[DeTomaso] Pantera Steering Rack Interchange Ferrari 308

B Hower b.hower3400 at yahoo.com
Sat Feb 22 17:46:11 EST 2014


By any chance does the tires have ware from before rack repair, is it possible they are aiding the poor handling?


 
Bud #3400 ( Drive it like there is no tomorrow -- for there may not be ! )


________________________________
 From: thomas <thomas at hax.se>
To: "MikeLDrew at aol.com" <MikeLDrew at aol.com> 
Cc: "detomaso at poca.com" <detomaso at poca.com> 
Sent: Saturday, February 22, 2014 3:56 AM
Subject: Re: [DeTomaso] Pantera Steering Rack Interchange Ferrari 308
 

I rebuilt the rack in #9321 (1984 GT5) using a brass bushing that Mike supplied, and I believe it is the later rack.

Later I removed some of the thin shims to reduce steering wheel play.

I have Marino's offset poly bushings and it is still a white knuckle ride with the 285-40/15 Yokohama AVS-1 tires.

I don't think this can be fixed with a new rack alone.

Thomas

> 22 feb 2014 kl. 08:13 skrev MikeLDrew at aol.com:
> 
>   In a message dated 2/21/14 21 43 19, julian_kift at hotmail.com writes:
> 
>     As you know I have replaced just about everything on the steering
>     end of my GT5 in an effort to try and make it an enjoyable drive,
>     alas it is still a white knuckle ride tram lining the slightest rut
>     in the road and darting when one changes lanes over the center
>     crest. The rack was rebuilt at some point by someone who was heavy
>     handed with vice grips and I have never been happy with it, so my
>     last ditch effort is to just change out the rack for a new one.
>     Mine being an early GT5 where Alejandro was still using up leftover
>     Ford parts has the same rack as my '74, so I'd be keen to know if
>     what you have in the box there fits. That said I'm intrigued that
>     later GT5's had a different rack, are they dimensionally the same or
>     does the later rack alter (improve) the steering geometry?
> 
>>>> The later rack appears to be dimensionally the same.  The rack
>   housing tube is a smaller diameter, and there are crude spacers that
>   wrap around the outside of it to make up the difference between the
>   small tube and the larger opening in the Pantera rack housing clamps.
>   Here is what arrived at my house for me to repair, plucked from the
>   GT5:
>  http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ferrari-Testarossa-TRW-Steering-Rack-/121278970
>   012
>   At least, I'm 99.9% certain it's the same.  The tie rods are completely
>   different from an early Pantera rack, the rack is different, the
>   housing is different, although the boot on the driver's side seems
>   largely the same (the passenger side is very different.  You can see
>   the tube is much smaller in diameter as well.
>   But functionally it seems to be identical.  As I said, I'm going to
>   fully compare the worn-out GT5 rack, a standard Pantera rack that I
>   keep on hand as a visual aid, and the new early 308 rack I just bought,
>   and we will see wot's wot.
>   BTW Rick Moseley's 1980 308 uses a later-style rack I believe, with a
>   different housing with the mounting clamps cast integral with the
>   housing.  But internally it is the same as the Pantera rack, needs the
>   same bronze bushing for a quality repair, etc. etc.  Rick is the one
>   who contacted TRW (the outfit that purchased Cam Gears UK, the original
>   maker of the Pantera and Ferrari racks) and asked what to use as a
>   lubricant; they told him in no uncertain terms that gear oil was no
>   longer in vogue and 0-weight grease was the lube of choice.  The
>   GT5/Testa Rossa rack comes filled with this grease, as did the TRW
>   racks that some vendors were selling a few years ago, and also the ones
>   that Roland was selling.  I have no doubt the new rack we just bought
>   will have grease as well.
>   (As an aside, I just replaced the worn-out rack on one of my VW
>   Sciroccos today.  The new rack came from the German manufacturer filled
>   with grease too).
>   Rick and I worked together with the fellow you saw on the F-chat forum,
>   who has an early 308 GT4 Dino and had a blown-out rack.  Some thief had
>   charged him over $1000 to 'repair' his rack; he threw a home-made
>   nylong bushing inside, bludgeoned some later-style tie rods onto the
>   rack, and overtightened them to the point where they were bound up
>   solid.  The poor guy got the rack installed in his car with some
>   difficulty, but the car was virtually undriveable.  He managed to get
>   it to an alignment shop and they literally couldn't turn the tie rods
>   to set the toe, so they sent him home.
>   With much long-distance hand-holding, he took the rack apart, dumped
>   the new parts, got three (!) Pantera rack bushings from three different
>   Pantera vendors, chose the one we told him to choose in the first
>   place, and put his rack back together using his original tie rods.  The
>   result was perfection and he was quite pleased, not only with the
>   results, but with himself for having taken on the challenge and
>   prevailing.
>   He has been trying to sell one of his three rack bushings on E-bay for
>   quite some time now, with no takers; oddly, the other one sold almost
>   instantly?
>   Mike
> 
> 
> !DSPAM:53084e8a24993343511756!
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> 
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-------------- next part --------------
   By any chance does the tires have ware from before rack repair, is it
   possible they are aiding the poor handling?

   Bud #3400 ( Drive it like there is no tomorrow -- for there may not be
   ! )
     __________________________________________________________________

   From: thomas <thomas at hax.se>
   To: "MikeLDrew at aol.com" <MikeLDrew at aol.com>
   Cc: "detomaso at poca.com" <detomaso at poca.com>
   Sent: Saturday, February 22, 2014 3:56 AM
   Subject: Re: [DeTomaso] Pantera Steering Rack Interchange Ferrari 308
   I rebuilt the rack in #9321 (1984 GT5) using a brass bushing that Mike
   supplied, and I believe it is the later rack.
   Later I removed some of the thin shims to reduce steering wheel play.
   I have Marino's offset poly bushings and it is still a white knuckle
   ride with the 285-40/15 Yokohama AVS-1 tires.
   I don't think this can be fixed with a new rack alone.
   Thomas
   > 22 feb 2014 kl. 08:13 skrev [1]MikeLDrew at aol.com:
   >
   >  In a message dated 2/21/14 21 43 19, [2]julian_kift at hotmail.com
   writes:
   >
   >    As you know I have replaced just about everything on the steering
   >    end of my GT5 in an effort to try and make it an enjoyable drive,
   >    alas it is still a white knuckle ride tram lining the slightest
   rut
   >    in the road and darting when one changes lanes over the center
   >    crest. The rack was rebuilt at some point by someone who was heavy
   >    handed with vice grips and I have never been happy with it, so my
   >    last ditch effort is to just change out the rack for a new one.
   >    Mine being an early GT5 where Alejandro was still using up
   leftover
   >    Ford parts has the same rack as my '74, so I'd be keen to know if
   >    what you have in the box there fits. That said I'm intrigued that
   >    later GT5's had a different rack, are they dimensionally the same
   or
   >    does the later rack alter (improve) the steering geometry?
   >
   >>>> The later rack appears to be dimensionally the same.  The rack
   >  housing tube is a smaller diameter, and there are crude spacers that
   >  wrap around the outside of it to make up the difference between the
   >  small tube and the larger opening in the Pantera rack housing
   clamps.
   >  Here is what arrived at my house for me to repair, plucked from the
   >  GT5:
   >
   [3]http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ferrari-Testarossa-TRW-Steering-Rack-/121278
   970
   >  012
   >  At least, I'm 99.9% certain it's the same.  The tie rods are
   completely
   >  different from an early Pantera rack, the rack is different, the
   >  housing is different, although the boot on the driver's side seems
   >  largely the same (the passenger side is very different.  You can see
   >  the tube is much smaller in diameter as well.
   >  But functionally it seems to be identical.  As I said, I'm going to
   >  fully compare the worn-out GT5 rack, a standard Pantera rack that I
   >  keep on hand as a visual aid, and the new early 308 rack I just
   bought,
   >  and we will see wot's wot.
   >  BTW Rick Moseley's 1980 308 uses a later-style rack I believe, with
   a
   >  different housing with the mounting clamps cast integral with the
   >  housing.  But internally it is the same as the Pantera rack, needs
   the
   >  same bronze bushing for a quality repair, etc. etc.  Rick is the one
   >  who contacted TRW (the outfit that purchased Cam Gears UK, the
   original
   >  maker of the Pantera and Ferrari racks) and asked what to use as a
   >  lubricant; they told him in no uncertain terms that gear oil was no
   >  longer in vogue and 0-weight grease was the lube of choice.  The
   >  GT5/Testa Rossa rack comes filled with this grease, as did the TRW
   >  racks that some vendors were selling a few years ago, and also the
   ones
   >  that Roland was selling.  I have no doubt the new rack we just
   bought
   >  will have grease as well.
   >  (As an aside, I just replaced the worn-out rack on one of my VW
   >  Sciroccos today.  The new rack came from the German manufacturer
   filled
   >  with grease too).
   >  Rick and I worked together with the fellow you saw on the F-chat
   forum,
   >  who has an early 308 GT4 Dino and had a blown-out rack.  Some thief
   had
   >  charged him over $1000 to 'repair' his rack; he threw a home-made
   >  nylong bushing inside, bludgeoned some later-style tie rods onto the
   >  rack, and overtightened them to the point where they were bound up
   >  solid.  The poor guy got the rack installed in his car with some
   >  difficulty, but the car was virtually undriveable.  He managed to
   get
   >  it to an alignment shop and they literally couldn't turn the tie
   rods
   >  to set the toe, so they sent him home.
   >  With much long-distance hand-holding, he took the rack apart, dumped
   >  the new parts, got three (!) Pantera rack bushings from three
   different
   >  Pantera vendors, chose the one we told him to choose in the first
   >  place, and put his rack back together using his original tie rods.
   The
   >  result was perfection and he was quite pleased, not only with the
   >  results, but with himself for having taken on the challenge and
   >  prevailing.
   >  He has been trying to sell one of his three rack bushings on E-bay
   for
   >  quite some time now, with no takers; oddly, the other one sold
   almost
   >  instantly?
   >  Mike
   >
   >
   > !DSPAM:53084e8a24993343511756!
   > _______________________________________________
   >
   > Detomaso Forum Managed by POCA
   >
   > DeTomaso mailing list
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   >
   >
   > !DSPAM:53084e8a24993343511756!
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References

   1. mailto:MikeLDrew at aol.com
   2. mailto:julian_kift at hotmail.com
   3. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ferrari-Testarossa-TRW-Steering-Rack-/121278970
   4. mailto:DeTomaso at poca.com
   5. http://poca.com/mailman/listinfo/detomaso_poca.com
   6. mailto:DeTomaso at poca.com
   7. http://poca.com/mailman/listinfo/detomaso_poca.com


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