I posted this a few weeks ago under the v6 forum, but got no response so i thought i'd try again here -

I see folks posting about installing a wonderbar to improve the handling in v6 cars, but I'm curious about the the issue of the frame cracking around the steering box with the v6 engine cars. Does that happen with the v6 the same as it does with the v8? Or is that not an issue with the v6 since it is lighter? I'm looking to build a daily driver and am wondering how much difference it would be on the frame between a 100K+ miles v6 and v8?

thanks!

 

It's the same car whether V-6 or V-8. The weight difference is not a lot.
Wider tires and quicker steering ratios (Trans Am/Z-28) put more stress on that area of the frame. In any case. The steering brace is a good idea for any model, and it's not expensive, so why not?...

 

My V6 has over 210K Miles on the odometor, and I don't have any cracking. However, I might be lucky, as I am a sample size of 1. I will be adding a Wonderbar to the car when I go to reassemble, as IMO, the Wonderbar and SFC's should be the first two upgrades made to any Thirdgen, even daily drivers. It's relatively inexpensive, and the front sway bar bushings probably need changed anyway on a 100K mile car.

 

Hi T.L. Thanks a lot for the feedback. I was just curious if it might be a benefit of a v6 over a v8 for someone who didn't care about CI's. no debate on the benefit of the steering brace.

 

Hi Whitebird75, thanks for the data point. I suspect that T.L. is correct - it's primarily due to wider tires and tighter turning ratios, but out of curiosity - anyone with a v6 and without the steering brace - have you had the cracking frame around the steering box?

 

my current project '85 has always had 235/14 & weak *** 305 and had the cracking & repair. This engine has almost no power and the tires are very skinny... not all that different from a V6... Consider it more an issue with the architecture than a specific option package/setup.

 

In

In Australia when they used to do conversions from left to right they would always build a box around the frame where the box is to be located. They also added crush rods to the box and installed the right hand steering box over that. This added strength to the location.