I know some people were looking for some feedback here, so I'll try my best.
Part: I paid $200 for this. The part was new from a private seller, but had been sitting and therefore had some surface rust. I believed this to be no big deal, but it ended up being a pain. More on that later.
Install: Removing the stock piece was a piece of cake. The black plastic sleeve as a bit of a pain to remove, but eventually came off after wrapping an adjustable wrench around the shaft, and tapping down on the wrench (which was resting on the sleeve) with a hammer.
However, the surface rust mentioned above also prevented the telescoping upper shaft from coming out of the outer shaft (shipped all the way in). It needed some hammering to get it moving again. That was the biggest bitch.
Now there is always a chance I installed this improperly, but when bolted in on both sides, the plastic sleeve was not snug against the firewall. Although I believe you could extend the lower shaft to get it snug, I don't feel like it would stay that way, so I simply slid the sleeve up against the firewall. Its not up against the ujoint. Either way, no sealing issues are apparent.
Finally, installing the rubber accordion on the top extension joint before sliding it through the firewall is impossible. I had to install that accordion after getting it through the firewall.
So overall the install instructions were not as good as MM's usually are, but in the end, it was no biggie to install.
Feel: You can immediately notice the difference. It doesn't give you Porsche steering feel, but you do get significantly more feedback on what the tires are doing. When combined with the alu steering rack bushings, you really get a sense of how much bumpsteer a lowered mustang has. I need to work on that still.
The steering feels much tighter and more responsive, and it seems like the car attacks the corners much more quickly. I didn't get to do too much corner carving, but on the ones I did hit, it really felt better. On the highway it feels about the same. Still a bit numb, but you can't be driving it like you're in a movie.
It doesn't transform the car into a BMW (i may have exaggerated in my other post), but anything that can be done to improve the steering feel in a mustang is good.
I would probably do the rack bushings first. They are cheaper and probably provide a bigger impact, but this is a good mod regardless.
Bottom Line: If you care about steering and handling, and own a mustang, you need this shaft and the rack bushings. Period.
Part: I paid $200 for this. The part was new from a private seller, but had been sitting and therefore had some surface rust. I believed this to be no big deal, but it ended up being a pain. More on that later.
Install: Removing the stock piece was a piece of cake. The black plastic sleeve as a bit of a pain to remove, but eventually came off after wrapping an adjustable wrench around the shaft, and tapping down on the wrench (which was resting on the sleeve) with a hammer.
However, the surface rust mentioned above also prevented the telescoping upper shaft from coming out of the outer shaft (shipped all the way in). It needed some hammering to get it moving again. That was the biggest bitch.
Now there is always a chance I installed this improperly, but when bolted in on both sides, the plastic sleeve was not snug against the firewall. Although I believe you could extend the lower shaft to get it snug, I don't feel like it would stay that way, so I simply slid the sleeve up against the firewall. Its not up against the ujoint. Either way, no sealing issues are apparent.
Finally, installing the rubber accordion on the top extension joint before sliding it through the firewall is impossible. I had to install that accordion after getting it through the firewall.
So overall the install instructions were not as good as MM's usually are, but in the end, it was no biggie to install.
Feel: You can immediately notice the difference. It doesn't give you Porsche steering feel, but you do get significantly more feedback on what the tires are doing. When combined with the alu steering rack bushings, you really get a sense of how much bumpsteer a lowered mustang has. I need to work on that still.
The steering feels much tighter and more responsive, and it seems like the car attacks the corners much more quickly. I didn't get to do too much corner carving, but on the ones I did hit, it really felt better. On the highway it feels about the same. Still a bit numb, but you can't be driving it like you're in a movie.
It doesn't transform the car into a BMW (i may have exaggerated in my other post), but anything that can be done to improve the steering feel in a mustang is good.
I would probably do the rack bushings first. They are cheaper and probably provide a bigger impact, but this is a good mod regardless.
Bottom Line: If you care about steering and handling, and own a mustang, you need this shaft and the rack bushings. Period.
