Magnum Exhaust Manifolds in an A Body

...so this is an old thread but man is it a good one - very valuable and even in 2023 still very relevant intel on the pros and cons of running small block magnum exhaust manifolds in an A-body. I am pondering this very thing for my build now, and wanted to respond with a quick recap to make sure I got it all right, and to ask if there have been any fresh solutions to the three big issues.

I'm building a 71 Demon (based on a 73 Duster chassis). It will have a nice warm Magnum 318 and an 833od 4-speed - OE heads. It will have power steering, and hydroboost brakes.

As I understand from the wealth of info in this thread, when trying to bolt up a drivers side magnum exhaust manifold to a magnum or LA small block, there are three major interference issues:

1) power steering gearbox
2) the steering column
3) the z-bar

Seems running manual steering resolves the gearbox interference problem, but some grinding is still necessary for the column.

Seems using a standard set of 340 manifolds will resolve all the issues, tho there will be a large disparity between the 340 and magnum exhaust port sizes.

Q1 - Would running 340 manifolds on a magnum head induce legit high-rpm flow problems...or is that not a thing?

Q2 - Is there a proven rack and pinion steering conversion for the A-body's? I looked around and haven't yet found something that is a bolt-in and proven solution. I'm not apposed to going with an aftermarket K-frame and rack n pinion steering if that resolves the steering problems, but I don't want to do a full aftermarket front suspension setup in order to get r&p steering.

Q3 - Will using a hydraulic clutch resolve the 4-speed linkage problem?

...or just pony up the $ for 340 manifolds and fugetaboutit...

Thanks,
- Sam