wait, tie rod is the rod that steers the front wheels right?

 

eh, sort of, it's the steering rod (commonly found in rack and pinion steering, not to say it can't be found in mult-link steering systems) that connects (hence the name "tie" rod) the steering gear to the appropriate knuckle, and in that sense it does sort of steer the front wheels, mainly through pulling action. At the knuckle it is connected to a tie rod end, (this is usually a ball joint, although I bet there are some funky applications out there).

This kinda gives you an idea
That's in a multi-link system, like a recirculating steering gear box


Rack and Pinion

and the tie rod end in the rack and pinion steering assembly

 

yeah thats what i thought. the brushing at the end of the rod has a decent amount of play in it. i don't see how that isn't causing the vibration....