Soneone didn't tighten it. You are lucky. Yrs ago I was involved in a 5 car wreck on the freeway caused by a fella in a Honda that came across the median & hit 4 of us going the opposite way. The tie rod came off the right side, he musta turned left to compensate & the car finally went left hard, right into oncoming traffic. Dude was pretty messed up but lived, that Honda Accord hit a '67 Electra 225 head on. The Electra driver broke a leg.
