[56GMC]

Looking to tighten up the steering without sacrificing the turning radius of my ‘62 Catalina. Have recently gone through the entire front end & replaced all of the control arm bushings. Ball joints, tie rod ends, idler arm & wheel bearings are all in very good shape if not new. Running 215x70 BFG's on 15x7" wheels along with Bilsteins all around. Have an aftermarket 1 1/8" front sway bar & a 1" rear bar. Car handles great but steering is just too vague. See from the archives that a '93-97 JGC & late 60's A & F body GM boxes will work well for this application but wondered about the box being sold by OPGI, p/n C200005. Like to have a smooth bolt-in without dealing with fluid line fittings or rag joint problems. Appreciate feedback on this or appropriate info, ie P/N’s or specifics, on new or recon boxes. Have talked with Lares, Borgeson, PowerSteering.com, and Detroit Speed & Engineering about options but nothing sounded as good as the OPGI deal.

[mgarblik]

I am sorry I can't answer your question but is sounds like you have made some great improvements so far. I would like to do similar. Could you possibly provide part #'s for your front and rear shocks, and what cars the sway bars were sourced from. That would be great. Thank you.

[tom s]

Mike,I gotmy 62 rear sway bar form RARE!Tom

[webfoot]

I put a jeep GC box in my 62, but have yet to actually drive it. it was the GM A-body crowd who was an early pioneer of this swap so one of their fast ratio boxes would fit, and likely has the correct fittings already installed.

68 gto has an AGR box in it which feels nice which should also bolt in. (If that’s still a going concern is beyond me)

[AZ64GP]

I have a variable ratio steering box out of a '70 GTO/GS/SS/442 in my '64 Grand Prix. The car is still partially complete as I'm restoring it, but it was a direct bolt-in from what I can tell so far. Cost was cheap too...I just picked it up from my local NAPA. I think my steering will go from 22:1 to about 12:1.

[56GMC]

Front sway bar was from Ram Air Restoration but was most likely sourced from Addco. Rear bar was from UMI Performance, P/N 4034. Addco also makes a bar for this application: P/N 690. Summit & Jegs carry both brands. Shocks were from PST, BIL7051261. Best to get when they run a sale.

[carcrazy]

I have the Jeep GC box in my 67 GTO and like it. Never thought about putting one in my 62 GP....hmmm.

[389]

Call Lee and order one of their 800 Series boxes 14:1 ratio with a torsion bar of 25 or 30 pounds. 25 if you're not too strong. The 62 has rear steer linkage and its always under compression. You need a box with a heavy torsion bar rating. I have a 30 on my 69 el Camino and that's front steer. Your 62 should have solid upper control arm bushings these hardly ever wear out. You really don't want a 12.9 : 1 box on that car because of the rear steer linkage. The Jeep box as well as a A body box will NOT work. You will lose some of your turning radius. You need to have Lee build you a box from a brand new 800 series box. They will look at your cars dimensions and blueprint it for your car. I paid $650 for mine. I dont see why anybody would cheap out on one of the most important parts of a car. It has so much to do with the enjoyment of driving the car too.

PS if the steering wheel is shot,use the 13" Grant with the three holes. This 13" steering wheel works perfect with the 14:1 ratio.

[carcrazy]

Originally Posted by 389

Call Lee and order one of their 800 Series boxes 14:1 ratio with a torsion bar of 25 or 30 pounds. 25 if you're not too strong. The 62 has rear steer linkage and its always under compression. You need a box with a heavy torsion bar rating. I have a 30 on my 69 el Camino and that's front steer. Your 62 should have solid upper control arm bushings these hardly ever wear out. You really don't want a 12.9 : 1 box on that car because of the rear steer linkage. The Jeep box as well as a A body box will NOT work. You will lose some of your turning radius. You need to have Lee build you a box from a brand new 800 series box. They will look at your cars dimensions and blueprint it for your car. I paid $650 for mine. I dont see why anybody would cheap out on one of the most important parts of a car. It has so much to do with the enjoyment of driving the car too.

PS if the steering wheel is shot,use the 13" Grant with the three holes. This 13" steering wheel works perfect with the 14:1 ratio.

I think this is the best solution for anyone that wants better steering performance.

[webfoot]

I’m going to use it anyway, if it’s a good enough turning radius for a chevelle it’s good enough for me. I’m not going to lose sleep that it doesn’t have the factory radius when I don’t know what that is anyway. Not like the steering box knows the car in either case is front or rear steer.
Not the only steering/suspension part I have isn’t “supposed” to work!

[56GMC]

Had a nice chat with Lee Power Steering this morning. 800 series box with 14:1 ratio, 13/16" shaft, new rag joint, core charge, tax & shipping comes out around $950. Thanks for the info "389"!

[mgarblik]

Originally Posted by 56GMC

Front sway bar was from Ram Air Restoration but was most likely sourced from Addco. Rear bar was from UMI Performance, P/N 4034. Addco also makes a bar for this application: P/N 690. Summit & Jegs carry both brands. Shocks were from PST, BIL7051261. Best to get when they run a sale.

Appreciate all that info. Very helpful.