Tom F&L GoR
Enthusiast
Being on the leading edge of high mileage Vipers (according the VCA survey, 55,000 miles is in the top 4%) I get to wear some stuff out before most of you (65% of all you guys have 15,000 miles or less.) And since I posted this and nobody asked questions, I realize nobody else is doing this. So write this down somewhere....
Inner tie rods are the flexible coupling inside the rubber boot at the end of the steering rack. They go bad when the boot is damaged or tears, or cracks with age. Then moisture gets into the greased coupling and it quickly wears out. Replacement boots are the same as 2WD Dakotas, Moog K7186 for about $30.
Although the outer tie rod ends for Dakotas and Vipers are the same (Moog ES3011RL for about $44) and inners are available for Dakotas (Moog EV252 for about $45) inner tie rods are not available for Vipers. This forces you to buy a whole new steering rack for $500 or so.
Since suspension parts came from the Dakota, the Dakota inner tie rod will physically fit the Viper, but is 1.5" longer. The fix is cutting the Dakota piece shorter, but you'll also need to add 1.5" more thread to the shaft. Here's why I know nobody has done this - the die needed is a specialty metric size that was hard to find. Finally found one at ICS Tools . Get an M15 x 1.5 round adjustable die, which costs $29, and if you don't have a 1.5" die handle, you can get one for about $10. Not to offend anyone, but a "die" looks like a large nut and is intended to cut new threads on a round bar.
Before you do it, ask someone smarter than me how to hold onto the end of the rack while unscrewing the inner tie rod. It's essentially a flat precision gear, and you don't want to booger it up with vice grips. Also, the Viper inner tie rod needs a 1 5/16" open end wrench, and the Dakota had 1 1/4" flats (this may vary by manufacturer and has nothing to do with how strong it is.) You may want to see if your crescent wrench opens that far, or get an open end that does.
Summary: Having a bad inner tie rod can cost you $500 for a new rack...or... you can get a boot, a Dakota inner tie rod, a die, and a die handle all for $120 or so and fix the first one yourself, next one is even cheaper.
PS Anybody know anybody at Moog that can look up whether there is a parts listing for a Dakota Moog EV252, but 1.5" shorter?
Inner tie rods are the flexible coupling inside the rubber boot at the end of the steering rack. They go bad when the boot is damaged or tears, or cracks with age. Then moisture gets into the greased coupling and it quickly wears out. Replacement boots are the same as 2WD Dakotas, Moog K7186 for about $30.
Although the outer tie rod ends for Dakotas and Vipers are the same (Moog ES3011RL for about $44) and inners are available for Dakotas (Moog EV252 for about $45) inner tie rods are not available for Vipers. This forces you to buy a whole new steering rack for $500 or so.
Since suspension parts came from the Dakota, the Dakota inner tie rod will physically fit the Viper, but is 1.5" longer. The fix is cutting the Dakota piece shorter, but you'll also need to add 1.5" more thread to the shaft. Here's why I know nobody has done this - the die needed is a specialty metric size that was hard to find. Finally found one at ICS Tools . Get an M15 x 1.5 round adjustable die, which costs $29, and if you don't have a 1.5" die handle, you can get one for about $10. Not to offend anyone, but a "die" looks like a large nut and is intended to cut new threads on a round bar.
Before you do it, ask someone smarter than me how to hold onto the end of the rack while unscrewing the inner tie rod. It's essentially a flat precision gear, and you don't want to booger it up with vice grips. Also, the Viper inner tie rod needs a 1 5/16" open end wrench, and the Dakota had 1 1/4" flats (this may vary by manufacturer and has nothing to do with how strong it is.) You may want to see if your crescent wrench opens that far, or get an open end that does.
Summary: Having a bad inner tie rod can cost you $500 for a new rack...or... you can get a boot, a Dakota inner tie rod, a die, and a die handle all for $120 or so and fix the first one yourself, next one is even cheaper.
PS Anybody know anybody at Moog that can look up whether there is a parts listing for a Dakota Moog EV252, but 1.5" shorter?
