Finally going to address the awful play in my steering box. I was hoping to get info from people that have had theirs rebuilt or replaced with new etc. I have a 65 Fastback with manual steering; all other suspension (except coil springs) have been replaced. If you had it rebuilt, who did you use? I see good things said about Chockostang; anybody else? I would consider new but the Flaming River unit seems to get mixed reviews. Once you had it replaced, how did you like it? Thanks.


Chris

 

I heard that rebuilt boxes can be very good...I had replaced my PS system with the flaming river MS gear box. It have no play when new and steering effort was not unreasonable...I drove it daily for many years.

I recently replaced it with a TCP power rack...If you've got about 3,500 to spend that is a system worth every penny.

-Gun

 

i would not redo the stock system. Either convert to rack and pinion or a borgenson unit

 

I currently having a FR manual box, been fine for a while. You just have to make sure to pack the new boxes with grease like a mother****er, since they usually just grease the parts when they're assembled...and the box is supposed to be completely full of grease. That way they last a long time. And it wouldn't hurt to make sure the sector shaft lock nut for the adjuster is tight if you're going to get vibration.

If you want power, Borgeson is a decent choice, or an ABS box, which is what Mike Maier recommends (he says it has tighter play than the Borgeson units, unless his opinion has changed recently). I'd recommend a KRC pump either way, and they have fantastic pulley assemblies.

R&P is a mixed bag for a lot of reasons, the biggest one being it can screw up the steering geometry if not done right. The TCP rack seems to be one of the few that doesn't do that. Personally, I'd rather keep my Cobra Automotive crossmember than convert to a rack (which is a major handling benefit).

It all really depends on what you want in terms of handling, steering, maintenance and reliability.

 

I had Chockostang rebuild my steering box and the turn around for the job was very short. I'm in the middle of doing a rebuild on the whole car though and other than moving the car around in the garage I haven't done any steering on the new box. My mustang had been sitting in a field for 20 years and didn't have any known issues with the box. I just wanted them to go through it and make sure it was in good shape and the steering wouldn't be sloppy.

 

I installed the manual Flaming River R&P setup with the tilt column and comparing that with my stock steering box is like comparing the stone wheel to the radial tire and is light years better. I never did any autocross or racing with it so I can only tell you that on the street, it was great!