I see there is an aftermarket rack and pinion setup for the A Body cars. Has anyone looked into it and what did you think of it? Mike D.
I saw those seems to be a Bad design. It is to much Money for it as well. Some one needs to Design a better setup at a better Price. Manual ones and a PowerSteer ones. I would Purchase a Manual one that Bolted in. I am shure many others would on the Board as well. There are many Chevelle's Olds Pontiac's Buick's out there. I do not no you some one has not started Building them and selling them in complete Kits.
Check out Chevelle A-body on the TRZ Page $850 Some one Down Loud the Install instructs. I can not down loud them.
Jeff, Here are the directions from the page there are no pictures of the install though. Rack Mount Instructions (64-72 A-Bodies) Objective is to mount the rack as high as possible in front of the stock cross-member, without being so high as to interfere with the oil pan. Making sure the rack is level, centered, and square in the chassis. After removing all stock steering components: 1 - Install new Billet Aluminum Steering Arms. 2 - Install the bump steer kit onto the rack and steering arms using the supplied hardware. This will now leave your Rack suspended between the steering arms. 3 - With the rack hanging in front of the cross member, use 2 jack stands to support the rack at its optimal height. 4 - Once the rack is located, reverse build from the Rack to the cross members with the included brackets. 5 - Tack weld the brackets in place before final welding. 6 - Using a 2 - 2.25 hole saw, cut a hole directly behind the input shaft of the rack into the front of the cross-member and cut a hole in the rear of the drivers side cross member as high as possible, directly in front or slightly outboard) of the outlet of the stock steering column. In some circumstances the header placement will require the rear hole to be on the top of the cross-member, this will allow the steering shaft to be passed through the stock cross member. Note: Some modification to the drivers side header may be required. 7 - Cut off the stock rag-joint just behind itself, to allow placement of one of the supplied u-joints. A portion of x .058 tubing,, about 4 inches, will be slid inside the stock column tubing to adapt to the u-joint. 8 - Determining the length of each portion of steering shaft is up to the fabricator. Keeping in mind that the center steering shaft must be supported to the drivers-side frame using the included shaft brace. 9 - After determining proper placement and movement of all components you may final weld all of the brackets. Note: It is recommended to use a 1/4-28 x 1.5 inch long grade 8 bolt (Not Included) to fasten at least one portion of steering shaft to its u-joint, either above or below the steering shaft brace. This allows removal of rack and or column when necessary. 10 - When adjusting for Bump Steer initially, you want to adjust the rod-end height to be as level as possible at race-weight and at ride height. This is accomplished by adjusting which spacers are above and below the rod -end. The use of a Bump Steer gage is recommended for an exact placement of the rod-ends. NOTE: The U-Joints, Tubing and Rack Clamp Bracket are Chrome-Moly and require TIG welding.
I don't figure something like that would do my 72 GS 455 any good. I doubt that much weight savings would take place over the old recirculating ball gearbox and tie rod set up. Maybe some improvement in steering response, but a fast ratio box in stock location would be a lot easier. Cool to look at, but would need to be simple, like Fox body Mustang, for example, to save weight and/or free up room up high. Thanks, Rudy E.
The g-body guys say a lot of good things about TRZ. Looks like a lot more fab work than the Flaming River system even though they use the same rack. I think it looks well engineered with the bump steer stuff included. Not in the market now but would be interested in anyone doing this to find out how it works. Price is right.
