Tierod fell off

[Old Iron]

bfmcHotrod and I went to an old salvage we go to a lot.
Took my trailer with an old car to sell, unloaded the car, went back across the scales, turned to the left and the tie rod fell the F off of my 1 ton Dodge diesel
The hair on the back of my neck was so stiff it would have pierced the shell of an army tank. We had just ran 40 miles at 70 mph on the highway to get there.
I check my suspension every time I rotate my tires or change the oil, it never give me any indication it was bad.
WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[cycledog]

That sounds like no fun at all. Glad you were not hurt.

 

[Old Iron]

I'm glad it didn't come off on the highway and hurt someone else too

 

[donsrods]

Whew, when something like that happens it really makes you wonder how bad it could have been. Someone was watching out for you.

Years ago I had a Plymouth Valient and was driving along when suddenly it swerved to the right and went into a snow bank. My buddy got out and was helping me back out of there and he told me to turn the wheel to the left. I did, but he kept telling me to turn the wheel to the left. I insisted it was cranked all the way over, and when I got out to look the drivers side tire was pointing left and the passenger side was pointing right ! Turns out that my tie rod dropped off of one side, like yours, and the tires were aiming two different directions.

We never think to check these things either.

Don

 

[Snake Farm]

Wow, talk about being in the right place at the right time You should probably buy a lottery ticket this week

 

[Old Iron]

Wow, talk about being in the right place at the right time You should probably buy a lottery ticket this week

Not a bad idea
I'm buying all the tie rods, ends, track bar, all tomorrow and installing them
Don, I've checked these every time I change oil and they never felt loose
Needles to say it scared hell out of me

 

[sneakysnake]

Its funny how they tend to do that.Ive had a couple come loose in my lifetime and its always going slow and making a hard turn.I know when im in someone elses ride and they want to hotrod I start thinking about stuff like tie rods,ball joints and steering components especially on 40+ year old cars. Glad it wasnt any worse and noone was hurt.

 

[donsrods]

Old Iron, you haven't made any woman mad lately, have you ?

Don

 

[Old Iron]

Old Iron, you haven't made any woman mad lately, have you ?

Don

oops never thought of that

 

[jmlcolorado]

I bet you drive a gen 1 or gen 2 ram?!
I had the same thing happen on my 98.5 dually! Left turn then the wheel stopped responding to my ques to turn right, kept going left!

Gen 1 and 2's had a horrible front end design and I went through tie rod ends like water! I rebuilt the entire front end on my gen 3 (2003) the first week I bought it and haven't had a problem since in over 3 years!

Tie rod ends are not something you can recover after loosing, so I keep a very close eye on mine now.

 

[bruno]

The wifes 2011 Dodge 2500 4wd diesel was sent a recall notice to have her tie rods checked. My 2011 Dodge 1500 2wd wasn't. I don't know which other years or series were recalled but you might want to check with a dealer to see about yours.

 

[Old Iron]

I bet you drive a gen 1 or gen 2 ram?!
I had the same thing happen on my 98.5 dually! Left turn then the wheel stopped responding to my ques to turn right, kept going left!

Gen 1 and 2's had a horrible front end design and I went through tie rod ends like water! I rebuilt the entire front end on my gen 3 (2003) the first week I bought it and haven't had a problem since in over 3 years!

Tie rod ends are not something you can recover after loosing, so I keep a very close eye on mine now.

Yep 2001 and it was a sharp left turn

 

[Old Iron]

The wifes 2011 Dodge 2500 4wd diesel was sent a recall notice to have her tie rods checked. My 2011 Dodge 1500 2wd wasn't. I don't know which other years or series were recalled but you might want to check with a dealer to see about yours.

Thanks I'll check that out