Rack and pinion vs manual gear box, spill pan vs engine diaper
- Thread starter 64nailhead
- Start date
Changing to a fron sidet steering box may lead to issues with header/exhaust fit interference. Also, bump steer may be affected. This can be an accident causer if driven on the street at even moderate speed.
When I first put a Pontiac 350 into my 1981 Malibu wagon, the crappy power steering was leaking. It was that cheapola snap ring cover job [605?]. All I had was Firebird power boxes that I could use [800?]. But the hose fittings were totally different. In a pinch I used a manual box that I had. The Pitman arm on a manual box is the same fit as the 605 box, so it was an easy swap. What a mistake. At speed, there was not much difference. But parking and any slow speed maneuvering was a chore. The wheels must be turning to take the strain off. Many moons go when I drove VW bugs, it was normal to have to gorilla the steering. But a G-body with a big V-8? Yikes! That got old real fast. I eventually got the proper pump and hoses to use the Firebird box and I found the right Pitman arm at a Junkyard.
Bonnewagon i have some concern about that. The spool already makes tight turning and backing up the trailer somewhat of a chore. I’m hoping for the best in that regard haha
Nailhead, I hate to say this, but trailering was the worst part. It was only an 18 ft aluminum boat, but what a nightmare at the ramp. In fact the awful trailering was the biggest reason I converted back to power steering. Even small adjustments while trying to back up were a huge problem. The manual transmission made it even more complicated.
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