Do my tie rods look different from each other? Previous owner put one spacer in the rear passenger side to try and fix the wheel because it’s toed in. I had an alignment done and it wasn’t the cause of the weird angle of the wheel. I don’t think it’s frame damage either. Could it be because my tie rods are not the same??

Thoughts?

Thank you lots

 

They look similar enough to me. What are you looking at?

For the record, they are under so much tension when you are under the car that it's very difficult to tell if they are bad or not. Be extra careful when you check to really make sure you keep your hands on them and try to feel for something moving because often you can't see it. They don't need much slop and their shot.

 

I agree, what are you looking at??

The only difference I see, is on the left side of the car, you have an OE "flanged nut" on the sway bar link, while on the right side, you have a standard hex nut and a separate flat washer. I also notice that on the left side, the tie rod end appears to be "threaded out" more than the right side. Assuming that the parts are identical, side to side, and in good condition, this is indicative of something out of whack, on the right side of the car.....the side that looks like the rear wheel is an inch too far forward.

 

IF the alignment came out "square" , then you are fine.. The alignment shop uses these rear adjustable tie rods just
like on the front end to adjust your TOE... IF the shop that did your alignment checked the tie rods and they are fine. Then
you are fine.

 

First of all the rear toe links really aren't under any tension with the car on a lift. Neither are the links to the sway bar. Whoever last messed with the sway bar swapped the nut that holds the slide bushing retainer with the nut on the right sway bar end link. The slide bushing is that rubber (or Delrin) bushing that the sway bar slides through on the cradle. Those two bushings are about 20 inches apart. they allow the sway bar to both rotate and slide,but restrain the sway bar in bending when one wheel side is compressed and the other is lifted, like going around a corner. The main job of the sway bar is to reduce body roll in a turn, thus keeping more tire contact on the road

the thing you should be worried about is the fact that your LEFT toe link is about out of thread. and if your toe setting is OK then there are four possibilities, One, you have a bent frame and to get both thrust and toe in spec the left toe link had to be way out. Two, you have maxed out the camber setting in the back and to get the needed toe setting, the left link is adjusted way out. Three, the rod end is shot and you need a new one. Four, your thrust setting is way off.

the thrust setting and toe go hand-in hand.

 

I said that because I had to shops missed seeing the rear ball joint issues and so did I. It was only when I had it back to the one shop the second time and myself and another person together checking, that we found the rear tie rods to be the problem. At least in my case, they were not easy to diagnose.

 

The outer ends of those tie rods see a lot of heat from the brakes if the car is tracked. Since the C5 OEM rod ends can't be serviced with grease (no zerk) they dry up and the rest is history. The fix is to install C6 GS or Z06 end links which have a grease fitting. Then wrap the rod end with stainless steel heat treating foil to protect it from heat.

i took another look at the OP's side view of the car. Notice the rear wheel seems to be not so well centered in the wheel well. This may (or may be just the angle of the photo) be a sign the frame is bent. Check the gap on both sides from the tire to the front wheel well opening and make sure they are about both the same IIRC the spec difference is about 10mm or 3/8 difference in the gap.

 

That came up in an earlier discussion, and somehow or other, while the car indeed looks "messed up", supposedly the frame is straight.....

 

Well, it sure looks to be too far forward.

 

NO QUESTION......but as I said, that was brought up by the OP, in a previous discussion, at which time they, the OP, said that the car was "straight"....

 

another thing unusual is if you look at the right rear suspension pic, you can see the lower control arm eccentric is turned to the min camber position. This would put positive camber on the RR wheel if everything was straight WRT the frame and cradle.
Regarding frame damage, when a C5 is hit in a back corner, the usual outcome is that the frame buckles behind the cross piece that is behind the car seat. Even though this cross piece is thin gage sheet, it has a lot of buckling resistance and protects the gas tanks. The frame then buckles just behind this stiffener right where the frame goes upward and inward to the width of the cradle. Usually the cradle holds the very back of the frame parallel, so all the deformation happens in this section.


Fixing this is a real tough job because the drivetrain, gas tanks, and the rear tub all have to be removed in order to get to that part of the frame and straighten it properly. The problem is that in order for a body shop to properly pull on the frame the pulling force needs to be applied where all this stuff is. Some of the body parts are glued to the frame, so ths ends up being a big slash job.

of course, all could be ok frame wise, and the car just a victim of a really poor alignment. I don't know where the OP lives, but around her there are several places that can set a Corvette up correctly. The C5 has a great suspension design and really easy to align. However, first checks that alignnmet shops seldom do is correcting ride height, and checking little things like wheel position in the wheel well (this gives a clue if there are additional challenges to a good alignment).