gyalanis

First, does anyone recommend it over keeping the unpowered setup?

And secondly, has anyone made the conversion? I'd like to know if it's something I can do at home, or do I need an expert?

Subfixer

I just did mine. It's a straight forward installation as long as all the parts are there. I believe you have a 327/300, so oil pan clearance will not be an issue.

The hardest part is removing the old pitman arm from the bottom of the steering box . Takes a large wrench and a larger puller.

You must remove the old steering dampner and it's mount on the chassis (looks like a shock absorber) from the steering center link, remove the center link, and put all the new parts in it's place. Mounting the pump brackets with the engine in the car is a PITA, but it can be done. Oh, yeah, you have to move the tie rod ends to the front hole on the steering knuckles if they are not already there. Just follow ALL the directions in the kit and you can't go wrong.

You can get the full conversion kit from any of the major Corvette parts suppliers. Make sure they include all the necessary pulleys for your engine as well (some don't). There are a couple of pulley variations, so make sure you order the correct ones.

Hope this helps.

BarryK

Paul

wish it was that easy to do to mine............but I have the 327/365 motor so i can't do PS because of the oil pan.

oh well, it gives my arms a workout when i'm driving so it saves having to exercise.

ctjackster

Barry - oh yes you can, but if you are looking to have your car judged, or want the engine and options to be "el correcto" don't do it.

To put PS on an L76 merely requires swapping in the 5 qt pan in place of your 6 qt pan, and then install (or have your shop install) one of the PS conversion kits out there (most of these use GM stuff, you can even make it look exactly as it would if delivered with PS). Subfixer recently tackled this on his L76 set-up. And mine has PS too.

Hitch

PS is well worth the trouble.. It makes driving my monster with 225/50/17's on it a one finger affair.... okay get your minds out of the gutter...... On another note.... Just remember she will come around much quicker so if you drive spiritly be slow with you corrective steering... Dave....

BarryK

Jack
I knew that was possible but i'm trying to keep my motor as stock as possible. I know a lot of others have done that to their L76's but it makes me wonder how good it is for the motor. Isn't the larger oilpan on there for a reason rather than the smaller 5qt version? What effect is there on the motor to reduce the oil capacity by a quart?

Subfixer

You got that right.... With the quick steering position required for P/S, it requires a lot less steering wheel movement. Took a few days to get used to it, but now it's second nature.

BarryK

Paul, Jack, Dave - obviously the PS makes it easier but do you still get a feel of the road and what the car is doing? I know on so many of the older American PS systems it turns so easily but it gave no feel or feedback thru it and I wouldn't want to lose that completely. although......it sure would make driving the car less "work".

Hitch

It's a different feel but you still get what I would consider good feed back..I can enter parking spaces with two fingers so that's great.. I always feel like I'm going to break the steering wheel on manual cars when going slow... I've driven my dad's without PS and mine with and really there wasn't much of a difference the disconnect isn't like new cars... My dad commented that my car drives completely different than his though... I think it has to do more with my short sidewalled tire (225/50/17) vs his Michelins (215/70/15)...
Oh Paul wait until you get her sideways once... That adrenline starts pumping and around you goooo... Ask me how I know... Now when I do that I just ease the steering wheel around... Dave..

Subfixer

Mine feels almost the same as non power while driving. Absolutely everything is new or rebuilt. The combination of increased effort due to the quick steering tie rod position and the help from the P/S almost cancel each other in normal driving. The real noticable difference is when parking. MUCH easier.

BarryK

as you both say, during parking is really where it would make a difference. when i'm actually cruising down the road the manual steering doesn't bother me, but parking, or turning at stopsigns/stoplights, etc is a real effort. enough so that i sometimes wonder just how strong that relatively thin teak wheel really is.....

ctjackster

just my .02 cents: when I got the car, it came with a Vintage Air sytem and PS, both added at the request of the most-recent previous owner, a guy who coud care not one wit about what was original (the car was pure original L76 - except for maybe the cam, we'll see more on that later - until then.) I said I was gonna take off that AC and that PS, coming from a time where having such things on a sports car was sacriligious, scraping for every single hp gain and then having those power-robbing things on there. Off came the Vintage Air system (kinda easy, but not as easy as I thought it would be) but the PS stayed on for a while, given that it was a bigger project to remove. And then I kind of came to accept it. And then I came to think I would be cursing myself in parking lots if I took it off, having had a 4x4 pickup with manual steering back in law school that I will never, ever forget.

As for your question Barry, I happen to think I am getting pretty good road feel from my steering wheel, and that sort of thing is important to me - it ain't no Cadilac-type "turn the tiller and then something happens down there with the wheels" power steering. Best thing to do is take a spin in a PS-equipped C2 SB and see what you think - if you are ever in S.W. CT or driving through on I-95, you can drive mine. After your arm heals.

Subfixer

Barry, if you don't get a chance to try one before Carlise, you can try mine there.

BarryK

thanks guys, i appreciate the info and i'm sure it will help gyalanis also

Jack, while i'm trying to stay as stock as possible, I do want to add the Vintage Air to mine. This coupe just gets WAY too hot on those muggy August days! to me, sweating and getting exhausted from sweltering heat is not my idea of a way to enjoy a car. Shame I didn't know you sooner or I would have bought the one you took off yours.

Sub, I may take you up on the offer

ctjackster

as for the VA system, I straight-traded it with a fellow forum member for the parts that get removed for the install of the sytem, which did not come with my car. He got a deal, I got what I needed (radio side panels, blower, etc.). I have a vert and I only drive it when I hope to be top down, and it ain't Phoenix here, so the AC was not needed anyhow.

If you had PS in that 65, you could drive it soon after you get your cast off, rather than waiting until your Popeye arms are up for the task . . . . We still need to get that thing running right, it should not be such a dog down low with that 4.11 rear end.

gyalanis - based on what subfixer advises, it sounds like the PS install is a garage project. The pump bracketry should kill you, subf is just being a weenie . . . .

BarryK

Jack
my friend had a '65 vert and it wasn't as bad as my coupe. The heat really builds up inside this thing because of that huge rear window like in a greenhouse!

if you have suggestions on how to get this thing running like it should, I'm wide open to suggestions. problem is I'm not much of a mechanic and if's it's not REALLY, REALLY easy to do I'm stuck taking it to a mechanic and they don't want to listen to me telling them what to do even if you told me exactly what to tell them - they figure there are the experts so I should just drop off the car and shut up and let them, deal with it. That's most likely the reason it hasn't gotten done correctly yet even from mechanics that came very highly recommended.

Maybe at Carlisle where so many people such as you, JohnZ, Lars, etc will be that actually know these cars I'll be able to get some answers to what's wrong with it.
I know, at Carlisle I'll hold up a big sign in front of my car that says "Will Work for tuning help"!

ctjackster

B - I ain't no expert, just always did all my own tune-ups since I was a kid keeping dad's cars running - who would have thought that being able to set point gaps / dwell and use a timing light would come in handy in 2005? Like some of my pals on here, I can read and follow directions, and I have tools or am willing to buy or borrow one if unusual. As for Lars, hell I tried to lure him to S.E. CT with promises of Stewardesses and such, as I too could really use his touch on my car.

From what I have read, you would be wise to track back with the previous owners / wrenchers on that car of yours in an effort to confirm what cam is in there - you know I am checking on mine right now. So much is inter-related, so telling your mechanic to set it up per the 65L76 specs might not achieve optimum results if you have a different cam in there, or if your distributor is not set up right, or in need of a rebuild (something Brian - Allcoupedup urged me to tackle, with great results). For example, I can tell you right now that all that intake manifold vacuum I am seeing might at least mean that I should not be using the L76-spec vacuum can.

I'll keep you posted on what we find out this weekend about my cam, a fellow forum member (Marty - 66BB) is kindly stopping by to help diagnose it.

BarryK

Jack, I never used or owned a timing light but if it counts I saw one once really, I am that far behind the curve on having to learn even the basics. i think it's about time I learned though.

I wish I could track prior motor work but I have ZERO information on previous owners. All I know is the last previous owner is from MD but MD DMV wouldn't let me have any past VIN# registration info because of the newer privacy laws so that cut my search off very quickly. I guess the only way to know what's really in my motor is a teardown.

Subfixer

Hey Jack,
PM me with directions to your place. I wanna play, too (If the Mrs lets me out this weekend).

Rons65

Having had mid years with and without PS, IMHO I would not convert to PS - non PS works just fine and I would not go thru the trouble - but thats me. Good luck with your decision!