Need steering suspension help from the Bada$$'s here

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hotairgypsy

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well i am deep into my new project and starting putting it all back together...when i bought my 73 dodge dart(made jan73) i discovered the steering was hitting the headers...you can see in the first pic that...well i discovered other issues like the motor mounts destroyed and engine wasnt even seated in the motor mounts...well since then i have replaced the motor mounts with proper ones and they are torqued to spec...i replaced the oil pan with a new one but it was shaped exacly like the one it took out....The car had generic headers so i bought a set of doug long tube headers and wrapped them before installing...i have replaced all the bushings and ball joints and am at the point of doing the tie rods, idler arm, and pitman arm...well i discovered in this journey on this car the engine had been swapped from a 318 to a 360 (1980)....well i installed the idler arm that i ordered the 73 and discovered it was pointing differently and is sloppy mounting to the frame...i went to install the pitman and it just slid on and was the wrong size....well it seems my car has a steering gearbox from a 72 ...you can see in the pic of the pitmans they 2 are also shaped dif...so i need help figuring out with i need to clear the pan...i know the centerlink when attached is flipped the wrong way for me to have clearance...so any guidance would be greatly appreciated.

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What K frame do you have?

72-down has the "bicust" motor mount that has a nut on a stud (per side) and the 73-up has a long bolt (per side) that goes through the K frame and mount parallel to the ground. They changed a lot in 73. Since the box is small selector and the engine is different you might just have 72-down steering and K-frame to match.

The parts you removed look 72-down.

Here is a good read. Post 11 send it home on the 72-down vs 73-up steering parts.

73-76 steering linkage in 69 barracuda..
 
Well, in your second to last picture, the centerlink is upside down... The "drop" in the center should be facing down. Just pivot it at the tie rod adjusters.
Another thought- your old idler and pitman arms are '72 and earlier pieces, since you're replacing them with '73 and up parts, I hope you got a '73 and newer centerlink, too- otherwise the tapers aren't going to jive with the new arms...
 
Flip the steering link so it is correct. If the taper needs to point down, then you have a '73-76 steering link. If the taper needs to point up, you have a '68-72 steering link. You have to match the pitman and idler to the year range of the center link.
20220418_192031.jpg


Another way to tell is if the center link has a "twist" at the ends where the tie rods mount. On a '73-76 center link the tie rods point the same way as the idler and pitman, like this
img_5498-jpeg.jpg

On a '67-72 steering link the idler and pitman point up while the tie rod ends point parallel to the ground, like in this picture...
attachment.jpg


The K frame end of the idler should fit regardless, unless you have a '67 K frame which it does not appear that you do. So if the idler is loose you either need to shim it like the old one, or figure out what's wrong with your idler mount.

Power or manual steering on this car?
 
these are what the motor mounts look like...mine are dif cuz i went with poly but the bolts are the same


What K frame do you have?

72-down has the "bicust" motor mount that has a nut on a stud (per side) and the 73-up has a long bolt (per side) that goes through the K frame and mount parallel to the ground. They changed a lot in 73. Since the box is small selector and the engine is different you might just have 72-down steering and K-frame to match.

The parts you removed look 72-down.

Here is a good read. Post 11 send it home on the 72-down vs 73-up steering parts.

73-76 steering linkage in 69 barracuda..

View attachment 1715910553

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these are what the motor mounts look like...mine are dif cuz i went with poly but the bolts are the same




View attachment 1715910553

Those are the '73-76 spool mounts. So the K frame is still '73.

Manual or power steering? If someone swapped out the center link for a '67-72 you'll have to match the pitman and idler to the center link. Or get a new center link.

Also, you may want to remove your address out of the picture with your spool mounts!
 
The 68-72 steering linkage works just fine, same as the 73-76. It has to all match though. You can't mix and match between those years except tie rod ends and sleeves.
 
i wish flip was that easy...i discovered the pitman from the 73 will not bolt to the gearbox...only the 72...so i dont think i can use a 72 pitman on the steering link from a 73-76 due to angles...i could be way wrong...i dont have a problem buy a dif center link



Flip the steering link so it is correct. If the taper needs to point down, then you have a '73-76 steering link. If the taper needs to point up, you have a '68-72 steering link. You have to match the pitman and idler to the year range of the center link.
View attachment 1715910550

Another way to tell is if the center link has a "twist" at the ends where the tie rods mount. On a '73-76 center link the tie rods point the same way as the idler and pitman, like this
View attachment 1715910551
On a '67-72 steering link the idler and pitman point up while the tie rod ends point parallel to the ground, like in this picture...
View attachment 1715910552

The K frame end of the idler should fit regardless, unless you have a '67 K frame which it does not appear that you do. So if the idler is loose you either need to shim it like the old one, or figure out what's wrong with your idler mount.

Power or manual steering on this car?

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Those are the '73-76 spool mounts. So the K frame is still '73.

Manual or power steering? If someone swapped out the center link for a '67-72 you'll have to match the pitman and idler to the center link. Or get a new center link.

Also, you may want to remove your address out of the picture with your spool mounts!


you all can come visit me...ill supply the beer :) car has power steering
 
i wish flip was that easy...i discovered the pitman from the 73 will not bolt to the gearbox...only the 72...so i dont think i can use a 72 pitman on the steering link from a 73-76 due to angles...i could be way wrong...i dont have a problem buy a dif steering link

you all can come visit me...ill supply the beer :) car has power steering

Ok, so you're saying that if you flip the center link you need a taper that points down, like you have a '73-76 center link like I showed above?

If you do, and you have a small sector power steering box, you can buy a pitman for a manual steering box for '73-76. The manual steering boxes kept the small sector.

That's exactly what I have on my '71 Dart, it's a small sector power steering box with a '73-76 manual steering pitman using a '73-76 center link.

Do you have a better picture of the ends of the center link you have? Just to be sure. Because in this picture it looks like you have a '67-72 center link...
20220316_144458-jpg.jpg
 
getting a pic is not a issue but i know the center link i have is NOT like the pic you posted...the holes are over 45 degrees angled away ...not flat like your pic...so i need a centerlink from a 73+ that has the flat holes...no problem there..


Ok, so you're saying that if you flip the center link you need a taper that points down, like you have a '73-76 center link like I showed above?

If you do, and you have a small sector power steering box, you can buy a pitman for a manual steering box for '73-76. The manual steering boxes kept the small sector.

That's exactly what I have on my '71 Dart, it's a small sector power steering box with a '73-76 manual steering pitman using a '73-76 center link.

Do you have a better picture of the ends of the center link you have? Just to be sure. Because in this picture it looks like you have a '67-72 center link...
View attachment 1715910566

20220419_163442.jpg
 
getting a pic is not a issue but i know the center link i have is NOT like the pic you posted...the holes are over 45 degrees angled away ...not flat like your pic...so i need a centerlink from a 73+ that has the flat holes...no problem there..

So you have a '67-72 center link then.

That's fine, you don't actually need to get a new center link. Just buy a pitman arm and idler for a '68-72 car. You can buy a '68-72 power steering pitman (which will be small sector) and the '68-72 idler arm and that will work with your center link just fine.

If you bought the '73 up stuff recently you can just return or exchange it
 
So you have a '67-72 center link then.

That's fine, you don't actually need to get a new center link. Just buy a pitman arm and idler for a '68-72 car. You can buy a '68-72 power steering pitman (which will be small sector) and the '68-72 idler arm and that will work with your center link just fine.

If you bought the '73 up stuff recently you can just return or exchange it
I think the OP wanted to go with '73 and up stuff, for the bit more clearance it offers at the headers and oil pan; so the later centerlink and manual pitman arm will get him there.
 
I think the OP wanted to go with '73 and up stuff, for the bit more clearance it offers at the headers and oil pan; so the later centerlink and manual pitman arm will get him there.

Having seen the clearance with both styles of center link it's really 6 of one and a half dozen of another. There are clearance issues with the 73+ stuff too, just in different spots. Biggest issue it looks like the OP has is the center link being flipped.

It would probably be easier to keep everything 73+ just since that's what the car is, but the center links aren't reproduced so you'd have to source a used one. And the pitman will have to be for a 73+ manual box if a '73+ center link is used.

The pitman and idler are readily available, so, that might be a quicker solution even if it meant keeping the '67-72 center link. Just throwing out options. All you have to do is make sure you match the pitman and idler to the year of the center link.
 
i am guessing previous owner used it as a spacer

It looks to me... the previous owner "may" have modified spool type mounts to fit a biscuit (67-72) K member...

Post some picture of the K member in your car if you could...
 
The motor mount bolt is the wrong one, too. Originals have a large shoulder to them.
The 73-76 K members are visually different from the earlier ones. Sway bar mounting bracket holes, the indentations for the sway bar center section, the large openings on the forward lower section of the lower shell of the K, the spool mounts themselves, etc.
 
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