Does anyone know if there are either a rack and pinion conversion kit or if an existing rack and pinion will fit a third gen? Recirculating ball steering is just not quite tight enough for my taste and it is so heavy. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

Yeah, I'm wondering that too! The stock system is outdated and frankly, it's my least favorite mechanical part of my car.

 

spohn is supposed to be making tubular K members with provisions for a 4th gen power rack conversion. this is on my wish list

 

I was planning on buying that tubular k member anyway, so that makes it all that much better!

 

who is sphon??? and whats a kmember?

 

Are you serious D M N? Steve Spohn is the moderator of this board for one. Number two, Spohn makes and sells great aftermarket parts for our cars for extremely reasonable prices. Scroll to the top of your screen and click on Spohn Performance to check out his site. By the way, the k member is the part of your car that the engine sits on and the lower a arms attach to.

 

thanks

 

Any ideas on when the K-member is supposed to become available? I wasn't considering a K-member swap, but now I just might consider it.

 

When are Sphon's Members supposed to be ready?

If I could type....

 

january about, theres a thread he started that has an aproximate date.

 

89-up f-bodies that didnt have FE41 package had rack and pinion

 

Ummm.. no?

 

are you sure?? This website tells me diffrent but most sites lie anyways so i could be wrong

http://store.meridianautoparts.com/M...ry_Code=CHECAM

Read the bottom part

 

A major typo on that web site. They MEANT 1998-1999 not 1989-1999. No ThirdGen F-Body came with rack and pinion steering. Also no ABS brakes, but you'll see used ThirdGen cars advertised with ABS.

Lon

 

ok thanks

 

Spohn does now offer a rack and pinion set up on their tubular cross member. Is anyone on here using it and if so what do you like , not like about it.

 

All of the off-the-shelf racks that I've found are manual racks intended for drag race applications. They may or may not have bump-steer issues but they definitely have turning radius issues because they don't have enough travel. My recirculating ball box has just under 8" of travel. I called Flaming River and Unisteer to ask about a custom rack and the both said that they max out at 6". This would require the steering knuckles to be shortened in order to turn the wheel the same amount.

The bump steer results from most or all racks being too wide. A center take off rack with custom bracketry would solve this.

A few of us have been trying really hard to come up with a good rack and pinion solution but I'm not aware of anyone who's found one yet without significant compromise. Here's another thread with some good info:
https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/fabr...ion-right.html

 

I have Racecraft K-member with unisteer pinto rack with 2" drop spindles with shorten arms. I have a bump steer kit on the car and have never experienced bump steer, turning radius is not a lot different than factory steering was.

I noticed a big difference when I put on a smaller steering wheel, but I went to one the same size a factory and it was easy to turn again. I had the pinto racks on all my drag race cars, this is the first street car I converted to a rack and so far have enjoyed it.

The reason why I converted was just to reduce weight on the front end of the car to make up the difference in the Big Block motor. With all the changes on the front of the car I was able to get rid of a couple hundred pounds

 

{Ill post the same thing here as I just did on the Fabrication rack thread}

THis is such a simple install. you guys have to throw out everything you are imagining mounting one to a kemember up to this point, Just throw out that thought.

You hang this assembly from frame rail to frame rail more forward where the OEM steering box exists in front of the motor. This give you distance for the steering linkage, gives height adjustment for geometry, the custom bracket draglink allows for use of what ever distance take off points you need, and it duplicates the OEM drag link basics in tie rod configuration.

Keep the OEM Kmember.vYou can thank me later

Ps, you would not even need a wonderbar anymore...lol (trivial point, thought I'd throw that in for humor)

 

Looks great. Very clever. One off? Someone going to make them? A particular rack? what's the link made from and are the tie rod ends heim joints?

 

Check Flaming Rivers website. they will custom order to your specs.

 

Boy did this start some drama over on the fabrication board post.

I guess Im not as well known over there and took some mud slinging. So much for giving them my idea. TGO''s loss again.

I gave my idea to the one member that asked politely. I;ve also asked he respect my wishes to keep it close to his cuffs and not share it. He will confirm though I do have a design and it is not bullsh*t as those on the fabrication forum think I am lieing

Another sad day for TGO when the internet high chair crowd chimes in like they know all and ruin innovative intellect around here.

 

LOL DAMN. I just went and read that whole mess. You know how to make friends on the internet man. I say that with a smile btw.

Have you considered teaming up with UMI to make this R&P set up? You could make a $hit ton of money; hell I would buy one. UMI has some great fab skills; they just need a little direction... You could provide them direction. Just throwing an idea out there to you.

 

Few questions, the mount is easy enough to fab up, but

What rack did you use?

That almost looks like a "production" pic, or did you fab everything else up as well?

 

That is not my picture, It is a picture I took off Flaming Rivers site just to give people some thought and another idea to play with. I am not giving my idea (see my next post for better explination to NoShow)

 

I know you and I converse a lot in the last few years, but let me tell you a little story dating back about a decade or more around here so you understand better as to why I act the way I act with designs.
About 10 years ago I put up a "Mumford Link" design that was about 80% rendering of what my actual idea was. I keep some things secret, as well as I mix some things up so no one has the whole picture of my idea.

With this Mumford design (which I reversed the mount location to the bracket, not the axle) Good ol Sam Strano come into here and stole my renderings and produced a "reverse Watts link with the same exact crossbar link setup as what I show in that drawings- you can check the archieves for dates. His design however witht he reverse watts does not work, nor would the reverse Mumford, yet he produced the idea I assume but the dates do not lie with my drawings sparking the idea.

Noiw jump forward a little to Steve Spohn. I GAVE him a simple liittle idea of the rear upper coilover plate for starters, as well as I posted how I used BMR Bolt-on LCARB fro the added strength of the lower shock mount holding the weight of the car. I then was on the phone many times as well as messaging and drawings with developing his front coilover package- which I asked for a prototype as payment to help test- He basically ****ed me and shut the door on me after he developed it and gave the first to his employee KAT to test since I was clear out on the west coast- Yes I got fukked for being mr trusting and assuming he would do the right thing and give me a prototype free for helping with the development.

I gaurd my ideas. I willlay ideas out there, but I never truely give my renderings anymore nor do I give all the info. I will give ideas to put people on path, but will also give false info so they pursue a slightly different road to see what others come up with- but no, I do nopt give out any more info unless I am gauranteeds something in return.

As for helping? Ask how many people around me locally that I help for free. Also ask how a few of them have turned out ungrateful either towards me OR by not passing it along to helkp others- I drop them like a bad habit and they only screw themselves for being selfish. I help those grateful and those that will also pass things along and help others. I do NOT like seing anyone make a buck off someone else, and certainly not me.

 

Just to clarifiy, I gave Steve the idea for tha plate to spread the loads around, he went with it after you mention it.

The coil over kit was yet my idea also. Back when HMS was making the aluminum strut mounts, I said to Steve, make them it of steel and put a locator in there for the upper spring mount. The adjusting sleeve was a knock off of a Afco sleeve the was made to work with a thirdgen strut and was designed by a local machinist. Same with the Torrington bearings...

And for getting fukked? I paid for all of that, after I moved on from working there. I spent a nice chunk of change there.

Oh and why I bring this up now, came across this post looking for something else.