Hi all, just purchased my first Dakota and found a few problems, nothing major I hope.
I'm going to need to replace the tie rods and I was wondering if this was a fairly straight forward job or something that was going to cause me to pull my hair out.
General info and things to watch for when I do the job would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks

 

First, tell us what if it's 2 or 4 wheel drive, cause they have completely different steering setups

 

I'll assume you have a 4WD.
Remove the cotter pin and nut. Than, it's up to you to decide how you want to get the end out.
When I removed mine, I just put the nut back on (just barely, not even a full rotation), and pounded the top of the nut with a hammer to get the ball joint free. Worked like a charm.

Loosen the bolt on the sleeve, and unthread the tie rod end. Try to remember the number of rotations for a rough reinstallation.

To reinstal, thread the tie rod end back into the sleeve. Tighten the sleeve bolt to 22 ft-lbs.
Insert the tie-rod end on to the center link, and torque the nut to 55 ft-lbs.
Install new cotter pin.
Get an alignment.
Done.

 

If it is 4wd it is easy. And might as well buy new outers too.For both you will Just need a fork to knock it off, and make sure you get an aliment afterwords. There are servace manuals inside the FAQ.

 

Sorry should have mentioned it's 2 wheel drive.

 

I'm not positive cause I have a 4 wheel drive, but I don't think the 2 wheel drives have inner tie rods. I think they use rack and pinion steering. Hopefully one of the 2 wheel drive guys can better help you out.

 

NAPA sells inner tie rods for the 2WD Dakota but the service manual provides no guidance on how to replace it.
What I do know is the service manual says that if you have to replace the boot (protects the area where the inner tie rod meets the gear), you need to remove the gear box.
I say, if you supposedly have to remove the gear box to get the stupid boot off, you might as well just replace the gear. It comes with the inner tie-rods already installed. Especially if the unit is old, or has never been replaced.
It'd be pretty dumb (IMO) to go thru the pain of removing the gear, and putting an old one back in. Your just asking to have to do it all over again soon.

 

Get a 'loaner tool' from any auto parts store. It is called an inner tie rod puller. Make sure the tool comes with three different adapters for the end as the factory tie rod end was smaller than the replacement tie rod end. Look up on Ampro's web site for a pic of what one will look like.

www.amprotools.net

Doesn't take much to get them loose.