Steering wandering had ball joints track rod ends done for mot last couple of years tracking been done cars wanders when driving quite scary

My first guess would have been a worn tie rod, but that should have been checked before the first gearbox was replaced.

Hello there.
You should really buy a 'Haynes Manual' if you are doing this kind of work on your car.
The item you are renewing is either a 'Track rod end ' or a 'Tie Rod'..
I presume you are going to change a Track Rod End.

Here we go !

.1) First Jack up the car and support on axle stands properly. You should ALWAYS do this. Jacks CANNOT be trusted EVER.

2) Undo the small nut on the top of the Ball joint. You then need to use a Ball Joint Splitter or a 'homemade metal wedge' and big Hammer, and insert it between the two parts (Track rod end and suspension extension) and separate the two parts. The 'bolt' that the nut was on is a tapered fit so it will be hard to separate the two. .

3) When separated, undo the locknut on the other end of the Track Rod end and 'unscrew' the whole Track rod end from the Tiie Rod..
IMPORTANT Make a note of how many turns it took to 'unscrew' the Track Rod end from the Tie Rod.

4) Screw the new Track Rod end into the Tie Rod as exactly the same number of turns to take out the old one if you can. (DONT forget to put the old locknut on to the new Track Rod End first !!!!)

5) Locate the thread of the new ball joint through the Suspension extension as was initially found and then fully tighten a NEW Nyloc nut on the top of the threaded part. (If you use the old nut and the steering comes apart at 70 MPH don't blame me)

6) Tighten the lock nut on the other end on the Track Rod End.

7) Take to a Tyre shop and have the TRACKING re-aligned. If you dont do this your tyres will only last for two weeks or so. !!!!!!

Job Done

Knocking or rattling noise on rough ground, steering wander. Jack vehicle up grab the wheel at the top and bottom and try and rock the wheel, if yes ball joint? Then side to side, if yes track rod or steering rack? If movement in all directions suspect wheel bearing.

Year make and model ?
The drive shaft would not have anything to do with steering unless you are talking about front wheel drive. And even that would be rather strange. Usually steering problems are focused on tie rod ends and ball joints.

check for loose tie rod ends. Check for loose suspension ball joints and rubbers . Have a wheel alignment done . Check bearing adjustment.. If it is a 4 wheel drive check the condition of the steering shock absorber as they wear out and do not help in the steering control.

the main problem is that someone is trying to drive it way too fast. narrow wheelbase and high center of gravity have spelled fatality many many times and nearly killed the Ford bronco II. it seems obvious to the casual observer but thousands of deaths and lawsuits resulted in recalls consisting of video tapes telling folks that you do not drive vehicles with narrow wheel bases and high centers of gravity very fast. The second problem is that the thing is nearly an antique. every part on that vehicle will fail from either time or use, or a combination. So 16 years of time and use have worn out every suspension and steering component. If you want to drive fast, get a low slung wide track unit. If you want it to drive like it is new, replace all the steering and suspension components and get a good 4 wheel alignment.

could be. I had a blazer that would do that and it turned out to be the tie rod ends which will also make it wander.

That may be normal with 7 inches of lift and large tire. If it has not been in for an alignment after the install I would do that ASAP. 35" tires are expensive to burn up.

Never saw a baleno, and have no idea what a mot is....but generally a track rod end is a screw in item that is not difficult to replace. One thing to remember though is that it needs to be screwed in the exact number of turns as it took to remove the old one and that the length after install should be exactly the same or it will throw the alignment off.

What was said about the wear of the front end part when the alignment was given? I could be wrong but, I would say, Not likely for the tie rod ends and definately not the shocks for knocking sounds.. It sounds more like bad ball joints poping, although the idler arm and tye rod ends could be worn also .