Tie Rod End Left-Hand Thread | M12 | from 6/68

Tie rod end with left-hand thread.
Diameter: 12 mm.
VW Beetle 1200 | 1300 | 1500 left outer - from 6/68.
VW Beetle 1302 | 1303 left / right inner - up to 7/74.
VW Bus - 67 to 79.

A worn steering ball joint or tie rod ball joint shows itself through excessive play, which on most vehicles is only noticed at inspection. With a worn protective boot it may be enough to replace the boot, but this is not advisable: during the time the boot was damaged, dirt got in, mixed with the grease in the ball joint and caused wear. You will probably have to replace the ball joint at the next inspection anyway, but keep in mind that you will already have driven for some time with a worn ball joint, which does not improve safety. A new tie rod end is not a big investment. For some ball joints you can choose between an A-quality that matches the original and a B-quality. The B-quality is certainly not a bad choice, but you have to accept a compromise on service life.

To make identifying the ball joint easier, the text states whether it has a left- or right-hand thread and the thread size on the ball pin. The tie rods are supplied with a self-locking nut or a castle nut with a cotter pin (see image). A castle nut can be replaced with a self-locking nut, but not the other way around.

Types of steering boxes:

On the old models of the Volkswagen Beetle and Karmann Ghia we speak of worm-and-peg steering, which was later replaced by worm-and-roller steering. On the Beetle 1303 and T25/T3 Bus, rack-and-pinion steering was used. It is important to know what is fitted under your car; here is the full explanation:

Volkswagen used worm-and-peg steering on the Beetle up to 1965 and on the Karmann Ghia up to 1961. The steering gear has a peg with a tooth that rotates on a shaft (worm) to allow the turning movement. In the last model years worm-and-roller steering was used, in which only the toothed peg was replaced by a bearing roller (worm gear). From 1974 the Beetle 1303, like the third-generation buses (Vanagon T25/T3), was fitted with rack-and-pinion steering. This is a rectangular bar with teeth like a gear on one side; with the pinion, a small gear engaging the teeth, the bar can be moved lengthwise. Volkswagen did not make this change for all models at the same time, so the list below shows when and on which VW model the system was used.

Worm-and-peg steering:
Beetle export model up to 1961 (chassis no. 3 933 184)
Beetle convertible up to 1961 (chassis no. 3 933 184)
Beetle for the domestic market (standard version) up to 7/1965
Karmann Ghia up to 1961 (chassis no. 3 933 184)

Worm-and-roller steering:
Beetle export model from 1961 (chassis no. 3 933 185) onwards
Beetle convertible from 1961 (chassis no. 3 933 185) up to 7/1974
Beetle 1200, 1300, 1500 from 8/1965 onwards
Beetle 1302 and 1303 up to 7/1974
Karmann Ghia from 1961 (chassis no. 3 933 185) onwards
VW Bus up to 7/1979
Type 3 all models and model years
VW Type 181 (Thing) all models and model years

Rack-and-pinion steering:
Beetle 1303 from 8/1974 onwards