality parts in the past...) and i don't see names on them anywhere. they -look- to be quality parts, but ...

aigel · aigel's Garage

You have nylock or castle nuts on the tierod ends? My view is that if you have nylocks, you are likely having the bad apples.

George