tie rod end

[Ron Mruss <rmruss@pangea.ca>]

I had a wheel alignment done last week, and one new tie rod end installed.  Because the mechanic had problems doing the alignment, he had to pull the tie rod out after he'd already installed the tie rod end, using a two pronged puller.  I took a close look at it today.  It has a larger boot on it than the one on the other side.  I peeled back the boot and underneath there was some grease and the original boot is torn.

I don't know, but I'm guessing that the original boot is/was to keep the grease around the ball bearing while still allowing the tie rod to move.  Tearing it seems to be a bad thing to me, one that will shorten the lifespan of the tie rod, which seems short enough already, judging by how many times they've already been changed.  Should I take the car back in and get another tie rod end put in (at their cost) or ask for some sort of discount?  I didn't mention anything at the time because I'd just watched the mechanic spend two hours doing the alignment (swearing profusely) and figured I'd leave it alone.  BTW, I didn't get charged extra even though the alignment took forever.

Thanks,


Jeff Mruss
'84 5KS