Currently, the car has 64,443 miles. From what I've heard, the outter tie rod ends are good up to 100,000 miles, but I feel they really begin to lose their tightness before that.

The "heavy duty" ball joints are a recent addition. I was browsing on wbodystore.com and came across those, they SAY, and I know I shouldn't trust what they say 100%, that new ones will restore a tightness to the front end of your car, and that some ball joints on Grand Prix's have been known to fail in as little as 60,000 miles, so I decided to play with the idea of new ball joints too.

 

I see; well tie rods are a pretty easy thing to check- if you jack the car up until the wheel lifts off the ground, try wiggling the wheel/tire left and right- and see how much it moves before you feel it move the steering. If you can noticeably move it at all without it moving the tie rod, then the tie rod is shot.