learning... question about rack and pinion

[74proii]

Be very careful with aftermarket like faming river. They like to make units closer to early fox bodies which are a "quick ratio" you want stock or "as stock". quick ratio are very twitchy, if you look a direction, you are already turning that way.

[fordsrule@msn.com]

Hi if your Classic Roadster is like mine 1991 era it will have two sets of mounting holes for the steering rack so you can use mustang 2 or a newer rack ,I would check and do some measurements and double check.

[Chicagowil]

Not saying your shop is completely wrong, but I do have to question what they see with your car. Do they understand it needs a Mustang II rack and not a Fox Body rack? There are two different MII racks available for hot rods. One has only one set of bolt holes, the other with three holes to be compatible for either hoice.

I also have a 91 CR1. It has all stock Mustang II front suspension and manual steering rack. The Mustang II geometry is some of the best designs at a reasonable cost ever put into a production car.

And though many folks have replaced the UCA & LCA's with aftermarket pieces, unless you are going road racing, its not really necessary. Remember the suspension was designed for a car almost 800 lbs heavier than our cars. The important part is to make sure the rubber isolators and bushings are in good shape.

Are you going to run a small block or big block? If you go the big block direction, you may want to consider power steering. Also, the aftermarket racks do come with specific dimensions for the mounting bolts. I have a Locost 7 I am building and it has a R&P from Speedway. The only thing funky about it was the tie rod end thread on the rack had a different thread than stock and when I needed different tie rod ends- it is not compatible.

Last question do you have the assembly manual with the car? I believe you an find a digital format of it on this forum. Though it is not the best, it does have a lot of the all outs for what parts you need. If you need something specific let e know and I can try and answer you.

Thom

[Roylerumble]

Originally Posted by Chicagowil

Not saying your shop is completely wrong, but I do have to question what they see with your car. Do they understand it needs a Mustang II rack and not a Fox Body rack? There are two different MII racks available for hot rods. One has only one set of bolt holes, the other with three holes to be compatible for either hoice.

I also have a 91 CR1. It has all stock Mustang II front suspension and manual steering rack. The Mustang II geometry is some of the best designs at a reasonable cost ever put into a production car.

And though many folks have replaced the UCA & LCA's with aftermarket pieces, unless you are going road racing, its not really necessary. Remember the suspension was designed for a car almost 800 lbs heavier than our cars. The important part is to make sure the rubber isolators and bushings are in good shape.

Are you going to run a small block or big block? If you go the big block direction, you may want to consider power steering. Also, the aftermarket racks do come with specific dimensions for the mounting bolts. I have a Locost 7 I am building and it has a R&P from Speedway. The only thing funky about it was the tie rod end thread on the rack had a different thread than stock and when I needed different tie rod ends- it is not compatible.

Last question do you have the assembly manual with the car? I believe you an find a digital format of it on this forum. Though it is not the best, it does have a lot of the all outs for what parts you need. If you need something specific let e know and I can try and answer you.

Thom

Thanks for the rely Thom,

Part of the issue I'm hearing, and the shop is saying, is that finding the stock OEM parts was easy in the 90's and 2000, but as most of those cars are crushed and long gone, and finding parts someone has for sale is hard, and then you have to rebuild them. I and they are also afraid of the compatibility issue you mentioned with thread pitch. It seems geometry is different from OEM vs Aftermarket mii, so combining parts many be a huge headache. The shop is building another cobra bought by a guy in my area from the same seller, and they say they aren't impressed by the welds, and want to add some stiffening and rigidity to some areas.

The plan for this build is quite mild. Close to stock 5.0 from a 91 lx 5 speed 8.8 donor car I have. I'm gonna have to try to make the pedal box from it work, or spend more cash on another option from tilton or willwood. I don't want this project to nickle and dime me, but I dont want to cut crucial corners or skip upgrades I'll regret in the future, like upgrading to a modern 4 wheel disc brake system, or worse, something that requires major fabrication that would have been easier to do now, like changing the upper strut mounts to accommodate a modern coil over available from QA1 or similar.

I need to address a few missing parts issues, like the absence of upper control arms, spindles, heater box, pedal box, side pipes, roll bar (found the drawing on here). Again, I don't have super deep pockets, this is a father son project, but I don't wan't to scab it together either.

I found the manual! read it through once. Going to print it off tonight and go through it again.

[Chicagowil]

All good ideas. If you pick aftermarket parts that use the stock specs, you should not need any additional items.

For a manual rack-
https://www.speedwaymotors.com/Musta...it,379653.html

Also look at CJ Pony Parts, I have had great lock with them on my 67 Mustang.

Thom