Best rack & pinion for 69 Camaro

[kenhaw]

Want to upgrade to Rack & Pinion on my 69 Camaro.
Which is the best for the street?



Kenneth

[Mkelcy]

You best bet is probably a new steering box from Lee Manufacturing, DSE, ATS (if Tyler's still selling them) or similar supplier.

[68sixspeed]

There has been a lot of negative on the steeroids regarding mounting and bump steer. The Unisteer has had some good writeups and posts on here, they supply new steering arms to fix or help the bump steer, might be worth contacting them. I have the DSE steering box and it is really, really good, but still not a modern rack. (but darn close, not over-boosted)

[killer69]

i would go with the unisteer and the speed tech headers that allow a 2 joint steering shaft

[Bryce]

check out woodward steering. and build your own set up.

[kenhaw]

i would go with the unisteer and the speed tech headers that allow a 2 joint steering shaft

Does that mean I have to change my Hooker Super competition headers if I want the Unisteer Rack & Pinion?

[kenhaw]

Has anybody tried or are running the Flaming River setup. It looks pretty complete and easy to install?

[Bryce]

i am a ford guy and have done extensive research on bolt in r&p for falcons/mustangs. unisteer and flaming river are horrible. many write-ups on how they dont fit and wont clear headers. there is also a bumpsteer issue as well as loss of turning radius. look into these issues for a camaro

[killer69]

yes you are going to have to change the headers or at least modify them for the steering shaft..

[fmk123ster]

I looked into this for some time. The answer I can to is with a stock sub dont use a rack.

[BMR Tech]

Does that mean I have to change my Hooker Super competition headers if I want the Unisteer Rack & Pinion?

You will definitely have to either change headers or modify yours to run the Unisteer or Steeroids kit. Our project car (69 Camaro) has the Unisteer kit on it with SBC Hooker Supercomps and we had to re-make the front tube of the headers to make room for the steering shaft. I just cut the front tube off, built a new steering shaft, then built a new stainless front header tube around the shaft.

[NOGO]

i am a ford guy and have done extensive research on bolt in r&p for falcons/mustangs. unisteer and flaming river are horrible. many write-ups on how they dont fit and wont clear headers. there is also a bumpsteer issue as well as loss of turning radius. look into these issues for a camaro

Same experience here with Unijunk. Their early Nova kit is worthless and I tore it off soon after it was on. When I called their service department they said my bumpsteer, non-linear turning, header clearance, toe adjustment problem, and limited turning were acceptable. What a crock!

[killer69]

our test car runs the unisteer and has had MANY comments on how well it drives!! the feel is great, the u joints do need to be phased 90 deg to each other to get the smoothness.
the toe adjustment is no different than any other setup.
The bump steer is not perfect, but not noticable when driving

my .02

[BMR Tech]

our test car runs the unisteer and has had MANY comments on how well it drives!! the feel is great, the u joints do need to be phased 90 deg to each other to get the smoothness.
the toe adjustment is no different than any other setup.
The bump steer is not perfect, but not noticable when driving

my .02

Agreed, no complaints on the "feel" of the Unisteer kit. It works great, has a nice, late model feel to it, fit reasonably well and tucks up out of the way. For a bolt-in kit using the constraints of the OE subframe they did a good job. Is the bump steer perfect? No, but since it comes with new steering arms with corrected geometry, it's better than the Steeroids kit right out of the box.
Just wanted to make it clear that the steering shaft dilemna is a product of the conversion itself, not an issue with this particular kit. Anytime you alter a steering shaft location, there is bound to be header clearance issues.....

[killer69]

the BEST answer for the Steering column is to call US. We have SBC BBC and LSX headers that Stainlessworks builds for us and they will allow a 2 joint shaft which we also have put together.

[jal]

Has anyone used the Unisteer kit in a 69 Firebird with a Poncho engine?
That is what I'm currently thinking about doing this off-season.

The headers on the Pontiac are much different in how they exit the head from a Chevy.

joe

[79T/Aman]

Why use a R&P when you have available such good steering boxes these days, racks bring on many issues, header clearance and fit, bump steer and are not designed to handle the loads of older cars with hi scrub radius, new 600 series boxes offer neerly the same feel as a rack you will gain clearance and loose some weight over the stock box, no fabrication hasle, new boxes are a win win combination

[crustyz11]

It really depends on what you're gonna do with your car. My car is a cruiser with a little more handling via; hotchkis 2" drop front springs, hellwig hollow front sway bar, koni shocks, urathane bushings and a Steeroids power rack & pinion. I installed it all myself on the floor of the garage with very few issues. My 69 camaro has a traditional SB/TH400/floor shift with cheapo Dynomax coated headers and everything cleared perfectly.
I had an issue with the (incorrect) PS hoses they sent me, so i contacted them and they corrected it immediately with braided stainless hoses free of charge. The customer service is EXCELLENT!

[79T/Aman]

Not busting you crusty,I'm just thinking logic out loud, if it's just a cruiser why go through the expense and labor to install a R&P, when you can just put in a modern steering box that bolts right up at a lower cost.

[jal]

79T/Aman,
Are there new quick ratio manual steering boxes available for 1st gens?
Everything I've found seems to be power.