I have heard that there is a rack and pinion conversion for the RX7. Has anybody tried it? Do you recommend it? Where can I find kit? My steering box is dying, so now is the time to change it if I am going to. Your input is greatly appreciated.

 

OP: When starting a Tech thread it is important to at least let people know what series of car that you have.
Your Screen name is confusing..haha!
CAR is 1985 GSL-SE.

 

Steering System : 79-85 : Stage II Rack/Pinion Conversion

 

Right. Thanks for the feedback. The car is indeed a 1985 GSL-SE.

 

Thank you. That is the one I had heard about. I went directly to their webpage. Have you tried it?

 

I installed the full kit in my 85 GSL-SE and love it. you get alot more feed back from the car. I have a slight vibration at times on the freeway. Have balanced tires and install different wheels and tires. and its still there. I have this same vib on several cars and an suv that have rack and pinion steering. Wish I could stop it.

 

Is that a normal rack and pinion problem? I've always had vibration at higher freeway speeds in all of my cars I always thought it was normal.

 

i have the kit on mine and i like it

 

I was afraid someone was going to say it was normal. Dif worth the vib to have such tight steering

 

mine has no wobble or shakes. although I did cut and reweld it with a ton of bracing to hold up the heavy as V8 I got on top of it :p I absolutely love my kit although trying to parralel park with a small steering wheel and huge tires is not fun.

 

Thanks for the feedback anybody. I guess I will go for it. Has anybody had a bad experience?

 

I find that with a car that has manual steering the only hard part is when the car is at Low speed.I absolutely love the feel when the car is Up to highway and above speed.It gets nice and precise.
with Power steering I find that if you make a sudden movement you can be heading to the Rhubarb pretty quickly!
..oh,and Manual steering,parallel parking and coffee do not mix!
Did you try Re-Speed?

 

Yes i agree manual steering at speed is presice . I like it better over the power steering.

 

Is any other fabricator doing a rack and pinion conversion? Mine is a '79 RX7

 

no, and respeed has been having problems lately too. However, you can swap a second gen subframe over and use the FC R&P as well as suspension components. it is pretty much a bolt on affair with minor custom work to make fit/

 

any pics of a second gen in a first gen. sounds interesting

 

Is there any recommendation on whether to use the normal 20:1 ratio or the quick 15:1 ratio with this kit? Has anybody tried the 15:1 ratio? Do you like it?

 

Any more info on that FC swap would be great. I have been looking into buying the conversion but cannot justify the price.

 

15:1 way to go. Only problem is turning around in the driveway in the morning with a coffee cup in one hand and no cup holder. My son has an 86 with the 20:1 manual fells like power steering its so easy, just not as my fun on the open road. I read many threads on FC swap, and went with ReSpeed. I think the FC swap would have taken alot longer, alot more manhours. In the end may save a few dollars and you could get a Mazda 17:1 power rack.Than delete the power part. I would like to try a 17:1 ratio. Not common in aftermarket.

 

If you do the fc sub frame swap your going to run into some issues of you plan on keeping the fb engine, with the rack you will need to fab custom mounts/not easy to do with the space you have iirc. I would have done it if someone found a good solution, and probably will find a solution in the future.

Most people that do the swap also do an fc engine (tii) swap. Have you correctly adjusted your steering box? If not that will make a world of difference.

 

Would anyone know how to get in touch with ReSPEED?? I'm looking to buy one of the conversion Kits for my First gen Thanks!?

 

ReSpeed no longer exists. Unfortunately the new owner ran the business into the ground. You wouldn't want to deal with them anyway as you'd likely pay and never receive your part. Sadly I know the new owner and really don't understand why/how/whatever happened.