Tie rod just snapped while turning around in driveway [Update: Replaced Under Warranty]

[DaBroncstah]

I must admit, there have been a lot of JDA's (just driving along) lately. There's the one with the cracked roof panel, the giant hole in the windshield, and now this.

cracked roof panel? Hole in the windshield? Great goodness gracious

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[Razorbak86]

Here ya go!

Thanks. That’s better, and those waves definitely look like striations emanating from a stress concentration, likely from the bottom of one of the threads.

Can you please try to take a macro shot where as much of the failure surface fills the frame as possible?

Your cell phone, if a smart phone, probably has a macro setting, and you may also have to tap the screen to get the failure surface to be in focus. If the cell phone camera is having difficulty focusing, because you’re taking the photo at night, you may be able to assist the autofocus by using an external light in addition to the autofocus lens algorithm.

 

[BroncoB]

cracked roof panel? Hole in the windshield? Great goodness gracious

I'm not exaggerating. Check them out.

https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/threads/mic-hard-top-roof-breaking-cracking.50313/
https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/threads/windshield-shattered.50436/

 

[nhmountainman]

Spare tie rods and a driveway spotter are recommended should the stock wheel combos venture into grassy surfaces. I’ve yet to have front end issues even rough grass with my Jeep. Hope Ford sorts this out before mine comes in for 2024, I love wheeling on grass.

 

[DaBroncstah]

Thanks. That’s better, and those waves definitely look like striations emanating from a stress concentration, likely from the bottom of one of the threads.

Can you please try to take a macro shot where as much of the failure surface fills the frame as possible?

Your cell phone, if a smart phone, probably has a macro setting, and you may also have to tap the screen to get the failure surface to be in focus. If it’s having difficulty focusing, because you’re taking the photo at light, you may be able to help the autofocus by using an external night in addition to the autofocus lens algorithm.

I didn’t know my phone could get that close!

Also a better view of the bend:

 

[DaBroncstah]

Spare tie rods and a driveway spotter are recommended should the stock wheel combos venture into grassy surfaces. I’ve yet to have front end issues even rough grass with my Jeep. Hope Ford sorts this out before mine comes in for 2024, I love wheeling on grass.

it’s weird though because it was completely fine off road and as soon as I turned on the driveway BAM.

 

[BroncoB]

Thanks. That’s better, and those waves definitely look like striations emanating from a stress concentration, likely from the bottom of one of the threads.

Can you please try to take a macro shot where as much of the failure surface fills the frame as possible?

Your cell phone, if a smart phone, probably has a macro setting, and you may also have to tap the screen to get the failure surface to be in focus. If the cell phone camera is having difficulty focusing, because you’re taking the photo at light, you may be able to assist the autofocus by using an external night in addition to the autofocus lens algorithm.

Yeah but that thing is bent too. I'm no metallurgist but I've come across enough bent/broken parts in my days. If it is bent like that, most likely it bent before it snapped.

 

[Bronco1971]

makes more sense with an axle shaft or something of that nature, not something like a tie rod that could cause the Bronco to steer out of control.

A broken tie rod at speed does not mean that the tire will necessarily flop around like an out of balance shopping cart wheel. There are two forces that have to be overcome to steer the wheel, centripetal and caster trail. It can be dangerous for sure, but in most cases it shouldn't be. My dad's Mustang had a catastrophic outer tie rod failure at 80 mph and it was surprisingly easy to slow it and get to the shoulder. The wheels want to track straight at highway speeds if the geometry of the suspension is right.

My second point is that shearing a totally undamaged tie rod at speed due to a pothole is going to be exceedingly rare. It's not impossible, but it will be very, very improbable. It's more likely that it will have been previously damaged, in which case the toe of the fronts should be off by a fairly large amount. It should feel off while driving at highway speeds. If it feels off, pull over and inspect. My dad's Mustang again, it had slapped a curb hard and didn't feel right before the failure.

Steel does not simply fail, it first deforms.

 

[okbob]

Lol,this is why when I had my 6.7 ford f350 I stopped browsing forum. 1 person doesnt make a track record. Mechanical things break. Forums never tell the complete story. People forget key information. Now people will go out and buy parts they never needed because they read about 1 persons bad luck. I dont care if its 100 people,still insignificant. Forums will bleed your wallet dry!! Just drive it. If it breaks,fix it. But dont throw money at something thats not a problem. A tie rod is cheap to replace. Rather that break then the rack………

If you weren't on the 6.0l powerstroke forums in about 2004-2005, you were really missing out!!

 

[jddunfee]

I didn’t know my phone could get that close!

Also a better view of the bend:

Really good pics. I'm not a metallurgist so i can't answer what happened but obviously it was stressed by something and then snapped. If i were to guess, you were turning the wheel to the right when it bent and then possibly broke or it broke after the "crushing" effect of the tierod while turning to the left.
The multi color metal is very intriguing

 

[Razorbak86]

I didn’t know my phone could get that close!

Also a better view of the bend:

Excellent photos, man. Well done!

Yeah but that thing is bent too. I'm no metallurgist but I've come across enough bent/broken parts in my days. If it is bent like that, most likely it bent before it snapped.

If you want to understand what happens during fatigue failure, watch the following two videos. The first one covers the theory of fatigue failures, and the second one covers the empirical fatigue testing that provides data for the engineering analysis and the design specifications for the parts to be able to survive cyclic loads without failing.

Note: You don’t need to understand everything covered by these videos, but they will help you better understand how this tie rod may have failed.

Video 1 — Theory




Video 2 — Empirical Testing

 

[BroncoB]

Steel does not simply fail, it first deforms.

Hardened steel does simply fail. That’s why you sometimes have to be careful selecting bolts. Lower grade bolts will bend/stretch and higher grade bolts although stronger will just snap. Like the fuse reference above, sonetimes you want a bolt to fail before the the part.

 

[WRF3MD]

Yeah but that thing is bent too. I'm no metallurgist but I've come across enough bent/broken parts in my days. If it is bent like that, most likely it bent before it snapped.

Also, does the bend looks like the opposite direction of the break?

 

[BroncoB]

Also, does the bend looks like the opposite direction of the break?

No and I think the color difference in striations is that the metal sheared apart at the top and was compressed at the bottom.

 

[Little Foot]

Is this going to join the 2.7 debacle with the NHTSA? Tie rods breaking at the least provocation sounds like a bigger hazard then sucking valves.

It only took like 30 complaints to get them involved on the 2.7. Something like this may be even less. People just have to do the paperwork to make it a known issue.

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