Hey gang, I just got stranded in my 1990 mazda 626 downtown Seattle. It's parked in a spot I'm good until Monday but can't really afford to tow it.

I was parked just fine, I did some work for a guy and when I went to leave it felt stuck. When I turned the wheel it wouldn't do anything. I gunned it out into the road only to hear a violent squeeling sound.

I quickly pulled around the corner and parked. The tire was bent kinda sideways on the passenger front side.

I backed the car up a couple feet and it straightened the tire out, but it completely disconnected from what I'd call the "tie rod". I've only ever worked on 4 wheelers and dirt bikes as a kid but it looks like the same idea.

I felt the inside of the wheel, and you can feel the threaded "socket" and there's a threaded end of a long shaft right there with a nut on it, but the traffic was pretty nuts so I'm going to go back early tomorrow morning, jack it up, and try to twist the round socket connected to the tire back onto the shaft.

The threaded "socket" connected to the inside of the tire spins, so I assume I spin that back onto the end of the threaded rod. Then the nut on the rod I should tighten down on the tire? I felt the driver's side and the nut is 2" away from where it screws into the tire, should I tighten it as well?

Anything I should watch for? Does this ever happen without the parts actually breaking? Like should I go buy parts before I go back down there, are they expensive? I had a rod, and a socket, both seemed solid just disconnected... The car is ancient but it runs great I hate to see it in a junk yard.

 

Look at the outer tie rod end to see if there is a threaded hole, about 2" long. If that is the case you can reconnect the inner tie rod end. If there is no hole or something in the hole han the inner tie rod end has broken off and you cannot fix it easily.
But if there is the threaded hole: The outer tie rod end cannot turn over but the inner tie rod end, the thing you call a shaft, can. Take your vise grips along, and heavens get it properly fixed. Your life and the lifes of the folks around you depend on it.

 

I managed to get it home uneventfully. The arm on the inside of the wheel, what the threaded end of the tie rod screws into, was still on, but twisting the rod wouldn't get any "bite" to tighten up, so I backed the nut up about 3/4 of an inch on the tie rod, and was able to screw the tie rod into the "threaded end of arm" about 3/4". It's not tight but was snug. I drove it 5 blocks, pulled over and checked it and it was still snug so I nursed it home.

Not gonna drive it until I get the part replaced, I was lucky it happened while I was parked/pulling out and not flying 65 miles down the highway which is where I was headed when pulling out.

 

Imbarns: This is not going to be quite as simple as you may think. The thing you call "arm" is called "inner tie-rod end". At the end that goes in the steering rack sits a ball joint. It takes a special tool to get it out. Also after you replace the inner tie rod and the outer tie rod you need to adjust the toe-in.

I suggest to watch some Youtube videos on how to replace an inner tie rod end, an outer tie rod end and how to do a DIY wheel alignment.

It's best to let a pro do it. Maybe you can save a few bucks if you get the parts from
RockAuto.com.

A Do-it-yourselfer could borrow the special tools from a parts store.
In my opinion it would be best to replace the inner and outer tie rod ends on both sides and have it professionally aligned.