noisydart
Member
Have been resurrecting this car. The steering is extremely tight. What can happen to a steering gear box to make it binding? If I need to replace, what is the difference between 16:1 and 24:1 with ease of steering ?
67 Barracuda Manual Steering Question
- Thread starter noisydart
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Standard manual is 24:1 (I think it may be 24.5:1, actually). I don't think 16:1 was available as an option in 67, but they are interchangeable. It would be massively harder to turn at a standstill with any kind of fat or sticky tire, though I am sure it would be fine at speed. There are also 20:1 manual boxes available, which would be a compromise. I have standard manual steering on my 67 Barracuda. It is a handful trying to get out of a parallel parking spot, and it is too slow to keep up with the road in the real twisty bits, but it is basically fine overall, so I would agree that yours needs some attention.
If it's too tight, it's likely that the grease has congealed inside your box. Cleaning it out and repacking it may be all that is needed. I do not know how much trouble that is — I''ve never tried it.
When they are worn out they get looser, not tight, so adjusting it is probably not the answer.
If it's too tight, it's likely that the grease has congealed inside your box. Cleaning it out and repacking it may be all that is needed. I do not know how much trouble that is — I''ve never tried it.
When they are worn out they get looser, not tight, so adjusting it is probably not the answer.
noisydart
Member
How much disassembly do you think is required to re-grease it, and what sort of grease would be recommended ?
How are you checking the steering to determine it’s too tight?
If the steering is fully assembled, the stiff feeling could be coming from the idler, pitman, or any of the tie rod ends too.
If the steering is fully assembled, the stiff feeling could be coming from the idler, pitman, or any of the tie rod ends too.
John Deere Corn Head grease.
How many turns lock to lock?
remytherat
Well-Known Member
Only messing up the adjustment would make it bind. They get looser over time. As others have said, could be congealed grease or another component in the system.
I’m a big fan of 16:1. It’s honestly pretty easy in my car with 235s. I wouldn’t go any higher if I could help it.
I’m a big fan of 16:1. It’s honestly pretty easy in my car with 235s. I wouldn’t go any higher if I could help it.
slantsixdan
=..=
It could be dry (no lube in it), or it could have seized bearings in it. Or either/both of the two adjustments could be set too tight. The adjustments have to be done correctly, and in the correct order as described here. Could also be part of the steering linkage binding up.
24:1 is the stock ratio. It's easy, but too damn slow; about 76.7 turns lock-to-lock (okeh, 5-3/4 turns. Still too much).
16:1 is the fast ratio available as an option from '65-'68. Just 3-1/2 turns lock-to-lock, but too damn stiff/difficult at slow speeds. Fine for certain kinds of competition driving, but out on regular roads it makes parking the car a pain in the nuts even with small, skinny tires and a lightweight aluminum 225 engine—a worse pain in the nuts (arms/shoulders) with bigger tires and a heavier engine. Efficiently saps all the fun out of driving the car.
20:1 is perfect. 4-1/2 turns lock-to-lock, not too hard to steer; a real joy to drive. They all should have come with this ratio, as the '60-'61 A-bodies did. 20:1 was not offered as original equipment when the '62-up cars were built, but available last I checked as an aftermarket worm assembly for the original Chrysler steering box, or as a complete rebuilt box from the specialists (Steer & Gear and/or Firm Feel).
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I agree with most of this, except for some of the admittedly entertaining comments on the 16:1 box.
I’ve been running a 16:1 manual box on my Duster for over a decade. A good part of that has been with 275/35/18’s up front and +6.5° of caster.
And while my car is definitely set up for AutoX, all the driving I do with it is on the street as I pretty much use it as a daily most of the year. I drive a 120 mile round trip commute, it makes most of my Costco trips, etc. So it sees plenty of parking lots.
I’ve never had an issue with the steering effort on “regular roads”. It is definitely heavy at speeds under 15mph or so, but even parking lots aren’t terrible with a little planning.
It’s definitely not for everybody, but it certainly doesn’t “sap all the fun out of driving the car”. Its fast response is part of the fun for me!
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