WCF Hydraulic PS Question (Page 3/5)
Spoon DEC 12, 08:57 PM
Slabsufer, I didn't see a way to post pics from private message so here goes.

Below pic shows gear angle of 93-97 F-Rack (virtually a bulls eye) for the steering column.



Below pic is my 2000 F-Rack - notice wide angle.



Image of 2000 F-Rack


Obvious the 93-97 should of been my choice but I thought newer would serve better. I did not have to cut into the frame but it is real close and there was no binding at the joint when turning. Disregard the cooler location, that was a temporary location. Also the F rack turning radius is a bit wider. The limiting factor is in the rack and not at the steering knuckles like the factory rack uses.

"F" racks in 6 cyl's have standard ratio steering and v8's are faster and I believe the Ram-Air's have the quick ratio. I have the quick and it was definitely noticeable and made up for some of the turning radius issue. If I had to do the install over again I'd put away the butcher knives and go for the 93-97 racks. I did my conversion around 2012 and used the 2000 Toyota MR2 hydro-electric pump.

Spoon

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"Kilgore Trout once wrote a short story which was a dialogue between two pieces of yeast. They were discussing the possible purposes of life as they ate sugar and suffocated in their own excrement. Because of their limited intelligence, they never came close to guessing that they were making champagne." - Kurt Vonnegut

Slabsurfer DEC 13, 03:43 PM
Thanks for those pictures, Spoon!

The top pic and bottom pic really do a good job of showing the difference.

It really sounds like I simply bought a rack from the wrong model year. I'm ready to be past this issue and move on to other projects for the car. So, I'll likely find a rack from a '96 or '97 F-body.

I am curious though, you said that you DID use the other rack and didn't have to cut the frame. Is my '87 that much different? Just curious.

Thanks again!!
Spoon DEC 13, 07:03 PM
Slabsufer, I don't believe the tolerance could of been off that much by the factory. On the other hand maybe the kit was off.


This is the kit like I received.


This pic shows rack alignment pin welded to plate. If this pin position is off, your rack will not position correctly.


Did you receive and use the 2 threaded adapters for the rack? I know its not related to your problem but they must be used.

Spoon

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"Kilgore Trout once wrote a short story which was a dialogue between two pieces of yeast. They were discussing the possible purposes of life as they ate sugar and suffocated in their own excrement. Because of their limited intelligence, they never came close to guessing that they were making champagne." - Kurt Vonnegut

Slabsurfer DEC 13, 09:01 PM
Thanks, Spoon. I was already thinking about what I would need to transfer over to the older year model rack. Those adapters came to mind.

By the way, I'm a little disappointed in the community that no one has chimmed in with a comment about what a nice rack you have! Hahahaha

As far as the kit and alignment, EVERYTHING just fell into place: the holes lined up, the clamps were placed right and that alignment pin seemed just right, as well. The glaring problem I had was how far the output pointed away from where it needed to go.

https://i.imgur.com/QM0Kpzn.jpg
Rickady88GT DEC 13, 10:57 PM

quote
Originally posted by Slabsurfer:

Thanks for those pictures, Spoon!

The top pic and bottom pic really do a good job of showing the difference.

It really sounds like I simply bought a rack from the wrong model year. I'm ready to be past this issue and move on to other projects for the car. So, I'll likely find a rack from a '96 or '97 F-body.

I am curious though, you said that you DID use the other rack and didn't have to cut the frame. Is my '87 that much different? Just curious.

Thanks again!!



That rack looks like the original 88 power rack.
OldGuyinaGT DEC 14, 12:31 AM
I've been following this topic in anticipation of adding power steering to my '88 GT. I'm still gathering information and have yet to fit anything, but here is a picture of an actual '88 Fiero power steering rack:



Angle of the input shaft to the rack is close to 90 degrees.
Spoon DEC 14, 08:54 AM
Okay guys, I'm heading to the shop this morning to check the positioning of my ps rack. My van is on the lift waiting for transmission parts so I'm going to have to use a floor jack and mirrors to look up under the Fiero at that positioning. I think I may have a solution for more clearance.

Spoon

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"Kilgore Trout once wrote a short story which was a dialogue between two pieces of yeast. They were discussing the possible purposes of life as they ate sugar and suffocated in their own excrement. Because of their limited intelligence, they never came close to guessing that they were making champagne." - Kurt Vonnegut

Spoon DEC 14, 06:36 PM
Okay Slabsurfer I'm back. You may want to kick yourself after reading this post. As soon as I crawled under my Fiero and looked at the rack I remembered what I did and why. Here's the pic I took. Notice that notch I dremmeled into the rib on my rack.



That allowed me to rotate the rack on the mounting plate which in turn repositioned the steering gear input shaft enough to clear the frame. Notice it didn't take much movement. Other words the rib was in the way. The rack may not be a perfect core now but it may pass if I need to replace it. For obvious reasons I'm not suggesting that anyone cut into their power steering rack.

Your thoughts,

Spoon


------------------
"Kilgore Trout once wrote a short story which was a dialogue between two pieces of yeast. They were discussing the possible purposes of life as they ate sugar and suffocated in their own excrement. Because of their limited intelligence, they never came close to guessing that they were making champagne." - Kurt Vonnegut

Slabsurfer DEC 14, 10:48 PM
Interesting.

It looks like you shifted the rack over towards the passenger side by about a quarter inch?

That, and rotated the assembly forward a bit?

I'll have to see what that looks like in my hands.
Rickady88GT DEC 14, 11:20 PM

quote
Originally posted by OldGuyinaGT:

I've been following this topic in anticipation of adding power steering to my '88 GT. I'm still gathering information and have yet to fit anything, but here is a picture of an actual '88 Fiero power steering rack:



Angle of the input shaft to the rack is close to 90 degrees.




quote


Below pic shows gear angle of 93-97 F-Rack (virtually a bulls eye) for the steering column.




What is the steering ratio of this rack?