Turbo tie-rod sanity check - Red loctite?

Tremelune · 10-20-2021, 04:41 PM

I'm about to replace the tie-rods on my 1970 911T, and I was speaking with a shop who recommended I put red loctite on the end that threads into the steering rack to prevent it from backing out...

This seems excessive. My understanding is that you'd need heat to get the thing unscrewed in the future. Seems like good ol' blue would be good enough, right?

Note to self: The stock tie-rods have a giant locknut that must be unscrewed with a drift before you can unscrew the tie-rods from the steering rack...

Trackrash · Trackrash's Garage

I used no thread locker on my turbo tierod upgrade which I did around ten years ago. No problems so far.

I agree, seems red loctite would be excessive, but I will let the authorities here chime in.

Tommy Z · Tommy Z's Garage

Just did the turbo tie rods on my 79' last weekend with the help of my new neighbor who is a retired factory certified Porsche technician. He used Blue locktite and a small chisel to free that giant lock nut. Did a really good job with a bush alignment too so I feel comfortable driving it to a shop after I adjust the ride height in the rear next weekend.

colingreene · 10-21-2021, 07:30 AM

I just tightened mine, no thread lock. Two cars so far no issues.

cabmandone · cabmandone's Garage

No loctite on mine and they haven't backed out. I'm not sure why red would be necessary where the blue loctite would probably suffice. Isn't red typically for higher heat areas where the blue might let go due to heat?

Steam Driver · Steam Driver's Garage

Something I’ve always wondered; what is the difference between Turbo tie-rods and others? Seems to me a tie-rod has a pretty straight-forward function that doesn’t need a lot of specialization.

LJ851 · 10-21-2021, 07:52 AM

I can't imagine trying to remove a red loctited tie rod in the car !

dannobee · 10-21-2021, 08:11 AM

The turbo tie rods lack the rubber bushings between the two ends that the standard tie rods have. This late in the game, there probably aren't too many properly maintained Porsche's out there that haven't been updated to the turbo tie rods, unless it's a 100 point concourse car or something. The immediate effect on steering feel is real when updated.

Blue loctite is fine, if any at all is required. Back in the day I put on a LOT of turbo tie rod kits and merely cinched them down and reset the front toe.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steam Driver

Something I’ve always wondered; what is the difference between Turbo tie-rods and others? Seems to me a tie-rod has a pretty straight-forward function that doesn’t need a lot of specialization.

brcorp · brcorp's Garage

Blue loctite is fine. Make sure the threads and jam nut face are clean.

cabmandone · cabmandone's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steam Driver

Something I’ve always wondered; what is the difference between Turbo tie-rods and others? Seems to me a tie-rod has a pretty straight-forward function that doesn’t need a lot of specialization.

On my car it was a difference between a U joint like fitting and a ball and socket fitting in the turbo set. I honestly didn't notice any difference in feel between the two.

Tommy Z · Tommy Z's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by cabmando

On my car it was a difference between a U joint like fitting and a ball and socket fitting in the turbo set. I honestly didn't notice any difference in feel between the two.

Mine were the same u-joint but the rubber bushings were original to the car and had a lot of slop in them. The new turbo tie rods are a really nice update and the car feels solid and tracks beautifully now. I haven't gotten an alignment and put it through the paces yet but I'm expecting a tangible difference.

Tremelune · 10-21-2021, 01:44 PM

One side of mine had oil on the tie-rod threads, so I'm not sure how important that loctite would be anyway...I bought a thin 32mm bicycle headset wrench so I can get good torque on it during install.

The non-turbo locknut isn't well detailed in the popular articles and videos that turn up from a search, so I figured I'd highlight it here (considering it's the "frustrating" bit of this job...if you don't know it's there)!

Just drift it loose (lefty-loosey—it's "locked" inward to the steering rack), and then you can easily twist the tie-rod (though you'll have to put some pressure on it to avoid hitting the spindle...Remember that you can move the rack and wheel back and forth)!

Tremelune · 10-21-2021, 04:10 PM

Upgrade complete. Random notes:

- I didn't use the 5-10mm spacers from Elephant...the tie-rod threads didn't bottom out inside the steering rack. I dunno. Maybe the need for them varies from year to year.

- I found it helped to heat the boots with a heat gun to get it over the rack lip...I yanked it on a tad inside-out and then carefully unfurled it once the lip was in the groove.

- I used Lemförder tie-rod ends, and I had to use a crowbar to put some pressure to get the top locknuts torqued. Prying up seems a bit better than down...I found a spec of 33 ft-lb for the castle nuts and used that as best I could.

- I'm not sure my special thin wrench was any better than the average adjustable for tightening the tie-rods...

On to a corner balance and alignment...

jma0506 · jma0506's Garage

From other posts I've seen on the topic, my understanding is you're going to need to install those spacers to avoid issues when turning full lock

Tremelune · 10-21-2021, 05:30 PM

I'm trying to envision how that would work, and I can't figure it out...The length of the tie-rod is fixed, based on alignment...Maybe the angle isn't right and it can hit things?? I turned the wheels from lock to lock with no issues, but it was on a lift...

The time to fix it is before I take it to a shop, but it seems fine.

cabmandone · cabmandone's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tremelune

Upgrade complete. Random notes:

- I didn't use the 5-10mm spacers from Elephant...the tie-rod threads didn't bottom out inside the steering rack. I dunno. Maybe the need for them varies from year to year.

- I found it helped to heat the boots with a heat gun to get it over the rack lip...I yanked it on a tad inside-out and then carefully unfurled it once the lip was in the groove.

- I used Lemförder tie-rod ends, and I had to use a crowbar to put some pressure to get the top locknuts torqued. Prying up seems a bit better than down...I found a spec of 33 ft-lb for the castle nuts and used that as best I could.

- I'm not sure my special thin wrench was any better than the average adjustable for tightening the tie-rods...

On to a corner balance and alignment...

I bought a harbor freight open end wrench and put the grinder to it to thin out the head enough to grip the thinner part. Worked well.

Tremelune · 10-21-2021, 05:32 PM

I wonder if the thin wrench wasn't important since I didn't use the spacers...