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I recently tweaked
my OEM tie rod to the
point where it was rubbing my track bar. Being the master of the
obvious, I realized that this couldn't be good for my front end so the
search for a stronger replacement began. I remember reading about a ZJ
to TJ tie rod conversion that was completely bolt on and provided a
solid and thicker unit than the hollow TJ piece. So, I called my local
NAPA and ordered the parts. You need three pieces to make this work...
You can also get the parts from CarQuest (they use Moog part numbers)
Wherever you go, make sure you order the parts for a '93-'97 Grand
Cherokee with the 8 cylinder, as the 6's use a hollow rod, so there
would be no strength gained. Here's a pic to show the comparison of the
ZJ and my old tie rod....
ZJ (top) and TJ (bottom) tie rods
Installation was a breeze. Just go to your local auto parts store and
"rent" a tie rod seperator(most places will charge a deposit and refund
it when ya give the tool back, cool!). Basically remove two cotter pins
and nuts. Whack the ends with the pickle fork and a BFH, then bolt up
the new setup. Once you've got it installed, don't forget to grease the
new ends up. And while you crawlin' around under there, ya might as
well hit all the other grease fittings you see. Lastly, you'll probably
need to recenter your steering wheel. Again, no big deal. Loosen the
two bolts on the adjusting sleeve on the draglink(right next to the
pitman arm) and twist the sleeve by hand until the wheel is center.
Tighten everything up and get it in to the alignment shop ASAP. Here's
a pic of the stock configuration and the new setup...
The one major flaw I saw
after running this for awhile was that it only
half addressed the problem. While I had a much stronger tie rod now, I
was still left with the shoddy OEM draglink. A little over a year
later, I bent the draglink and in the process it also bent the
passenger side of the ZJ tie rod and pushed the stock steering damper
back into the axle tube covering my underside with fluid. When
replacing these components, I opted for Rusty's Offroad HD steering
setup. This was a direct bolt in replacement for my tie rod and
draglink. Not only being stronger, I like the design of this setup much
better than the OEM one.