im looking to do something with my steering setup. currently its set up for power steering with stock linkage and stuff. im looking into the manual rack and pinion steering vs. power rack and pinion vs. no R&P.

first of all, is there a big difference between manual R&P steering compared to normal manual steering?

i like the look of no power steering pump in my engine bay, that way you can see my motor .

so should i save the money and go with manual R&P, or power R&P, or normal PS, or normal manual steering?

 

lol woops i didnt mean to post with that username.

 

I know any R&P is a huge improvement over the original steering box. I went with the TCP manual R&P setup, it was easy and bolted right up. I didn't want the hassle of power steering with the pump and lines, etc. not to mention the upkeep and maintenance. It hasn't been road tested but the steering is tight and smooth.

 

how much was it and did you need to buy any extra parts that didnt come with the kit? what about the steering column? do i need an aftermarket one to?

 

OK - I can provide some input!

If you have power steering and you do not have too much play in your steering box, IMO Iwould stick with it!

Now if you really just want to clear up the engine bay and spend some money:

1) Manual RP : be careful, as not all systems are bolt in place - I used a unisteer kit on a manual transmission and it is not meant for it! I had to modify my clutch equalizer bar and that was rather frustrating ... if you have an automatic transmission you do not have to worry about that ... I find that the accuracy of driving is great but still takes some effort to turn the wheel specially at low speed

2) Power RP: if you do not have the installation issue with the equalizer bar, I would think that would be awesome ... so if you have the money, go fot it! I think it must run around $1,500

 

I paid about $1300 for the manual, the power was about $2000. I bought a flaming river tilt steering column for around $470 and it came with everything I think. Wherever you buy it from, they should be able to tell you what exactly you need. The clutch may be an issue but not sure yet. I know there are clutch kits made for that application. I have pics posted in a link in my sig if you want to take a look.

 

I put a R&P in my 66 and it was one of the best investments in the car. The car handles very well and very tight. It is suprisingly not hard to turn either (my mom drove the car). The kit I got included the steering column which I recommend... the stock steering column at least on my 66 was a peice of junk and was part of the steering box... It was the worst part of the whole project being that it took forever to remove the whole shaft came off it was weird anyways... my kit came from flaming river and despite all the negative hype it was a peice of cake to install and works like a charm.

On a side note we did switch to a clutch cable which IMO looks alot better and cleans things up on that busy corner of the engine bay... to make way for dual master cylinders for your disk brake kit!

part # FR300-65HRPL
http://www.flamingriver.com/index.cf...rod/prd325.htm