I'm working on a 1957 Pontiac, and read an old article about a Saginaw 605 from a late seventies GM car working good in a '55. The pitman arm dropped right in. I have a steering box from a 1987 Firebird which I was going to use, but the splines on this box are a bit bigger than those on the '57. Anybody know where to get info on these steering boxes, and what box I could find those slightly smaller output shaft splines on. Thanks for any help!
is that 87 steering box the 800 series with the bolt on top cover? or is it a 605 with the round top cover held in by a snap ring? afaik the 605 has the same splines as most manual GM boxes, but the 800s are bigger. also the insides of the 605 scare me, I'd rather run the original manual steering and build up my biceps
Yes, it has the bolt on cover, guess that's the problem then, if the 800 has bigger splines... What's so bad about the insides of a 605?
Oh, there just isn't much there. No recirculating ball thingy....just a threaded worm and a nut. This is the big gearbox you have This is the 605 But I guess they work, lots of chevy guys use them.
I used the 605 box in my old 59 El Camino. ONly hiccup in the install was I need to use a manual drag link, and my car was an orig P/S car with the separate hydraulic ram type power assist. 605 box worked good and did not have any problems. Although I sold the car after about 1 year of driving, it went to Sweden when I sold it.
Seems a 605 could solve my problem then. In which cars did they come? Could I find one in a Cutlass/Chevelle 1978 up? I live in Finland and it's hard to find affordable junk sometimes...
Stole this from another site, Jim Campbell seems to know his stuff. Im trying to figure this out also for 1963 impala direct bolt on. Im not so worried about the hoses, most cars need new ones anyway. My main concern is using the Impala Pitman and faster steering ratio. Ill probably pull a late model powersteering pump to be sure I have adequate line pressure. GM Box Interchange - Provided by Jim 'Canuck' Campbell A list of direct bolt-on boxes and some that need modifications. (Note this list refers to Saginaw 605 Power boxes but would probably apply to manual as well.) Interchange #706 Buick Special 64-70 Camaro 67-74 Chevelle 64-70 Chevy 65-70 Firebird 67-73 Grand Prix 69-70 Monte Carlo 70 Monza 75-79, 8cyl Monza 78-80,6cyl Nova 68-70 Olds 64-70 F-85 64-70 Pontiac 64-70 Skyhawk 75-80 Starfire 75 Starfire 76-80, 6 cyl Starfire 77-79, 8cyl Sunbird 76-80 Tempest 64-70 Fast Ratio Box: 20/1 # 7806396 Cast No. 5679142 Monza/Vega Box: 16/1 # 7819935 On some 64-70 the drag link hole on the pitman arm may need to be enlarged. The following boxes will fit but may need to have the pitman arm and/or the rag joint changed or and extra bolt hole boss taked off the steering box. Make sure you compare the input shaft length or the length from the bolt holes to the end of the input shaft to your power box. Interchange #999 Apollo 73-75 Omega 73-79 Chevelle 71-77 Skylark 75-79 Monte Carlo 71 Regal 73-74 F-85 71-72 Nova 71-79 Lemans 72-77 Cutlass 76 Ventura 71-77 Phoenix 77-79 Century 73-74 Tempest 71 GMC Sprint 71-77 Cutlass 73 Interchange #989 AMC Ambassador 70-2 AMC 77-80 AMC Spirit 79-83 AMC Hornet 70-77 AMC Concord 78-83 AMC Matador 71-76 AMC Gremlin 70-78 Interchange #1034 Jeepster 72 Jeep 73-83 Jeep CJ & DJ 72 Jeep CJ 84-86 List was derived from Hollander Interchange Manual Fast ratio Power Steering- Saginaw 605 Use box from 1977-81 Camaro/Firebird with disc brakes (or any 800 series box used in Novas, full size GM, etc), gives approx 3 turns lock to lock, versus original power steering 4.5 turns. All later model boxes require the 1964 - 72 Chevelle pitman PS arm (required change) when used on earlier Chevelles. Steering shaft comes in two diameters, get the appropriate flex coupling lower half in the same style as original to match the boxes shaft. 1982 or 86 to 92 Comaro Z-28/firebird Trans-AM are 2 turns (12:1) lock to lock, Use original end cap to get the right stops on 2 turn boxes to decrease turning radius. Later model boxes (1980 and up) use "O" rings instead of flared input and output lines. Later model internals can be swapped into early boxes to eliminate problems with line fittings and stops or pump can be modified by changing outlet valve (this requires verification) or swapped to accept "O" ring hosed.
The Jalopy Journal
