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Interesting Video / Tie Rod Upgrade?

Captain Howdy

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The blue Bronco that Kevin was driving was on stock 35s...and from @LiteBrite themselves:



That doesn't sound like the field needed to be leveled at all...Bronco was comperable, or "better"; both with 35s.
I wasn't speaking of litebrites bronco, rather the other one on a 2" lift and 37's that showed that the tie rods aren't the only weak link when lifting one of these Broncos.
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Raptor.Tremor.Bronco

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Other than this guy breaking all his stuff, is this a widespread issue? After watching the videos with "BroncBuster", I can say his driving leads to most of the failures, and the mods he has done doesn't help at all either. He is doing a good job of marketing the need for his products though...

On a stock Bronco, with 35"s or less, are tie rods and steering racks going to be an issue? Do Raptors have known tie rod/steering rack issues?
Yes raptors also have issues with steering however it's not that common unless you hit something. The weakest link is the inner tie rod. The racks are also weak, gen 1s fail easily since they are hydraulic and the pumps commonly go out. The gen 2 electric racks can't handle 37s+ with extreme offroad use without failing. They also have shaking problems. No word on gen 3 but ford said they didn't change anything because it's "indestructible" 🤨
 

67BroncoG1

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Kevin is an amazing driver! His level of skill behind the wheel easily makes a difficult trail look like a moderate one.

The less experienced driving of the the Jeep on 35's and the Bronco on 37's made for a more level playing field.

And speaking of the Bronco on 37's, the cv axle joints definitely didn't like the mild increase in droop. These Broncos are best left unlifted and limited to 35's, without delving into a major design overhaul to properly support the increased stresses. Any amount of lift is simply putting the tie rods and axle shafts at too weak of an angle. Larger tires increase the side to side leverage forces on anything outside of the steering pivot point.

To properly support any increase in tire size or ride height, a beefed up rack and pinion and tie rods is the 1st necessity. Optimally, lowering that assembly to keep the tie rods as level as possible will maximize strength potential. Problem with that is the loss of ground clearance. To avoid lowering the rack, an overly built set of tie rods are needed to operate at the disadvantageous angle. The Broncbuster took that approach, but also showed the next weak link which could be fixed with a knuckle that provides a double sheer attachment for the heim joint of the tie rod.

It's a similar situation with the axle shafts. Any added lift height puts them at an operating angle they weren't designed for. Lowering the carrier would be optimal for function, but not for ground clearance. A set of better cv joints are the ticket. I'm sure that RCV Performance must be designing a set of shafts with their much stronger chromoly joints that can operate up to 45° degrees.
^^What he said^^^
 

AaronW

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There are a few other videos where stock Broncos are breaking tie rods on west obstacles. The tie rods are quite small.
 

murphtron

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Can anyone post a link where I can order factory replacement tie rods as Kevin suggest in the video? I cannot find them on parts.ford.com (and, yes, this could be user error!).
 

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Mattwings

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Can anyone post a link where I can order factory replacement tie rods as Kevin suggest in the video? I cannot find them on parts.ford.com (and, yes, this could be user error!).
You may need to call a dealer, I agree, not available via search at any of my normal Ford sources. I have not tried, as last I saw, they were pretty severely back ordered.
 

BigMeatsBronco

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Kevin is an amazing driver! His level of skill behind the wheel easily makes a difficult trail look like a moderate one.

The less experienced driving of the the Jeep on 35's and the Bronco on 37's made for a more level playing field.

And speaking of the Bronco on 37's, the cv axle joints definitely didn't like the mild increase in droop. These Broncos are best left unlifted and limited to 35's, without delving into a major design overhaul to properly support the increased stresses. Any amount of lift is simply putting the tie rods and axle shafts at too weak of an angle. Larger tires increase the side to side leverage forces on anything outside of the steering pivot point.

To properly support any increase in tire size or ride height, a beefed up rack and pinion and tie rods is the 1st necessity. Optimally, lowering that assembly to keep the tie rods as level as possible will maximize strength potential. Problem with that is the loss of ground clearance. To avoid lowering the rack, an overly built set of tie rods are needed to operate at the disadvantageous angle. The Broncbuster took that approach, but also showed the next weak link which could be fixed with a knuckle that provides a double sheer attachment for the heim joint of the tie rod.

It's a similar situation with the axle shafts. Any added lift height puts them at an operating angle they weren't designed for. Lowering the carrier would be optimal for function, but not for ground clearance. A set of better cv joints are the ticket. I'm sure that RCV Performance must be designing a set of shafts with their much stronger chromoly joints that can operate up to 45° degrees.
Another way to solve this issue is to create new tie rod mounting points on the knuckle that are higher and therefore keep the tie rods more level.

I have done a 1.5" diff drop and it does help the CVs angle alot, RCVs are on my list too... didn't loose much GC if any.
 

IwannaGOfast

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What about a rack drop?

I know some drop bracket lifts come with new uprights with a higher tie rod mount to correct the angle. Others drop the rack to correct the angle.
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