track rod ends

[hallsie]

Anyone know what the track rod ends are off of, FHC 280i 1981 series 1 ?

I think this one is pretty shot and the diving off to the left while heavy braking I think may be partly down to this?!





It could also be partly down to these!??





And probably these need changing...



What do you think?

Stu

[SEvans]

Track rod ends are off a MK4/5 Cortina. I think you are right some of the other bushes etc don't look too good. Personally I'd be inclined to take the front end apart, paint the components and replace the bushes etc. Cheers Steve

[Big Daft Lad]

The weird steering is more likely to be the tie rod as there's no bush left in there! Looks very like mine when I did it last year. Wishbone bushes, track rod ends and tie rod bushes are Cortina. The Anti roll bar bushes are TVR but Superflex sell them.

[hallsie]

Thanks BDL, thats what I was expecting so ive ordered the track rod ends from ebay and I think Ill get the poly bushes for the tie bar and drop links from TVR car parts tomorrow.

As an aside from that, the brake master is rebuilt and just needs bleeding, so hopefully back on the road for March!

Im loving this car already..

Stu

[Wedg1e]

Perhaps to try and hide the humble origins of the front suspension setup, TVR (apparently) thought it'd be a good idea to change the arrangement of the tie-rods so that they were acting in compression rather than tension (if you look at a Cortina, the tie-rods go forwards rather than backwards).
This gave the Tasmin it's legendary hop, skip and jump steering feel. Eventually TVR modified the Wedge chassis and returned the tie-rods to where they belonged. Unfortunately even with a full set of new bushes you'll always be aware that something is going on at the other end of the steering column...
Even the polyester drop link bushes don't last very well.
If you go for a full stripdown you may as well replace the bottom ball joints 'cos they get some stick, however the top ones last amazingly well, many Wedges still have their original top joints. You can tell if the balljoints are original as they were rivetted to the wishbones, whereas replacements have to be bolted.

[Number 7]

Also have a look at the steering column UJ, as they tend to wear out due to the exposed location.

7.