'02 Sport Trac Upper control arm, cam bolts, inner and outer tie rods - tips

[429CJ-3X2]

I bought my '02 ST at the end of 2012 with 63,850 miles on it. I've put just short of 70,000 miles on it since. The steering has always been quick and tight despite zero maintenance. I bought new tires a year and a half ago and didn't take care of the obvious camber issue on the right side. As a result of my negligence, the inside of the right front tire wore down to the cords in 15,000 miles. The left front was also worn, but not as bad.

Shout out to Chris Fix who has videos on YouTube where he replaced all these parts and more. His videos are clear and concise, and an added bonus, most (all) are of his Mazda (Ranger), so the info transfers directly to Rangers, Explorers, and Sport Tracs. Don't expect your parts to come apart as easily as they do in the videos. I'm sure he had already replaced the parts, then took it apart and redid them for the videos.

The right upper ball joint was shot - dangerously so. I replaced it, sticking with the 2 piece control arm and only replacing the outer piece. That's a very straightforward repair. The only issue I had was the pinch bolt being rusted in place. It wouldn't budge even with my 3 lb hammer, but I was able to get it out by turning it with a wrench.

The ball joint/upper arm was a bit of an emergency repair once I found it, so I didn't do the camber bolts at the same time. I used Moog parts from Rock Auto. The camber bolts on the passenger side are not bad to do. You'll need a 21mm deepwell socket for the nut, and a 22mm socket for the bolt head. (Sizes might be reversed, but I think that's correct.) On the driver's side, the fuel line is right in the way of getting the rear bolt in. The new bolt is longer than it needs to be, so I ran the nut on and cut about the width of the bolt head off the end of the bolt. This helped a little in getting the bolt lined up with the hole. The fuel line is still in the way, but not as much as before as the bolt head is now even with the line, not catching on the line as it starts into the hole. The shortened bolt is still plenty long. You could put the bolt in from the rear, but unless you shorten the bolt, you'll need a deepwell socket which there isn't room for. To get the front bolt in, I taped the 2 washers together so I wasn't fighting them to stay on the bolt, then I carefully fed the bolt between the brake lines and the frame from the front, and then fed it into the mounting bracket from the rear. (It'll make sense when you look at the layout.) It takes some dexterity, but I couldn't feed the bolt past the brake lines from the rear.

I took it in for new front tires and an alignment last week - one of the tire shop guys had already checked the tread depth on the rear tires and said I'd be ok replacing just the fronts. The rears hadn't worn much in 15,000 miles. They mounted the new tires, but said the inner and outer tie rods needed to be replaced before the alignment could be done. They don't do that, so it wasn't a money grab, and to my surprise, they really did need replacing. I ordered Moog outer and TRW inner from Rock Auto since they only had 1 Moog inner tie rod on hand. After I got the first side apart, I discovered the TRW JAR1139 inner tie rods aren't even close to the right part despite what RA shows. JAR1129, also an option, looks to be the correct part. I didn't have time to wait for parts, so I got the Driveworks parts from Advance/Carquest locally.

Tools needed - 21mm socket for the castle nut, 21mm open end for the jam nut, and a 7mm to install the grease zerk on the new outer tie rods. The new jam nut on the Driveworks inner tie rod is 22mm. When I replaced the fan blade a couple of years ago, I bought a 36mm combo wrench, which worked perfectly to loosen/tighten the inner tie rod. You'll also need a long screwdriver to break the clamp on the boot and pliers for the outer clamp on the boot.

I only ran into a couple of problems. One was getting the cotter pins out since the assembly line people put them in from the front, and there's no way to get them out 20 years later. I broke the ends off, slid the socket on the nut and had no problem getting the nuts off. The jam nuts were rusted to the tie rods and wouldn't budge at all. Since I was replacing both the inner and outer tie rods, I took them out together, took the outer tie rods off, put the inners in the vise and loosened the jam nuts with a large pipe wrench. Getting the boots on the new tie rods takes some patience, but went better than I expected.

I know I screwed up the camber and caster, but the camber was messed up anyway. The toe should be really close. I'll find out Wednesday when I go back for an alignment.

 

[J_C]

Thanks!

One thing I'll mention, is that in theory, and the result when I replaced only the right upper BJ on my '98 a few years ago, was I did not need an alignment due to that, and the tires continued to wear evenly. Obviously once you replace the arm itself or tie rod then alignment is needed.

Replacing that upper on the 2 piece design, I mean replacing just the BJ piece and not the control arm itself, shouldn't be changing anything but caster, and if you note the bolt position of the old ahead of time, then you can get the new close enough to same position that it's not going to impact tire wear. However, there is also the possibility that the wheel was already in need of an alignment, due to bushing wear or impact damage, but in a case such as mine was, the tire had been wearing evenly and continued to do so.

Meh I probably didn't need to type all that, as most people with vehicles this age, are going to be replacing more at a time than just that 2nd piece upper right BJ. However, at the time I also replaced both lower BJs (just not the upper left one yet) and didn't need an alignment from that either. Point being that if you need to drive the vehicle between starting the replacement of multiple parts, and getting the whole thing done and then getting an alignment only once, better to replace those parts first then wait till last round of repairs to replace upper left arm and tie rods.

Cotter pins, yeah it rusts here too and I just assume I'll need to use new ones even if the old come out intact.

 

[allmyEXes]

*It appears that the rolling chassis' for these trucks were assembled first, then the fuel and brake lines installed. Future serviceability didn't seem to be considered.
*Are the fuel lines for all of the 4.0 SOHC trucks and the 1997 to 2001 Explorer 5.0s the same from the tank to the connections near the driver's side upper control arms? I haven't had my head up under the fender of the single fuel line or Explorer 4.0 OHV (2 door) trucks.
*One of my '97s that previously have had UCAs installed had a flipped bolt, maybe at the front bolt?
*My '97 Mountaineer needs uppers and lowers and is going to have the antilock brakes simplified and that may be a good time to reshape the brake lines if they interfere a bit with the UCA.
*I noticed on my '02 Sport Trac that the front end has recently had some work and the new adjustable UCA bolts, the plating still looks new.
(I'm talking about more than one of my Explorers is why I added the "*")

 

[429CJ-3X2]

Yes, replacing only the part of the upper control arm with the ball joint shouldn't require an alignment if everything else is good. It's not difficult to get the new part in the exact position the old one was in, and the new part seemed to fix the camber on the right front wheel - it was off enough to be visible from out in front of the truck before the new part. The original control arm bolts don't allow for camber and caster adjustment, so I installed the adjustable camber bolts. I messed up the camber and caster when I played with the new bolts to see how they work, and I didn't leave them all in the same position.

I didn't expect to need new tie rods because they seemed ok to me when I checked them, but they were indeed a little sloppy. Actually, both inners were very sloppy. The alignment guy's notes said both inner and the right outer need replaced, but on disassembly, it was apparent the left outer not far from needing replaced as well. I was going to do them all anyway. The left upper control arm probably isn't too far away from needing replaced as well.

One more thing - be careful when greasing the new tie rod end. I was carefully watching the rubber seal for movement indicating it was full of grease, but ended up with grease coming out all over. The seal is compressed and already bulging as much as it can before you start pumping grease in. I wiped the excess grease off and squeezed the seal to get more out so it wouldn't continue to seep out. On the second one, I watched the very bottom of the seal, and stopped adding grease when the bottom of the seal moved ever so slightly to contact the steering knuckle.

Also, the head of the Moog outer tie rods is slightly larger diameter than the original, and will contact the brake dust shield at first.. Once it tightens down, it no longer contacts the shield.

Fortunately, I haven't needed to drive the truck, and should have no more than 35 miles between getting the new tires and the alignment Wed.

 

[429CJ-3X2]

*It appears that the rolling chassis' for these trucks were assembled first, then the fuel and brake lines installed. Future serviceability didn't seem to be considered.
*Are the fuel lines for all of the 4.0 SOHC trucks and the 1997 to 2001 Explorer 5.0s the same from the tank to the connections near the driver's side upper control arms? I haven't had my head up under the fender of the single fuel line or Explorer 4.0 OHV (2 door) trucks.
*One of my '97s that previously have had UCAs installed had a flipped bolt, maybe at the front bolt?
*My '97 Mountaineer needs uppers and lowers and is going to have the antilock brakes simplified and that may be a good time to reshape the brake lines if they interfere a bit with the UCA.
*I noticed on my '02 Sport Trac that the front end has recently had some work and the new adjustable UCA bolts, the plating still looks new.
(I'm talking about more than one of my Explorers is why I added the "*")

There's a lot about these trucks that show future serviceability wasn't a consideration.
I can't answer the question about fuel lines.
A flipped bolt shouldn't be a problem except for being able to get a wrench on the nut if it has cam washers on both sides of the control arm bushing. The bolts should go in from the side nearest the shock - front bolts go in from the rear and rear bolts go in from the front.

 

[429CJ-3X2]

My '97 Mountaineer needs uppers and lowers and is going to have the antilock brakes simplified and that may be a good time to reshape the brake lines if they interfere a bit with the UCA.

There's plenty of room for the bolt between the brake lines and the frame, but there's no room for the washers, so they need to stay toward the other end of the bolt while you feed the bolt past the lines. You have to hold and maneuver the bolt with your fingertips because there's no room for your hand. I suppose it'd be easier if the shock was off - like we need another part to remove to get to what we're working on! The problem is that the lines for all 4 brakes are right there before they head off to their respective corners. I taped the washers together so I wouldn't have to fight them both, and I wrapped a layer of clear packing tape around the threads to slow them from sliding off while I got the bolt in place. The tape on the threads had to come off before the bolt would slide into the mounting bracket. Once the tape idea came to mind, I got the bolt in pretty quickly.

 

[429CJ-3X2]

It's actually the shock tower that's in the way, not the shock itself.

 

[allmyEXes]

@429CJ-3X2 I suppose that my special 36mm fan wrench could be used to remove the inner socket "tie rod" end?

 

[429CJ-3X2]

That should work. It's the right size and long enough for good leverage. Once the inner tie rod breaks loose, it should turn out easily. You only need the wrench to break it loose and to get the new one tight. Only thing is, you, like me, won't be able to torque it to spec. I bought the $9 Performance Tool device that clamps around either the flats or the round part and tried to torque it down with that. The tool works fine, but it takes a 3/8 drive extension, and the end of my extension twisted off. The specs call for 89 lbs/ft, which is pretty tight, so I just used the big 36 mm wrench and guesstimated based on experience.

 

[donalds]

I used a pipe wrench and lock tight on reinstall

 

[allmyEXes]

Wow! 89 foot pounds is almost 3 grunts. One grunt =30 #s. 2 grunts= 60 #s. 3 grunts=90 #s.
I need to do a R&P R&R and I think that with the long tie rod assemblies removed, it will make it easier to extract.

 

[donalds]

Wow! 89 foot pounds is almost 3 grunts. One grunt =30 #s. 2 grunts= 60 #s. 3 grunts=90 #s.

So true!

So...what's four grunts and a fart equal lol

 

[allmyEXes]

@donalds About 127 ft pounds

 

[429CJ-3X2]

I would have used a pipe wrench if I hadn't already had the 36mm.

I don't remember and can't imagine why, given my knowledge and experience at the time, but in my late 20's I had a head off my 429 Cobra Jet for some reason. I do remember that's when and why I bought a torque wrench. The headbolts on a 429 CJ call for 150 ft/lbs. I was lifting heavy weights by that time, and it took everything I could muster to torque those bolts.

 

[allmyEXes]

@429CJ-3X2 I had no idea that the 385 series head bolt torque was that high.

 

[429CJ-3X2]

I don't remember if they all are, but the CJs and SCJs are with their 11.3 to 1 compression.

 

[allmyEXes]

@429CJ-3X2 I hope that you don't mind me stepping on your thread a bit. Reading it reminded me that while I have my wife's fingers unwrapped from the white '97 4 dr Explorer that we own, that there are several individual things that need addressed. One is the negative camber issue on the left front. Yesterday I removed the left front wheel in hopes of being able to install the adjustable cam bolts. It turns out that, that has already been done and adjusted towards positive as much as possible. The upper and lower ball joints are in good condition and been changed recently too. By the way, I saw a zerk fitting on top of the inverted lower ball joint.
My question is, can I lower the truck a bit, maybe an inch, in the front by turning the bolts on the torsion bar keys and cause the alignment to change enough that the top of the wheel moves towards positive camber? It has been taking about 20K miles to wear the inside tread down but not to the point of thread showing. I hope that my "theoretical" adjustment plan would work. Any input?

 

[429CJ-3X2]

I really don't know. This is only the second time in my life that I've replaced front end parts. The outer tie rods on our '98 Escort a couple of months ago was the first.

Are you sure it has the adjustable cam bolts? Asking because I first thought my trucks did, but I was wrong. They'll have large washers on each side of the control arm bushing. The original non-adjustable bolts have a 90 degree arm that comes up and over the control arm mount on the side where the bolt head is. The nut end of the bolt doesn't have them. When I first looked at my trucks, I saw those and thought they were for adjusting the camber, but they just keep the bolt from turning. They're why you don't need a wrench on the bolt head to loosen the original bolt.

 

[429CJ-3X2]

Well, I took the truck back in for the alignment today, and the tech hit a snag that I don't understand. He was able to get everything into specs except the camber on the right side. It's at 2.1 degrees, outside the max allowable 1.2 degrees. I didn't talk to the tech, but the guys at the front desk said he "cut 2 wrenches in half" in the effort, but couldn't get it to break loose so he could adjust it before he used up all the time he had to spend on it today. I don't know what that means. The adjustment bolts are brand new, and I certainly didn't tighten them that tight. I don't know what else has to "break loose".
Since he wasn't able to complete the alignment, they didn't charge me for it today. I have a 2 hour appointment set for 2 weeks from tomorrow so he can finish it. We're making another trip to Ohio next week, and the tech might not want to see it any sooner!

 

[oklagp1200r]

Well, I took the truck back in for the alignment today, and the tech hit a snag that I don't understand. He was able to get everything into specs except the camber on the right side. It's at 2.1 degrees, outside the max allowable 1.2 degrees. I didn't talk to the tech, but the guys at the front desk said he "cut 2 wrenches in half" in the effort, but couldn't get it to break loose so he could adjust it before he used up all the time he had to spend on it today. I don't know what that means. The adjustment bolts are brand new, and I certainly didn't tighten them that tight. I don't know what else has to "break loose".
Since he wasn't able to complete the alignment, they didn't charge me for it today. I have a 2 hour appointment set for 2 weeks from tomorrow so he can finish it. We're making another trip to Ohio next week, and the tech might not want to see it any sooner!

Might find a different shop with a better alignment tech. JS