Hello friends!
Could someone please explain exactly what “performance suspension” means in terms I can understand?
The Old Woman is an 85 Firebird base V6 and she has the badge on the dash, and the RPO code is F41.
It seems that, among other things, she needs a new steering box and I want to make sure she’s getting the correct one. I understand there might have been “good, better, and best” versions?

 

Generally, stiffer springs, better shocks, and larger sway bars; sometimes poly sway bar end links. Details vary from year to year and model to model.

F41 was kinda the "first" upgrade from the boulevard-cruiser / poseur / teenage-daughter models. In 85 IIRC it involved springs & shocks, not sure about sway bars. No change to the end links, they were the same squishy rubber as the base models.

Steering ratio was either 14.x:1 or 12.7:1. They had a different # of turns lock-to-lock. Get that count and we can tell you which one it is. Also there's a 2-letter code on top of it, sometimes that helps.

 

Other thing is, and I don't know why, but the earlier F bodies with the V6, the frame used to crack where the steering box mounted...in my limited work (two of them) for friends I reinforced.

Look it over well.

 

Ah! Ok so I could simply turn the wheel to verify the ratio then? Would I still need the numbers off the box, if that would say something additional?
If she needs other components (struts, springs) how would I replace those with new ones that most closely match the F41 system?

 

Yes! Her engine is out right now, so I’ll have that closely inspected. I’ve already bought the TDS Wonderbar to keep that from being a future issue!

 

True dat: but it's not ONLY the earlier models, and not ONLY the 6-cyl cars. The "frame" is the same no matter what engine the car got, and AFAIK, throughout the entire production run of these cars. Very good advice regardless, to check that spot out. Look at the area around where the steering gear bolts to the "frame".

Yes the lock-to-lock turns will tell you which ratio box you have, although not "directly". The lower ratio box, the 14.x version, turns the wheels LESS for any given steering input; but the steering stops were the same for all ratios. So the farther you have to turn the wheel, the higher that number (the lower the ratio) is. Frankly, if I was buying a new or rebuilt gearbox, the one that was in it, can go straight to Hell. I'm putting in the GOOD one. I'm not a teenage girl. Your opinion may vary.

 

Unfortunately, I’m not the teenage girl I was when I bought The Old Woman! While her v6 could sometimes seem comical, her suspension was always 100% serious! If the road was dry, she’d go anywhere I aimed her, without adjustments, no questions asked. My nearly new Mustang, on its sportiest setting, is nowhere near Old’s feel.
I hope I can get her back into those healthy days!
OH!... what do you mean, a GOOD steering box? Is there a such thing?! Reviews of everything I’ve found seems to be all over the place

 

It doesn't really matter what was, or what is. People have been turning in the base steering box as a core for a rebuilt "better" steering box for so long, that if you go to a parts store and ask for the "better" box there's a %50 chance they'll give you the base box anyway. The only way to be reasonably sure the same spec box goes back in the car, is to get the original box rebuilt. Or try to get the better box and refuse delivery if it's wrong, keep trying until you get the better box... Sounds fun, right?

Shocks and struts are similar. GM had a variety of part numbers, each for specific applications. The modern aftermarket sells one shock, and one strut that fits all 82-92 Camaros/Firebirds. You can get different brands and different quality grades, but they are universal parts that don't care if the car has a 4cyl, V6, V8, or if it's a base model coupe or a Z28 or WS6 Firebird.