Tie Rod replacement

[Sudesh]

Well I went to get all the wheels balanced and 4 wheel tracking/alignment today. On closer inspection the tire company that was doing the alignment noticed the front passenger tie rod had a slight bend in it and said there would be no point in trying to align/track the front wheels unless the tie rod was replaced. So my question is, has anyone ever done this? The part is NOT expensive and comes as a complete kit, just wondering could it be a DIY fix and what sort time it would take?

[alpac]

I never replaced a tie rod myself on my X as it is still under warranty but got both sides done by the dealer at 70k miles. However I did tie rods on several of my previous cars and it is a pretty easy job to do and I do not think the X would be any more difficult. On a scale of 1 to 5 (1 being easy and 5 being complex) I would rate this between 2 and 3. A Puller will make the job easier. When you remove the old tie rod end pay attention to how many turns it took to take it out. When installing the new one do the same number of turns to keep the length as close as possible to what it was before. That way you will minimize the wear of your tires until you get alignment.
Once you have replaced your tie rod get an alignment as soon as possible.

[Sudesh]

Thanks for reply!! I was just looking at the diagram of the part and it doesnt look too complicated so I may just the guys at the tire place to change it and do the whole alignment at the same time.