Thread: P10/P11 Tie Rod End Alternative - L31 Altima

My P11's tie rods are starting to give out, failed inspection due to slight play. Looking around I found that OEM ones, part number 48520-2J025, are $70-100 easily. I found some 02+ Altima tie rods much cheaper, part number 48520-8J025.

I almost bought Moog's, but since now they are no longer made in USA by Moog explicitly, quality seems to vary by where it was made.

Looking at the tie rod specs from Moog, they seem very close. The only difference is the R designation, which means Right Hand, Moog site mentions that they all should say R or L. Since they don't say on G20's, it's probably before they started using that designation and assumed RH if no letter.

The last difference is stud taper bottom is a little thicker, .020in or 0.508mm, I would say this is so negligible that they might just pop in without needing to drill out the knuckle.

I wouldn't mind switching to a more common Nissan car part for future anyway (no Infiniti dealers for hundred miles).

G20 - MOOG ES3413
Rod Thread: M14-1.5
Rod Type (Male / Female): Female
Stud Center to End (in): 3.7
Stud Large Taper (bottom in.): .590
Stud Small Taper (top in.): .511
Stud Thread: M12-1.25

Altima - MOOG ES3438
Rod Thread: M14-1.5R
Rod Type (Male / Female): Female
Stud Center to End (in): 3.70
Stud Large Taper (bottom in): .610
Stud Small Taper (top in.): .511
Stud Thread: M12-1.25 RH

You can see how Moog measures tie rods here.

Got the OEM L31 Altima tie rods ends (Nissan #48520-8J025) earlier then expected!

P11 on Top, L31 on bottom, notice the design difference:


Size wise they are identical to the P11 ones, even with the taper top being bigger they installed no problem at all!

When inserted in the knuckle they have plenty of threads left too, more then P11 ones actually.

P11:


L31:


Installed:



I drove the car around the block and it seemed fine, we'll see how she does tomorrow at the inspection place. I would say the fit is as good if not better compared to the aftermarket tie rod fitment.

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That aside lets talk about the tie rod head angel differences. The new tie rod head mounts ontop of the tie rod making it sit lower. The P11 tie rod head mounts in the middle, but it's also angled up. This could actually be beneficial by making the tie rods be more parallel to the control arms.



Here is a comparison of tie rod angels with full weight on the car and wheels turned fully.

P11 Tie rod ends:


L31 tie rod ends:



Finally here's a pic of the wheels straight, sorry for the potato quality I could barely get my hands in there so had to rely on autofocus.


Finally here is the Lower control arm angel to compare against the tie rod angels:

I guess you'll know more after an alignment?

I tried to mark my nuts and threads so that it wouldn't mess up too much but I'll verify it with my toe plates this weekend probably.

Overall I think they are about as good, if not better, then most aftermarket tie rods. Most aftermarket ones are straight too. Maybe someone more well versed in tie rods can explain why OEM's have a slight tilt up. I will say my steering feels a little harder/firmer, which is good because it makes the car feel more stable, but this could be from installing non worn out tie rods.

ACDELCO 46A1007A:


MOOG ES3413 looks pretty straight too:


API 260065935 is tilted:


ACDELCO 45A1229 is also slightly tilted, but it also looks to have a very thin connection to the head so might break...

From looking at this pic, I wonder if it's better or worse. The stock tie rod end is curved and looks like the neck handles most of the stress. A very strong cast part. With the Altima tie rod end, it's straight and the bulk of the stress is put on the bolt.

I would think putting the stress on the neck would be better on a 3k+ lb car. Your thought?

That's a valid point but L31 Altimas are heavier then P11's, Base Altima's are 3,001lbs exactly, Altima SE-R is 3,279lbs.

Thinking about it, I think the straight cuts put more force on the top of the stud & the ball, while the P11 tilts put more force on the middle of the stud where there is more movement. Which means there is more slack on the P11 ones, resulting in delay between steering input actual turning of the car, aka vague indirect steering feeling. Perhaps this was done to make the car feel more boaty.. err luxury?

Altimas suspension is probably not exactly the same angle though, which is why theirs are straight.

Only issue I can image is the Altima TRs will cause the relative angle of the tie rod assembly from horizontal to be a slightly different angle. . .maybe slighter more upwards angle. So maybe that would increase bump steer a tad on lowered P11?

It may not be enough of a change to make a difference in feel.