How to Replace Inner Tie Rod Ends in a 1999 Mercury Villager Minivan V6

The Mercury Villager was rather Caravan-like, just as were most minivans of its era.

Mercury opened for business in 1939, and sat between Ford and Lincoln as Ford Motor Co.'s entry-level luxury lineup. The Villager, which hit the market in the 1993 model year, was Mercury’s first offering in the minivan realm. The 1999 model year was a redesign year for the Villager, giving it a sleeker look. The inner tie rod ends on the 1999 Villager transfer the movement from the steering rack to the outer tie rod ends, which forces the wheels left and right. Replacing the inner tie rod ends on this van requires removing the outer tie rod ends, but it is a relatively straightforward task.

Things You'll Need

• Ratchet
• Socket set
• Floor jack
• Jack stands
• Tie rod end separator
• Side cutters
• Tie rod end wrench attachment
• Thread-locking chemical meeting Ford specification WSK-M2G351-A6
• Torque wrench
• Phillips screwdriver
• Break caliper grease meeting Ford specification ESE-M1C171-A
• Crow’s foot attachment

Instructions

1. Loosen the front lug nuts with a ratchet and socket, and raise the front of the Villager with a floor jack. Slide jack stands under the vehicle’s subframe and lower the Villager onto the jack stands. Remove the lug nuts and pull the front wheels off the front hubs.

2. Loosen the outer tie rod end jam nut, using a combination wrench.

3. Pull the cotter pin from the outer tie rod end with needle-nose pliers and loosen the tie rod end’s castellated nut with a ratchet and socket.

4. Position a tie rod end separator so its screw part contacts the tie rod end stud and its fixed side slides between the top of the tie rod end and steering knuckle. Tighten the tie rod end separator with a ratchet and socket until the tie rod end pops free from the steering knuckle.

5. Remove the outer tie rod end by loosening it from the inner tie rod end. Count the number of turns it takes to remove the tie rod end. Make a note of the number of turns. Remove the tie rod end’s jam nut.

6. Cut the metal clamps on both ends of the inner tie rod end bellow, using side cutters. Pull the inner tie rod end bellow from the inner tie rod end.

7. Place a ratchet and tie rod end wrench attachment on the flats on the innermost part of the inner tie rod end. Remove the inner tie rod end by rotating it counterclockwise with the ratchet and tie rod end wrench attachment.

8. Apply a thin coat of a thread-locking chemical meeting Ford specification WSK-M2G351-A6 onto the inner threads of the inner tie rod end – the threads that screw into the steering rack. Thread a new inner tie rod end into the steering rack. Tighten the inner tie rod end to 58 foot-pounds with a torque wrench and tie rod end wrench attachment.

9. Slide a new inner tie rod end bellow, which comes with the new inner tie rod end, onto the inner tie rod end until it seats in its groove on the inner tie rod end. Press the inner part of the inner tie rod end bellow onto the end of the steering rack.

10. Guide a large clamp – included with the inner tie rod end – onto the point where the inner tie rod end bellow seats onto the steering rack. Tighten the clamp with a Phillips screwdriver. Position the small hose clamp that came with the new inner tie rod end onto the point where the inner tie rod end bellow seats in its groove in the inner tie rod end. Tighten the hose clamp with a Phillips screwdriver.

11. Apply a thin coat of brake caliper grease meeting Ford specification ESE-M1C171-A to the outermost threads – the ones the outer tie rod end tightens onto – of the inner tie rod end. Thread the outer tie rod end jam nut onto the inner tie rod end. Tighten the outer tie rod end onto the inner tie rod end using the same number of turns it took to remove the outer tie rod end in step 5.

12. Insert the tie rod end stud through its hole in the top of the steering knuckle. Thread the castellated nut back onto the tie rod end stud and torque it to 26 foot-pounds with a torque wrench and socket. Verify that a valley in the tie rod end’s castellated nut aligns with the hole through the tie rod end stud. Insert a new cotter pin through the hole in the tie rod end stud. Bend the cotter pin’s legs in opposite directions with needle-nose pliers.

13. Tighten the jam nut until it contacts the innermost part of the outer tie rod end, then torque it to 45 foot-pounds with a torque wrench and a crow’s foot attachment.

14. Reinstall the front wheels and hand-tighten the lug nuts. Raise the van from the jack stands with a floor jack and remove the jack stands. Lower the vehicle to the ground and torque the lug nuts, in a crisscross pattern, to 80 foot-pounds with a torque wrench and socket.

15. Drive the vehicle to a nearby auto repair facility to have an alignment performed.

References

• Alldata: 1999 Mercury Villager Inner Tie Rod End Service Procedure
• Alldata: 1999 Mercury Villager Outer Tie Rod End Service Procedure
• NADA Guides: Mercury Villager Model History
• MSN Autos: Mercury Villager Overview