Technical Speedway vega steering box

I am rebuilding my hot rod 1929 model a,Please if any of you are using a speedway vega box ,I just had mine go into a violent shake on a road test with 200 miles on it , took it back to the shop and found the bolts had backed out of the cover.I will road test it tomorrow to verify it is repaired,to much traffic tonight. But when I checked with a buddy that has the same box,I found he had to replace his speedway vega box with not many miles on it also.

 

Thanks for the heads up. I was told many moons ago to don't go cheap on two things, brakes and steering. Without either of those, you're pretty much screwed. Good Luck

 

Brakes, steering and suspenion are the most critical issues so never skimp on them

Sent from my SM-G973F using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

Please check yours.

 

When I first started doing customer ch***is I was using a foreign made Vega box made for another US company. They all seemed to last 3-4000 miles then they went out of adjustment and started leaking. After replacing a bunch of them with no help from the manufacturer I started using the Mullins/Borgenson USA box and have never to date had a problem. I learned my lesson.

 

Same problems,swapped to a 46 ford box.now I'm more traditional haha!

 

Thanks I am thinking about swapping out this box.

 

Do you have a stabilizer on your setup? I have found that the Vega boxes like a stabilizer.
Remember what they were designed for and what you are asking them to do . They had a very light weight engine and a lightweight car and now you are probably putting a heavy V-8 and a straight axle on a nose heavy car.

 

I put one under my '34, no problems at all, unless you count the pitman arm not seating fully on the bottom shaft, problem solved by a shim under the lock washer to push it fully on the taper. I'm using one under my Model A roadster too.

 

Friend had one on the road for a short period. All kinds of issues from the get go so he went through it and it was soon apparent what a poorly made piece these are. He replaced it with a rebuilt factory box. Problems over.

BTW, I believe Speedway are not a manufacturer but sell the same generic Chinese box as everyone else. Everyone else that doesn't sell the Borgeson that is

 

Same bolts came loose on mine. They are now hex head bolts with loc***e and safey wire..

 

Pieces of ****. Same issue on a few other builds I have done. I went to buying Borgeson boxes after that, not a lick of problems. The bad failures of the POS speedway box is when the big nut looses its threads and backs the worm adjustment completely off. NO STEERING.

 

I have the Speedway box on my coupe. Purchased it with a little trepidation but figured I would keep a close eye on it. This will be the 5th summer on it, adj it twice in the first couple of weeks and haven't laid a wrench to it since. Roughly 10/12 thousand miles, and corn head grease.

 

I've also replaced the cheap (foreign made) Vega box on my roadster.
Bought a nice Borgeson box from Pete & Jakes and it made a world of difference. Well worth the extra $! They are also a HAMB Alliance vendor.
https://www.peteandjakes.com/

 

I have a stabilizer on the car is a Model a weighs 2255,Aluminum sbc,t 10 Frankland QC rear

 

I tried to call speedway to discuss this,I am still on hold after 32 min.

 

Vega weighs in @ 2415 to 2531,so my car weighs less than a vega.

 

I talked to a tech support @ speedway he couldn't tell me the torque spec and claimed in 24 years he never heard of this problem. Beware.

 

As an apprentice mech. in 1957, VWs were few in CA. I worked on them as well as U.S. stock.
VWs had a habit of developing excessive play in steering. Bolts at upper sector adj. plate would back out, some dropping out completely. These were 8mm. X 1.25 thread, so were 'foreign car dealer only'.
We bought a small stock of these bolts.
Years later, (my shop, '80s) some street rods came in with Vega boxes. (!!) One had a speedo-cable type steering 'mast' out of a Pinto! It was frayed some, owner said "Still got a ways to go..."
I shipped him and his car out.
Anyway, some stripped worm nuts and other looseness confirmed the Vega boxes weren't of GM origin (or their vendors) but from some inexpensive aftermarket source.
Obviously, the cat's finally outa the bag...Age old problem, though.

 

Thank you,I to work on VW back in the 70"s missing or loose bolts were common on older vw. My vega box was brand new from Speedway and ha 200 miles on it.I checked my paperwork nothing about checking ,only it may need adjustment.Which I had been doing.

 

It makes you wonder about other things speedway sells.

 

Don’t know about their other stuff but knock-off steering boxes have been mentioned here dozens, if not hundreds of times. And for sure Speedway does not have an exclusive on ****py Chinese steering boxes.

 

Whose box do you recommend?

 

Mullins/Borgeson, they are made on the same machines that the Saginaw Div. of GM used. They bought the equipment from Saginaw, and their quality standards will be better than with an off shore box any day.​

 

I just purchased a Flaming River one from Speedway last week. Made in the U.S.A. in Ohio.

 

Can you send it back?

 

Looks like it is time to ship the box back to speedway and open your wallet and buy an American made part.
You have obviously done your homework on the specs .

 

Question.
What was the difference you noticed? Any difference in driving feel? if so what did you notice? or just better with bolts loosening and longevity?

Or anyone that has run a cheepo vega box and replaced it with the higher end US made stuff in the SAME CAR.

 

Yes I want to replace mine,who else has done it?