How do I get the inner tie rod off on 1992 civic?

Question

I went to change the inner tie rods on my 1992 civic. In the repair manual, it only shows how to get off the outer tie rod. The inner tie rod is connected to the steering rack and is covered by a boot, and the inner tie rod will not slide out of the boot because it is too big.

What do I do to get it off?

Is it a bad idea to snip the boot a little to open the boot off?

Answer 1

you can snip that boot if you are wiling to replace it, but you can in some situations remove the clamp and slide that boot out of the way.  

Answer 2

There should be a clamp that holds the boot on, that you should release, along with a ventilation tube if so equipped. Here's a link that covers this a little bit, although not as good as it could be.

http://www.autozone.com/az/cds/en_us/090...

Answer 3

DO NOT CUT THE BOOT. Your gonna need a inner tie rod remover. Some of them are on car, or will require you to remove the rack. The boot protects the tie rod from dirt/water/...... So do not cut that. I would call around to auto parts stores to see if they rent them. that would be the cheapest way.

Answer 4

the inner tie rod takes a special tool to remove it and put it back on.

Answer 5

I would recommend taking off the clamp that holds the boot on, not cutting it. If you cut it you set yourself up to be replacing an entire steering rack later on. You can use a chain wrench or a pair of channel locks to get it off once you have the boot off. It's not that difficult, and with the boot intact it gives the indication that the inner tie rod is not corroded in place.