Cressda Power Steer Conversion.

[flickaz]

Ok guys, so Ive searched like a possessed man and haven't got the answer I'm looking for. Also all the bible threads come up with the '404 URL cannot be found' message.

So anyways I've got an mx82 cressida p/s box and can get the pump for next to nothing. I'm just wondering why some people and places like rocky road say to use the mx 32/62 boxes. How are they different to my mx82 box and could I make mine work? I will pull the pitman arm off to see if the taper suits my sierra, if not what do people recommend for a zook with 2" BL, 2" springs, just running 235's?

My second question is about the pump. Can anyone tell me what the pressure/flow requirements for a box are relative to a rack? Ie could any pump hack it, or should I source one off a p/s box vehicle? This leads to the last of my questions. I'm running a turbo GTi donk, and the pump will have to go on the passengers side near the exhaust. Should I be using a pump, such as the VS commodore that has remote reservoir and a massive multi rib pulley, to hopefully keep the rpm of the pump to a reasonable level? (my rev limit is set to 7800).

Aaron

[V.W.Dave]

I wouldn't use either of them. But thats me. Think about what they are off and what they normaly do. They are off a very light very small car. They push very small wheels around and thats what they were made for. If you start doing some major off roading or start running 30s+ tyres it is only a mater of time before it fails. For all the fab work needed to get it to work spend a few bucks and get a stronger proven box.
If you would have taken just a few seconds to look you would see only last week there was one of 500 threads about this very things. Here have a look.

http://www.outerlimits4x4.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=47845" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[joeblow]

I wouldn't use either of them. But thats me. Think about what they are off and what they normaly do. They are off a very light very small car. They push very small wheels around and thats what they were made for. If you start doing some major off roading or start running 30s+ tyres it is only a mater of time before it fails. For all the fab work needed to get it to work spend a few bucks and get a stronger proven box.

firstly you might want to do some reasearch.

they are off a larger and heavier vehicle than a sierra. falls apart and fails?.........they are larger than a vitara box and actually share many common internals to that of landcruiser boxes, they just have a different casting for the cressida chassis.the only major fabbing is drilling two holes in the chassis.....and there is a million and one pitman arms to choose from. using these boxes will also give you better room to run a larger zook radiator than that of a vitara with a wedge.

[flickaz]

If you would have taken just a few seconds to look you would see only last week there was one of 500 threads about this very things.

I had read that and many other posts before posing my questions. In fact I considered your write up to be great tech. However you haven't answered any of my questions and I'm not sure why you bothered to post and have a go at me, without all the details.

I've read the tech section daily for 2yrs and am aware of who knows what they're talking about. Guys that consistently provide advice and experience to those who want to have a go. This is why I have chosen to go wth the cressida p/s set up, as suggested by guys like Joe Blow, BenT and the major US based mod companies (found this through researching). Im not taking a shot at your tech knowledge, as you've posted some good gear and I respect your opinion, rather I'm re-iterating the irony of your remark, as it would seem you may need to do a tad less flaming and a tad more research.

I'm looking for people with cressida p/s experience, after all I can do the calculations, but you know whats wrong theory.......its theory!!

FYI I run a weekender (lucky to do 3000km a yr). I have intercooler pipes and oil cooler lines and that run around my radiator, which makes most of the inner chassis mount boxes a no go. From what I can see all the exterior mounted options require cutting of the inner guard, which I personally dont want to do.

I intend to mount the pump forward and utilise the spare crank pulley, so I can disable the p/s should I need too, without effecting my other axillary components. I understand the mechanical advantage of a non p/s over p/s box will mean it'd be really heavy to steer, but it'll get me home.

firstly you might want to do some reasearch.

they are off a larger and heavier vehicle than a sierra. falls apart and fails?.........they are larger than a vitara box and actually share many common internals to that of landcruiser boxes, they just have a different casting for the cressida chassis.the only major fabbing is drilling two holes in the chassis.....and there is a million and one pitman arms to choose from. using these boxes will also give you better room to run a larger zook radiator than that of a vitara with a wedge.

Joe - I notice you're mounting appears to have the box placed maybe 20mm forward from where BenT's kit would place it. My question is with my 2" BL does this still require a rag joint extension? If so would you recommend bolting the rag joint up and placing the rear lower bolt through the chassis, then mark the other holes from there, or mount the box as even as possible and sort the rag joint after?

The cressida pitman arm has the male taper, where as the sierra one has the female taper. What's the best way round this? Ie replace rod end or switch to an alternate arm? Cruiser arms seem to pop up quite often but Im yet to see mention of a series or age range of compatible cruiser arms.

Cheers

[joeblow]

the best way would be to bolt the box through the front hole and set the rag joing up as nice as possible, then mark and drill the holes (note: loosen all the uni joint bolts off.....this will give you some slack). i've only had to make one extension for the rag joint, but i suspect the intermediate shaft may have come off a car that had a front 'love tap'. there are many arms to choose from, look at various model landcruisers etc.........but best of all the jimny (power steer model) arm will match the splines on the cressida box. you have a decent amount of options. keep us informed as to how it pans out.

[BenT]

Joe - I notice you're mounting appears to have the box placed maybe 20mm forward from where BenT's kit would place it. My question is with my 2" BL does this still require a rag joint extension? If so would you recommend bolting the rag joint up and placing the rear lower bolt through the chassis, then mark the other holes from there, or mount the box as even as possible and sort the rag joint after?

The cressida pitman arm has the male taper, where as the sierra one has the female taper. What's the best way round this? Ie replace rod end or switch to an alternate arm? Cruiser arms seem to pop up quite often but Im yet to see mention of a series or age range of compatible cruiser arms.

Cheers

It looks to me like Joe has drawn the holes in the chassis round the wrong way. There are two bolts at the front and one at the rear in the Sierra chassis. I'm pretty sure he said he did the drawings at midnight so that probably explains it

My plate moves the box forward about 20mm from the position it would end up if you used the one of the stock holes and drilled the rest. This puts the steering box almost right up against the front cross member - as far forward as it can go.

In this position, if you use the Toyota rag joint the steering shaft is the correct length and doesn't need modifying.

You can use a Vitara pitman arm - it has the right spline size and the correct taper, but doesn't have any drop.
A Toyota Tarago arm will also fit, and has similar drop to the stock Sierra arm, but has a larger taper, so either needs to be sleeved, or you'll have to use a bigger ball joint.

Ben

[lump_a_charcoal]

Ben, how much are your adapter plates for a cressida box, shipped to the West Island?

[BenT]

Ben, how much are your adapter plates for a cressida box, shipped to the West Island?

Plate is $95 with the required countersunk cap screws. Shipping is $12.

Ben

[Remydog05]

So Ben to your know how, which option (Vitara box or Cressida Box) would position the furthest forward and
Also which box would make the maximum clearance if using a larger Vitara Radiator (EGJ20a radiator)??

[mr green]

hey flickaz, ive done the cressida p/s conversion on one of my cars and i love it! very neat and much lighter than the vitara setup on my other car. i used the joeblow mounting method, using the existing front hole and aligning the rag joint as best achievable before drilling the rear 2 holes. the toyota and suzuki rag joints have different bolt pattern so i made an adapter rag out of 12mm conveyer belt. from memory i had to collapse the steering shaft by a minimal amount to make it fit. As for the pitman arm, i originally set it up with the vitara arm but later changed to the jimny arm. the jimny arm is a pinch shorter than the sierra arm and has similar drop. i think i measured around 7mm shorter and 7mmish less drop . this was perfect for my low setup and also works well on my other car ( with the vit box) spoa with the snake knuckle.
i'm running a g16b so the standard vitara pump is used and hoses made to fit (thanks Turbo Tonka ) so i would think a pump from a swift would bolt up to your motor for ease of mounting??
as for the mx 86... as far as i know they were rack and pinion. a bit trickier to mount than the box form the 32...

[flickaz]

hey flickaz, ive done the cressida p/s conversion on one of my cars and i love it! very neat and much lighter than the vitara setup on my other car. i used the joeblow mounting method, using the existing front hole and aligning the rag joint as best achievable before drilling the rear 2 holes. the toyota and suzuki rag joints have different bolt pattern so i made an adapter rag out of 12mm conveyer belt. from memory i had to collapse the steering shaft by a minimal amount to make it fit. As for the pitman arm, i originally set it up with the vitara arm but later changed to the jimny arm. the jimny arm is a pinch shorter than the sierra arm and has similar drop. i think i measured around 7mm shorter and 7mmish less drop . this was perfect for my low setup and also works well on my other car ( with the vit box) spoa with the snake knuckle.
i'm running a g16b so the standard vitara pump is used and hoses made to fit (thanks Turbo Tonka ) so i would think a pump from a swift would bolt up to your motor for ease of mounting??
as for the mx 86... as far as i know they were rack and pinion. a bit trickier to mount than the box form the 32...

Cheers for the info mate. Yeah I'm going to get into it this weekend and see how it all looks. I know my biggest problem will be finding a suitable pitman arm. There's only one suzuki place around Adelaide and they wont separate the arm from the box. I could just buy the whole box and be done with it though Do you happen to know which model cruisers have the suitable arms?

How did you go installing crush tube into the chassis rail? I guess I'll see this weekend but does it get close to the existing tubes, or can you just remove them? I've got some aircraft grade stainless 3/8 lines, a bender and 400 series speed flow fittings and flex line so I'll knock up the lines no sweat.

[flickaz]

If all else fails with the pitman arm search, can anyone tell me if http://www.puresuzuki.com/pitman_arm.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; would suit a cressida to sierra set up?

Other options are non p/s jimny $175 or p/s jimny $275. Im tempted to do the p/s jimny if the calmini arm isnt the go. All other after market drop pitmans are around $300 on their own, $155 for a new jimny arm from suzuki or probably $80-$120 for a cruiser arm at the wreckers? Who'd have thought the pitmn arm would be the most expensive part of my conversion?

[lump_a_charcoal]

I can't find cressida boxes anywhere...

[BenT]

So Ben to your know how, which option (Vitara box or Cressida Box) would position the furthest forward and
Also which box would make the maximum clearance if using a larger Vitara Radiator (EGJ20a radiator)??

Both my Vitara and Cressida adaptors put the box as far forward as they can go, which is in about the same spot and approx 20mm forward of standard.

The Cressida box will leave more room for the radiator as the mount is thinner. The Cressida box will fit with the stock radiator and mounts in place, whereas the radiator has to be moved slightly to fit the Vitara box.

Ben

[mr green]

hey flickaz, ive done the cressida p/s conversion on one of my cars and i love it! very neat and much lighter than the vitara setup on my other car. i used the joeblow mounting method, using the existing front hole and aligning the rag joint as best achievable before drilling the rear 2 holes. the toyota and suzuki rag joints have different bolt pattern so i made an adapter rag out of 12mm conveyer belt. from memory i had to collapse the steering shaft by a minimal amount to make it fit. As for the pitman arm, i originally set it up with the vitara arm but later changed to the jimny arm. the jimny arm is a pinch shorter than the sierra arm and has similar drop. i think i measured around 7mm shorter and 7mmish less drop . this was perfect for my low setup and also works well on my other car ( with the vit box) spoa with the snake knuckle.
i'm running a g16b so the standard vitara pump is used and hoses made to fit (thanks Turbo Tonka ) so i would think a pump from a swift would bolt up to your motor for ease of mounting??
as for the mx 86... as far as i know they were rack and pinion. a bit trickier to mount than the box form the 32...

Cheers for the info mate. Yeah I'm going to get into it this weekend and see how it all looks. I know my biggest problem will be finding a suitable pitman arm. There's only one suzuki place around Adelaide and they wont separate the arm from the box. I could just buy the whole box and be done with it though Do you happen to know which model cruisers have the suitable arms?

How did you go installing crush tube into the chassis rail? I guess I'll see this weekend but does it get close to the existing tubes, or can you just remove them? I've got some aircraft grade stainless 3/8 lines, a bender and 400 series speed flow fittings and flex line so I'll knock up the lines no sweat.

i bought a new pitman arm from the suzuki dealer. actually i bought 3. they were around the $130 from memory (trade price) i can get the part number if you need it.
For the crush tubes, i left the old ones where they were and drilled 10mm holes right through the chassis rail, and drilled the outside of the rail big enough for the tube to pass through. Then cut the tube about 8mm proud of the outside of the rail and ran a weld around it. done!
as for the cruiser arm, i didn't look into it being that there are better options in the suzuki world ( assuming you are using suzuki diffs and not toys)

[mr green]

I can't find cressida boxes anywhere...

i had the same problem. ended up buying a whole car for $100, 130kms away. pulled the steering out and rang the scrappers from the blokes driveway.

[lump_a_charcoal]

Am I after a MX62 or MX73 box?

[slyvan1]

just sent a pm.

[offroader-rama]

does the cressida box sit inside or out side the rails and if its out side does it cover your chassis number.
on one of my sierra's i run a bundera P/S box and it sits outside the rails and covers the numbers, as it bearly sees the road i am not worried, however i wish to run P/S on my daily driver sierra, so also interested in the above.

[flickaz]

does the cressida box sit inside or out side the rails and if its out side does it cover your chassis number.
on one of my sierra's i run a bundera P/S box and it sits outside the rails and covers the numbers, as it bearly sees the road i am not worried, however i wish to run P/S on my daily driver sierra, so also interested in the above.

It sits inside the rail. I'll try post some pics up when I'm done.

[offroader-rama]

It sits inside the rail. I'll try post some pics up when I'm done.

and pros and cons etc

[flickaz]

Check this thread out http://www.outerlimits4x4.com/viewtopic ... t=cressida" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[flickaz]

Ok so I got my hands on a Jimny pitman arm, pulled my old box out and am in the process of fitting the cressida box.

Im wondering what people have made a rag joint out of, or where they've bought theirs (or materials) from?

Cheers, Aaron

[bazuky]

can some one tell me what pitman arm i need to get to work with lux axles as in longer than sierra pitman arm as i have 2 ps boxes (mx 32 and mx65) but cant find the right spline to hook up with ether box even they are the same spline please help i will post pics if i need to once i figure it out

[lump_a_charcoal]

I think Vitara, Tarago and jimny will work.

If you can't use your mx65, I'll buy it from ya.

[bazuky]

ok to confirm this i now have a tarago pit man arm fitted it has a little more drop than standard but runs the small toyota tie rod end off of a 40 serries crusier still not sure on vit power steer arm but a man steer arm is same as sierra in the spline anyway