How Do You Guarantee Quality in Tie Rod End Manufacturing?

Tie rod ends are a comparatively small and apparently simple component that is just one small part of automotive suspension systems. However, the critical importance of high quality tie rod end manufacturing is evident when you consider how essential the tie rod end is to the safety, stability and accuracy of vehicle control and suspension performance.

Why is quality important in tie rod end manufacturing?

Tie rod ends rely on high quality standards for manufacturing because they are so essential for maintaining safe and precise steering. Any manufacturing inaccuracies or weaknesses have a direct impact on the adjustment and security of the tie rods that maintain the correct steering geometry for accurate tracking and cornering stability.

What are 3 ways tie rod ends affect vehicle performance?

• Consistent steering alignment
• Safe & secure suspension geometry
• Precise steering control

Tie rod end tolerances affect steering alignment

Tie rod ends are a key component of the steering system in connecting track rods to the wheels and steering components of any vehicle. Suspension geometry depends on tie rods that maintain correct adjustment and have consistent free play in ball joint assemblies that meet the original design specifications. Any diversion from the engineered tolerances will result in inconsistent adjustment and make it impossible to maintain exact steering alignment.

High quality tie rod ends are essential for steering safety

Tie rod ends comprise threaded connections and ball joints that link the tie rods to the steering rack and wheels. Obviously any defect or deviation from engineering specifications has a direct effect on steering precision and stability. This can have serious safety consequences if steering control is lost due to wear or failure of any component of the tie rod end.

How do poor quality tie rod ends impact vehicle performance?

Ineffective ball joint lubrication from inconsistent manufacturing will cause premature failures, which can cause complete loss of steering control but at a minimum will reduce steering precision and security. A common problem is loss of lubrication due to imperfect manufacturing of ball joints. Ball joints must have perfect concentricity to avoid pressure ‘hot spots’ that create excessive temperatures and promote metal-on-metal contact with associated wear and degradation of the joint.

What are the critical steps in tie rod end quality control?

When we look at the failure modes and potential problems of poor quality tie rod ends, it is easy to identify the critical steps for tie rod end quality control during the manufacturing and quality testing processes. Inconsistencies in ball joint lubrication can be caused by manual assembly processes. Robotic assembly with metered injection of lubricant is an obvious solution for this problem.

How do you ensure quality tie rod end manufacturing?

• Robotic assembly for exact duplication of engineering design
• On-site quality testing during the production process
• Precision CNC machining of the tie rod end

Precision quality testing and monitoring is an effective method of controlling for imperfections in concentricity, and any good tie rod end manufacturer should have the capabilities and technical expertise to measure and monitor for concentricity as part of the production process.

Robotic manufacturing & quality testing of SH Auto Parts tie rod ends

At SH Auto Parts all our ball joints for tie rod ends are manufactured in a bespoke robotic production line that ensures exactly the same lubrication and installation procedures are followed every time. Digital scanning and monitoring filters out any inconsistent items and ball joints and tie rod assemblies are comprehensively tested in our state of the art quality testing laboratory on-site.

Tie rod ends are CNC machined in our Smart factory with ball joint assembly and installation completed as a single-site process for consistent quality management and assurance, and all components are manufactured in conformance with our IATF 19649 automotive manufacturing certification for complete peace of mind that our tie rod ends have guaranteed quality. If you are looking for OEM, after market OES or ODM tie rod ends please contact us to find out more.