Finally, after having my steeroids in a closet for more then a year and a half I decided to go ahead and install it. Whoever it was that said this was an 8 hour job from start to finish obviously never worked on my 81 Corvette... It hasn't been difficult in the least but the car just did't want to give up its old parts. I got the new rack in and everything hooked up the way its supposed to but at the moment the car is still on jack stands with no shocks or wheels on the front end.

The first probelm i am having is getting the return line onto the tube on the Reservior I realise its supposed to be a tight fit but there is no way I can get that hose on any further then it currently is by pushing on it... lol, is there a trick to installing this hose? I need to get it on at least an inch farther and I can't get it to move at all. I'm not sure its on far enough right now to even wrap a hose clamp around it to secure it in place.

The second problem is that when I turn the wheels all the way to the right, the bold holding the tie Rod onto the rack hits the lower A arm. Once I get tires on the car and set it on the ground I'm sure the suspension geomentry will change enough that it won't be a problem but I can easily see one good bump taking enough preasure off the front drivers side wheel to rip that bolt and my drivers side Tie Rod off the car. The only way I can see to fix this problem would be to reverse the tie rod and attach it to the back side of the plate rather then the front but it doesn't look like there is enough clearance to make that work.

I'm going to let the car sit as it is till I get some opinions on this one. I'm not at all comfortable with the clearance on that bolt and I'm afraid if I push much harder on the return line I'm going to rip the tube off the reservior... lol

I started this project about a month ago and have been working on it an hour or so at a time whenever I felt like messing with it. A few days ago though, We got notice that my section of base housing is being closed and torn down so I have until the 15th of april to get the car put together enough that I can at least roll her onto a trailer and take her to her new home where for the first time since she was new, she'll be garaged

 

I reamed out the return hose with a drill. A year later and no leaks...

With regards to the a-arm hitting to bolt, get it on the ground and make your judgments. How often are you going to be at full lock with the suspension fully extended...unless you're running the Baja 1000???

And yes, I was the dude that did it in 10 hours. Troubleshooting and all. No kidding.

 

i did mine with the engine out in ove a couple of days but i think it was about in the 8-10 hours range....

i would not reverse that tie rod end.... try loosening the rack brackets and pushing everything back or try some grinding on the a arm bracket mine took a little grinding on the lower lip like may be a 1/16 x 1/4 area.....i seem to recall them mentioning about taking out a washer as an option also....call them they will help you out..

 

If I take out the lock washer that may give me just enough clearance for the bolt to fit without grinding on anything... I can't believe how close some of the tolerances are on this setup. I can put the shocks and wheels back on tomorrow and have it good enough to at least roll it up onto a trailer so I'm out of the fire anyways. I should be able to work the bugs out of it once I get it on stands in my new Garage.

I spun the wheel from lock to lock and I'm getting about 2 and a half complete rotations of the stock steering wheel. Unfortunatly, i didn't think about testing that before I took the original system out but does that sound about right for a steeroids setup on an 81 Vette? Knowing if I'm turning it as far as it supposed to go before it hits the A arm would at least make me feel a little better about the possibility of grinding a 1/8 inch or so off the edge of the arm...

Regardless of the outcome of this thread, I think tomorrow I'm going to put the swaybar, shocks and wheel back on and sit it on the ground so i can check all the clearances. I'm not entirely sure that the drivers side tire won't hit the end of the rack at full turn. If I had stock rims and tires I know it would be close but my 17 inch rims and 40 series tires may just squeek by... I won't know for sure till i get it all back together. Like Page62 said, i don't spend much time Bajaing my Vette, I don't autocross and the roads in Southern California are generally pretty clean and level so it won't be much of a problem, but not much of a problem is still a problem...

Once I get it all put together and modified so that I'm comfortable with it, does anyone have any tips on eyeballing a front end alignment? I need to get it close enough to drive it about 30 miles to the closest place to get a 4 wheel alignment done. I'll probably just end up trailering it there too. I'm going to have to buy a trailer...

 

I *just* finished installing my kit on my '79 and I love it. I get the same amount of rotation 2.5 turns. It took me exactly five hours with a friend helping me. Get a lift, it will save you a lot of headaches. The hoses are a really tight fit and I'm going to watch the return hose for wear against the lower control arm. The most "fun" part was the steering column pinions. It would have been better if Steeroids didn't paint the rod, I had to sand it down to get it to slide in both ends. You'll also want to keep the upper pinion that connects to the steering column loose until you work out the kinks.

I tore out the old which took about an hour. Mounted all the brackets. Mounted the rack, realized it would be far easier to connect the lower half of the pinion to the rack first. Dismounted the rack and connected the pinion to the rack and the upper pinion to the steering column. Mounted the rack again (here's where it helps to have a second pair of hands) with someone holding the rack, guide the pinion rod into the upper pinion on the steering column. Tightened everything up, connected the hoses. Then dropped the car a bit to check the binding of the pinions and did some adjusting (sliding it back and forth on the column). Connected the tie rod ends using the measurements I took before I started (VERY IMPORTANT). Filled with fluid, ran it cranked the steering wheel both directions. The farthest fitting on the rack leaked a bit, but I was able to tighten it a bit and stop it. Drove it a bit to make sure there wasn't any more binding of the pinions or leaks. Now all it needs is an alignment to make sure everything is dialed in correctly.

I hope this helps you some.

-B

 

yes 2.5 turns.....when you adjust the heim joint in the middle of the steering shaft be aware that if you set it up on jack stands it moves alittle when on all 4 wheels so if something feels different...look there first...

that lock washer was what i was talking about , be sure to use lock tight....

i also had to recenter my steering wheel and did this before the alignment shop visit....i should have waited until after the alignment shop visit.
don't be nervous if the car doesn't seem right at first when you do the test drive....the alignment makes all the differnce...