Need some help finding a steering rack

[Motorcitydak]

As some of you may know, im building an AWD 68 Charger. I am currently trying to find a steering rack to fit it. After calling the guys at Woodward, they pretty much said they have nothing for me and suggested that i look into racks from a stock pickup truck or something similar. Does anyone know of a website or possibly somewhere i can get the specs of lots of different racks? Im looking for something that has a front steer rack, TRE width of 33 inches and travel of 7.5-8

[Bryce]

I sent you an email. I think you can buy a 31.5" rack in the HL series with up to 8" stroke

[Motorcitydak]

Yeah, I talked to them about that one too. They did not want anything to do with my project. They said that the front wheels being driven will cause too much load on it. They spec that rack out for drift cars only which i guess makes sense since the ends will be unsupported for a little bit longer. The regular rack is I think 6 or so inches of travel. I guess they feel that me having 20-40% of power going to the front wheels will cause way more stress than 14 inch brake rotors. I dunno but they do not want to help

[mikedc]

Have you looked at the steering setups on any car models that were built with and w/o powered from wheels?

With trucks they probably have enough overkill in all the setups that it doesn't tell you much. But the AWD car lines might prove useful. The only car model like that coming to mind is the modern Mopar LX platform with either RWD or AWD. Maybe try to find out if the steering rack is beefier on the AWD setup?

I don't see why you would need a beefier steering rack with powered wheels. It strikes me as similar to the demands on control arms, etc - the forces of whacking a curb or a pothole would surely trump anything you could do to it with the drivetrain or brakes.
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Have you figured out what you're gonna do for a transfer case/center diff on this project?

[Motorcitydak]

Yeah, I completely agree with you. I think that braking will put the most stress on the rack with my 14 inch rotors and 6 piston clampers. Way more than power to the front wheels. Like you said, turning and hitting bumps will be way worse. As much as I respect what Woodward said, I have to say that I do not believe them. Im more than likely going to order a rack from them anyways and just not talk tech with them while I order it. They do have a really good product with good tech and support behind it.

I did look into some racks from AWD cars. So far it seems like they are all rear steer (rack behind the tires). I need front steer for my application. I looked into a corvette rack but again cannot find any specs

I am worried that if I did have a truck rack or something similar, I would have horrible road feel and way too over powered. I want semi-heavy steering and i just do not think that a truck rack is the way to go for me. I contacted Howe to see what they have to say but if nothing, I will order a Woodward unit by the end of the week

[mikedc]

I would probably find a rack with the right strength & dimensions first, and then focus on getting the assist level where you want it.

The OEMs are making the power assist adjustable more and more these days. It allows them to use electronics & back off the amount of assist as the vehicle speed increases, which helps maintain the steering feel at varying speeds. I don't know how all the setups work, but I know sometimes they are electronically choking off the hydraulic fluid pressure in the power assist. A manually adjustable system seems do-able for the amateur at least in theory.

[ATOMonkey]

The amount of caster you put into the suspension will have a lot to do with how heavy the suspension feels. There is also a bypass valve in the power steering pump that you can adjust for lower pressure. Some pumps will be more adjustable than others and may require extensive "surgery." However, they all have the bypass circuit.