I have a 1941 Cadillac model 62 4 door sedan. I am putting a 472 Caddy engine and th400 in, and want to do a power steering upgrade. Any help would be appreciated. NO RACK AND PINION!
Put a subframe from a 73-76 cutlass Monte Carlo in it. That will get you better suspension and power steering in one shot
Even with OEM frame and that engine, will there be sufficient room to run a rear steer integrated PS box with exhaust clearance, will box connect to OEM links and/or pitman arm? Delphi 600 / Saginaw? I envisage that the frame and other components will require alterations to fit PS. Maybe a 57 Cadillac style box? That's a lot of additional weight so you'll also need to consider suspension and brake upgrades as well, it's no longer a side valve V8.
I'm not sure the frame width on your Cad, but FWIW, I used a '77 Seville subframe on my '49 and it fit great, and works super. Might be worth looking into, to help stop & steer that big rascal
Those frames might be very similar to the mid 50s Olds so you might be able to use a 56 to 58 Olds p/s box and might bolt in.
That’s why I suggested a front frame clip from 74-76 cutlass Monte Carlo. I used a 76 cutlass frame clip on my 48 Olds 98 frame width was the same, worked great for me
If this is true. I pulled factory power steering from a 56 Olds and installed a manual 525 box in it's place. That would mean any modern GM power steering box would bolt onto frame???
On my 49 Buick I used a 78 Trans Am subframe. Came with PS and Disc brakes. I put the uprights and rotors from a 84 Cad on the trans Am clip and got the Buick bolt pattern and 11" rotors. And I also run a 472 Cad and a 400 trans.
We have a '41 Series 62 2 door ragtop. Im thinking a 472 and aluminum TH400 is not heavier than the original flatty and Hydromatic combo. These CaddyFlatty bits make my engine hoist rethink its purpose. Word on the street is that the 346 flatty is close to 900lbs and the 472 is about 600lbs. Sent from my SM-G950U using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
I would look into adapting a power unit that matches up at the gearbox. This would mean you need to shorten the column and figure out power gearbox that would work. See if borgenson has a solution. Otherwise the other way would be to a adapt 53-56 Cadillac gearbox and power steering assemblies. The nice part is that you will already have the power pump on the engine. No need to subframe. Mine actually already rises nice without PS. Unfortunately there is not much info on this conversion. The one I’ve seen over the years was a R&P from a defunct company. If you take a look at 53-55 Cadillac ps boxes the look like similar setups as the Belairs. I would image that would be a hint as where to go next for research.
My 37 Buick has an idler arm mounted in the center of the front cross member with the drag link and two tie rods run off of it. It was going to take quite a bit of modification to hook up p/s plus the straight eight just has a single crank pulley so pump mounting was going to be an issue. I ended up with a Prius electric p/s unit which fits in the column and pretty much out of sight under the dash. I had a Saturn Vue electric unit but heard of problems so went with the Prius which has been problem free. No pump, hoses, mount brackets, pulleys, etc so a good set up for someone old fat and lazy.