Tie rods and steering

[iateyourcheese]

So I'm getting the M3 prepped for a track day, but the tech inspection shop flagged my tie rod ends as being bad. They said you can grab the front wheels at 9 and 3 and get some play. At home I tried this and sure enough there's a bit of play, but if I watch the steering wheel closely I see it moving in sync with the wheel.

I have the wheels off now and have been pushing and prodding the ends. I can't really see anything wrong. The ends seem securely attached to the hub and seem to have the same range of motion as the new ones I now possess.

I have new tie rod ends in hand and plan to change them tomorrow, but I'm not sure it's going to do anything. The movement must be abnormal because the shop seemed rather concerned about it. They're rather reputable so I don't doubt them. Could it be a problem with the rack? With the steering wheel locked, how much play is expected?

Any thoughts?

[Nick M3]

Well, I'd start with getting someone to hold the steering wheel in place.

Also, you will want to get under the car and check your control arm bushing. (Grab the control arm where it goes into the bushing and shake it. If there's significant movement, buy new ones and some Dawn.

[iateyourcheese]

The control arms seem fine. With the tire off, I can grab the tie rod itself pretty well. There's no looseness or play between hub and tie rod end.

[iateyourcheese]

I'm going to guess there shouldn't be any side-to-side play in the rack, right? :(

[John V]

It's possible your inner tie-rod ends are toast.
When you get new tie rods for a BMW you get the whole assembly - both inners and outers. It's not too bad to replace them.

[iateyourcheese]

After working on it a while, I found play between the rack and the rack housing and one bad inner tie rod. Searching around on bforums I found others with the same problem.

Dealer wanted $105 per tie rod, but I found new inners + rack for $285 online and I already have the outers. So it's a new (well, rebuilt) Z3 rack for me.