ZJ Tie Rod Conversion

Crown isn’t available, so I’m doing a full setup by part.
I got the ZJ Tie Rod, Tie Rod end and adjusting sleeve.

I’m looking at Drag Link and to do a full refresh, I need a tie rod end for the Pitman Arm side (Not sure which tr end), and a sleeve of I don’t want to reuse the one on it. Those aren’t listed in OP. But those are both needed to completely refresh (drag link is refresh not upgrade really).
Is that accurate?
 
FYI, the ZJ conversion with a TJ Drag Link is now costing about $300 on Amazon Prime if you get a new steering stabilizer as well.

There needs to be more clarity on what you need to do this conversion in the OP. Of course, I'm adding the Drag Link, so it could be added as an addendum

ES3095R Tie Rod End (x1)
ES3096L Tie Rod End (x2)
ES2079S Adjusting Sleeve (x1)
DS1312 Tie Rod End (which is your Tie Rod) (x1)
DS1430 Tie Rod End (which is your Drag Link) (x1)
Steering Stabilizer of your Choice


Apologies for bringing up this old post. I'm reading this, why the need for 2 ES3096L Tie Rod Ends? I appreciate all y'alls' help and wisdom, I'm counting through these and not following 5 joints like this. I thik 95R is connected to the Tie Rod, and 96L is tied to the Drag Link. Where would the other 96L go?
 
Where would the other 96L go?
You probably don't use it because the ZJ setup is different and uses a larger one. You can also use the XJ part from post 327 to save a few bucks. There aren't that many parts, just stare at your Jeep for a second or two and it'll should be easy enough.
 
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The two L's are the same size and go on the driver-side connections. One to the pitman arm and one to the knuckle (?). The one for the pitman arm/drag link joint isn't part of the upgrade - you only need to do this if the drag link joints are being replaced as maintenance. Or like me figure they were 23 years old and might as well while I'm in there...
 
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@Chris This thread rocks and once again my wife asks “why was that MANDATORY”, ha.
Got all the parts from Amazon links, everything greased with Lucas R&T. Bought the aluminum square pipe to align, super tight.

I just put on aluminum Savvy CAs, and the first Auto Paint rattle can I saw at Home Depot was “aluminum” so the Moog got a Savvy look...kind of, Ha. Adjustable track bar is this color as well so I went something non black. ZJ Moog and got a NewDrag Link and ends to get it all tight:

before CD0783B0-C311-45ED-85A4-D3158850F55E.jpeg3585CCDB-A8A8-45FE-AD50-5EBCAF5FC754.jpeg

After:
CD0783B0-C311-45ED-85A4-D3158850F55E.jpeg3585CCDB-A8A8-45FE-AD50-5EBCAF5FC754.jpeg0E7BAAFA-BA11-4DE0-9C76-F80313E1980D.jpeg34F596DB-CB9F-4B82-A236-2C2A48938162.jpeg26BE0A4B-6687-46E7-9976-DEC2199CDB4A.jpegimage.jpg
Drove Great, wasn’t bad before but noticeably tighter on turns.

Gotta take the Pup for Rattle Snake training in the morning so I’ll get it on the Tollway 75+ and get a feel.

Another great tip my wife thinks is unnecessary, God love her, she’s a good woman.

DE9FCECA-2724-45C7-BBE9-E6ADD058E85D.jpeg
 
@cpwolf did you keep the stock TJ drag link? I am going to be doing this soon on my 260k stock steering. I have seen some upgrade to a ZJ drag link. If not did you rebuild the link to the knuckle?

Also I will be doing the OME + Rancho 2" lift that others have done. Should I also get an adjustable track bar or just get the relo kit to keep them parallel. I plan on going bigger in the future, but it will be a while before that happens.
 
@cpwolf did you keep the stock TJ drag link? I am going to be doing this soon on my 260k stock steering. I have seen some upgrade to a ZJ drag link. If not did you rebuild the link to the knuckle?

Also I will be doing the OME + Rancho 2" lift that others have done. Should I also get an adjustable track bar or just get the relo kit to keep them parallel. I plan on going bigger in the future, but it will be a while before that happens.

I got a new Drag Link as a refresh. It's laid out pretty well in that first post, so I decided on the ZJ upgrade. The Drag Link is the exact same as the OEM.....but at 110,000 miles, I figured lets get a whole new setup. I got the Moog Drag Link all new, The ZJ Tie Rod, 2 Tie Rod Ends (tehy are the same, because the new ZJ Tie Rod is the same diameter/build as the OEM TJ Drag Link), and 2 adjusting sleeves. The setup I just took off....I'm keeping it and when I hit hard core trails I can have that at camp as an emergency to get home.

I have a Rancho 3.5" that is measuring 4" in the front and sags in the back so 3" which I need to get new springs. I have an adjustable track bar on the front, and got that put on at a shop before I decided to start doing all my own work. Others may have a differing thought, but I don't "Believe" you need a relo-bracket at 2", and an adjustable will be ready to go bigger if you go there.
 
I see in the original post there are specific torque specs required for this upgrade. I don't own a torque wrench but I'd like to get one for this job. Would a cheap Harbor Freight torque wrench be accurate enough for this job?
 
I see in the original post there are specific torque specs required for this upgrade. I don't own a torque wrench but I'd like to get one for this job. Would a cheap Harbor Freight torque wrench be accurate enough for this job?

I use some Harbor Freight, absolutely. I'm sure it would be fine, but if there is a tool that I spend dollars on, it's a torque wrench. If you have budget for a high end tool, I'd think about that.

Other option, you can rent a tool and do both to check. I wouldn't count on a rent a tool torque wrench only, just personally, but you can double check a HF one and feel better about it if higher end isn't in the cards. My brother has a shop full of Snap On, but I can't justify that, ha.
 
Thanks for the reply - I might invest in something better. The Harbor Freight Icon line is supposed to be very high quality for about $110.

Second thought - is the tie rod upgrade something a total novice can do?
 
Thanks for the reply - I might invest in something better. The Harbor Freight Icon line is supposed to be very high quality for about $110.

Second thought - is the tie rod upgrade something a total novice can do?

I cannot guarantee it, but if you follow Chris' original email, yes, you can absolutely do this if you have any mechanical ability and patience.

Also read the "alignment" thread and be ready, and then the "straighten your steering wheel" instructions.

Couple tips, rent a tool or buy Tie Rod Ball Joint tool. I ended up not needing it, I backed the castle nut a touch more than flush with the bolt (so when it comes loose it doesn't slam to the ground, and so that I don't damage the threads because I kept my drag and tie rod for trail backups). Band on it with a hammer, small sledge, on the side and on the top of the bolt. I got them all loose, then went and disconnected one at a time and pulled it off.

I put ant-seize on the adjusting sleeves too.
 
I cannot guarantee it, but if you follow Chris' original email, yes, you can absolutely do this if you have any mechanical ability and patience.

Also read the "alignment" thread and be ready, and then the "straighten your steering wheel" instructions.

Couple tips, rent a tool or buy Tie Rod Ball Joint tool. I ended up not needing it, I backed the castle nut a touch more than flush with the bolt (so when it comes loose it doesn't slam to the ground, and so that I don't damage the threads because I kept my drag and tie rod for trail backups). Band on it with a hammer, small sledge, on the side and on the top of the bolt. I got them all loose, then went and disconnected one at a time and pulled it off.

I put ant-seize on the adjusting sleeves too.
Only thing I would add is turning the castle nut upside down before hammering it if you want to reuse it. You can also bang the side of the knuckle to knock the bolt loose as well.
 
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I have some fun work ahead of me. In addition to installing the KOR bushing in my JKS Track Bar (A local shop swapped it out a bit over a year ago for a Rough Country bar, because he proclaimed the JKS had too much "flex", and now I found out the RC bar bushings are already fubar...and outside the warranty period. So the JKS is getting put back in with the upgraded KOR by your's truly).

Just put the order in for these tie upgrade parts and am wondering what the torque specs are (both for the tie rod parts as well as the JKS bar). Anyone have them handy?
 
I have some fun work ahead of me. In addition to installing the KOR bushing in my JKS Track Bar (A local shop swapped it out a bit over a year ago for a Rough Country bar, because he proclaimed the JKS had too much "flex", and now I found out the RC bar bushings are already fubar...and outside the warranty period. So the JKS is getting put back in with the upgraded KOR by your's truly).

Just put the order in for these tie upgrade parts and am wondering what the torque specs are (both for the tie rod parts as well as the JKS bar). Anyone have them handy?
They are in the first post
 
Parts Required
The ZJ tie rod conversion parts can be purchased for a very reasonable price on Amazon. You'll need the following parts:
The following parts are optional if you'd like to replace your drag link at the same time, with quality replacement parts. This is a great option if you want to refresh everything, including the drag link (not a bad idea if your Jeep has higher miles). Though the drag link will still remain the stock diameter, (the ZJ and TJ drag links are the same diameter) it will provide you with a completely refreshed steering setup, which is great for preventative maintenance.

Sorry to be going back to basics here; hoping I can work out how to do this on a RHD vehicle, but reeeally don't want to order the wrong parts. First off, this is what my setup looks like (excuse how rancid everything looks - that's an innocent young PO not giving this thing the love it deserved - yes I have plans to replace it all, yes I will probably start with pads/rotors and ball joints but I've gotten halfway down this road so want to finish cataloguing the tie rod conversion job before I research anything else):

Wrangler Steering Setup (Before).jpg


As you can see, and probably very obviously, the axle is the same layout, but everything else is (also obviously) reversed. So the Track Bar, Drag link and stabiliser are on the passenger side, over the diff, and the pitman arm and powersteering are all on the left of this pic (the drivers side would you believe 🧐). I've also included a link to a video of the play present in these components which might make the setup clearer also: - let me know if this is horrendous or represents normal movement??

(Edit: So I know these are ball joints and should move, but having never seen or played with this car before and it having 200K km i wanted to double check haha. That said - apologies in advance if I ask a dumb question here and there!)

Assuming I want to do a full refresh - If my understanding is correct I can accomplish this using the following parts as listed in Chris' OP, because the tie rod will fit across my setup in the same way but reversed.


But for the rest of the job I will need RHD-specific parts:


Can anyone confirm if I am correct? What am I missing? Absolute novice here also by the way just wanting to be methodical.

This is not looking like a cheap job over here haha! Once I'm certain what I need I will shop around and not rely on ebay potentially - but man this shit is starting to add up 😅

Thanks in advance!
 
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