Steering Tie Rod Assembly problems of the 2011 Ford Edge

Vehicle failed annual safety inspection at approximately 40k miles. Dealer explained that front tie rod ends had failed and needed replacement. Made an appointment for service. Upon returning for service on the scheduled date at approximately 45k miles, dealer discovered leak in front rack and pinion assembly and explained entire front rack and pinion assembly needs replacement. As of this report, the vehicle is still with the local dealership's service department. The part to be replaced is on back-order. After quick internet search, discovered instances of same problem in steering & suspension with other 2011 Ford Edge and 2011 Lincoln mdx awd vehicles. This is a safety issue in addition to being extremely costly in a relatively new vehicle for myself and other vehicle owners. This should be investigated. Thanks for your time.

My vehicle is a Ford Edge 2011. I just received this fleet vehicle in December. Recently (February) noticed the alignment was drastically off. In order to go straight, the wheel was cranked all the way to the left. I took it into firestone redondo beach to get checked for alignment when they informed me that there was no way a pot hole or bump changed the alignment by that much. They stated that the jam nut on the left side tie rod was loose. To fix this, this was tightened and alignment toe set. However, this is alarming considering that this was a manufacturing issue. As stated by the technician, it was clear that the rod was set but not actually tightened. This could have led to a significant accident with loss of steering had I not gotten it fixed in time. This was definitely a manufacturing defect and a scary one for lack of quality checks.