Tie rods, camber adjustment after lift

[Brett19648]

So after I had my lift put on we had a real battle adjusting the tie rods. The alignment took like 4 hours. They thought they got it within spec but I just did my first tire rotation and the tires that were on the front are showing more wear on the inside.

If I got one of those thread cleaning tools, and used that as well as a wire brush, and hit it with some kroil and heat, do you guys think I could get my original tie rods freed up enough to get the camber adjustment in spec or should I just swap them out? I was quoted $600 for inner and outer tie rods for both sides including labor and a new alignment.

Didnt seem too bad but just curious.

Different topic but related. The guys who did my lift and alignment said theyve noticed when they lift a vehicle with KDSS that doing an alignment right after often does not yield the best results. He said he now suggests not doing an alignment for several days after your 200 is lowered to let the kdss settle.

 

[TonyP]

Tie rods adjust camber.

Edit: forgot the "don't"

 

[Brett19648]

I thought so. Did I write something in my post to suggest otherwise?

 

[linuxgod]

LCA cam bolts adjust caster and camber. Tie rods adjust toe.

If you're wearing on the inside your camber could be too negative, or your toe could be off. Toe-in should be 1/16" ideally. If toe is off you could see wear on the inner or outer tire edge too. Toe wear will generally make the tread look feathered while camber wear will make it look smoother.

Excess positive caster will cause tire edge wear on the inside and outside, as the tires lean more in a turn. Normally after a lift the big issue is not being able to get enough caster.

Post your last alignment printout if you have it

 

[TonyP]

I thought so. Did I write something in my post to suggest otherwise?

....yes:

do you guys think I could get my original tie rods freed up enough to get the camber adjustment in spec

Edit: just re-read my post. I'm dumb, I forgot the "don't" they don't adjust camber.

 

[Brett19648]

I put on the spc sleeved cam bolts. The only adjustment that was troublesome was the tie rods. I dont think i have the alignment printout handy. I suppose the toe adjustment is off and causing wear on the inner edge of the tire.

Is replacing the tie rods the best option or could the rusted threads be brought back to life?

 

[linuxgod]

What's your mileage? If you're >100k, I'd just replace the tie rods since they do wear over time and others have previously suggested you may find with the new angles caused by the lift that they aren't as tight as before. Outers are cheap, inners are more expensive.

If they are low mileage you could try to clean off the rust

 

[Brett19648]

09 with 95k.

I'm planning to swap the inners and outers.