E Body manual box in an A body?
- Thread starter BrianT
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yeah it'll bolt in. i don't know what the rest of your setup is, but you *might* have to change the pitman arm.
most manual boxes are small sector* and power steering pre 73 is small, so you should be good to goat if you're all stock and nothing's been changed
*c barges and vans got the big shaft
most manual boxes are small sector* and power steering pre 73 is small, so you should be good to goat if you're all stock and nothing's been changed
*c barges and vans got the big shaft
I was figuring on replacing the pitman even though nothing appears to be wrong with the one I have. It has 73+ brakes on the front. I want to add a front sway bar also.
good call on throwing a fresh one at it.
a sway bar is always a great addition to any car.
keep in mind the location of the calipers and what you have for a k-member & lower arms when deciding on a sway bar. everybody down there has to play nice together and there can be some compatibility issues with mix-n-match parts
Professor Fate
Push the button, Max...
When you say it has '73+ brakes, does it also have '73+ lower control arms? If so, a '72 and down sway bar will not fit- the spacing of the tabs is too wide on the '73+ arms; likewise a '73+ sway bar will not fit on a '72 and down K frame...
Did you rear mount the calipers? Front mounted calipers generally do not clear the '72 and earlier sway bar.
JYH is absolutely correct, you have to be careful in your part selection to get it all to work correctly together.
If your steering box does turn out to be a large sector box, I believe you'll need to use a later pitman (and idler) arm, which would require use of a '73 and up center link. Otherwise it should be a bolt-in.
Did you rear mount the calipers? Front mounted calipers generally do not clear the '72 and earlier sway bar.
JYH is absolutely correct, you have to be careful in your part selection to get it all to work correctly together.
If your steering box does turn out to be a large sector box, I believe you'll need to use a later pitman (and idler) arm, which would require use of a '73 and up center link. Otherwise it should be a bolt-in.
I didn't build the car so I'm not sure what I have. '73+ brakes are mounted forward and here's a couple pics of the lower control arm. Maybe someone can ID them as I don't know. I appreciate any help getting the right sway bar. Once I can ID what I have I will reach out to Hellwig and see what bar they recommend. Thanks!
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According to the PST website, the steering boxes are the same for A and E bodies.
Manual Steering Box 24:1 (With PS to MS Adapter)
Manual Steering Box 24:1 (With PS to MS Adapter)
you've got 67~72 LCA's and the 67~72 center link which leads me to believe that you've got a 68~72 K (which it appears to be, but double check the motor mounts to verify).
so... bad news bears, you're going to have to swap your spindles and run your calipers on the rear to clear a sway bar. there is also a possibility that the lower ball joint bolts contact the outer edge of the factory sway bar tab, naturally at or near full lock, but that would be something that's more of an annoyance and cuts your turning radius down than critical.
hellwig makes a bar for the 67~72 factory tabbed LCAs.
so... bad news bears, you're going to have to swap your spindles and run your calipers on the rear to clear a sway bar. there is also a possibility that the lower ball joint bolts contact the outer edge of the factory sway bar tab, naturally at or near full lock, but that would be something that's more of an annoyance and cuts your turning radius down than critical.
hellwig makes a bar for the 67~72 factory tabbed LCAs.
cudamark
Well-Known Member
That would depend on the years involved. '72 and older A,B, and E bodies use the small sector shaft spline for both manual and power steering gears. C bodies and B vans with manual steering use the large one, like the '73-up P/S gears.
I'll have to contact PST I guess? Their website lists the same MSBOX11030 as fitting a 1970 Duster and a 1973 Challenger.
the box fits basically everything except c-barges and 80's vans.
it's the sector shaft-- where the pitman goes that is different between pre 73 and post 73 cars-- for power steering.
if your power steering box is stock, and correct and unchanged from 70 it *should* be small sector, which means you can reuse your pitman. if your box is from 73+ it *should* be large sector, which means you'll need a new sector shaft.
clear as a cloudy day, right?
I have 67-72 lower control arms and K member. When I swap engines this winter (hopefully) I plan on removing the P/S. We'll have a better look at it then. The guy only wanted $50 for a rebuilt PST box WITH the adapter. I figured I couldn't go wrong, even if I had to sell it?
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