I've posted the question in the for sale forum as well, because I am in search of a slant 6 mopar in the Columbus, OH area, but thought i'd better post this in this section as well.

Any specific year that the power steering and brakes became standard? I just need some help as far as what models and years to look for when looking for one with power steering and brakes, specifically. Any tips would be great!

Thanks in advance.

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In search of 225 /6 Mopar near Ohio! I need a daily driver!

Neither were ever standard. Power brakes were pretty rare on the early A bodies and uncommon through '72. '73 and later disc brake cars are most likely to have power brakes, but again, it was optional. Power steering in my experience became more common than power brakes on later cars, but it was never standard.

My 1st '66 Dart had manual brakes and power steering. My 2nd '66 Dart was manual/manual. My '74 Duster had manual disc brakes and manual steering. My wife's '72 Duster had power disc brakes and power steering, but it was special ordered that way. The only Chrysler products I've owned with power drum brakes were a '72 B300 van and a '67 Newport. The van even had manual steering! My '74 D100 had manual disc brakes. My grandparents Scamp had power steering and manual brakes. None of my manual brake cars were difficult to stop. If you can't stop an A body with properly functioning manual brakes it may not be a good idea for you to be driving. Now if you're looking to fit a car with hand controls for someone of limited mobility that's another story. Also, many new brake shoes have come on the market with very hard linings that dramatically increase pedal pressure. Buy the cheap shoes and you'll be happier.

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Joshua

That info helps me out a lot.. i guess i'm not in the right position to know what's what, considering I've never driven a car with manual brakes or steering.

I'll take your word for it that braking an A Body is easy, it's a small car so it should be fine, but what about manual steering? Fairly easy to control?

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In search of 225 /6 Mopar near Ohio! I need a daily driver!

My 1980 Dodge Van had manual steering and manual disc brakes so I guess power was still pretty much an option up to that point in time.

As for the last question, The A-bodies really do not take much effort to steer with manual steering, IMHO. Again, the weight factor comes into play. My van was a pain to steer though in them tight parking spaces!

Russ

The earlier lighter cars with smaller tires are much easier to steer than a heavier car with wide tires. My 2nd '66 Dart originally came to me with 24:1 manual steering and wore 185/70R13 front tires. I could sit still and easily turn from lock to lock. My wife, maybe not so easily, but it was still easy to steer. When I sold the same Dart it had 16:1 manual steering, a smaller steering wheel and 225/50R15 Kumho race tires. When those tires were hot it was impossible to turn the wheel while sitting still, but it was wonderful on the race track. You'd likely never go to such an extreme in a street car, but it serves as an example. One more example. I had a '76 Aspen coupe with manual steering and 235/60R14 tires. It steered just fine in my book, but I didn't have to parallel park it much either.

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Joshua

In my opinion - others differ - the main reason for going to power steering is to get the quicker steering ratio, Power steering will be about 3 1/2 turns lock to lock which is a gear ratio of 16:1. The standard manual steering is 24:1 or 5+ turns lock to lock. A 20:1, 4 1/2 turns, manual gear or conversion kit is available which I'm told give a decent compromise between steering effort and quick steering. 16:1 manual gears can be had too but the steeering effort is very high and could make the driving experience less than pleasant anywhere except the open highway.

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David Kight
'62 Valiant Signet, White
'98 Dodge Dakota
'06 Jeep Liberty

Growing older is unavoidable but growing up is strictly optional.

The manual 9" drum brakes on my 65 Barracuda were OK if I was driving it in dry weather. If they got wet-forget it-you weren't going to stop soon. I changed them to the later disc and power setup when my wife started driving it to work every day. If you drive on these southern California freeways with poor brakes you are going to be bending metal sooner or later.

The later A bodies went to 10" drums and they may be OK. I would say that whether you need power disc brakes depends on your driving conditions.

I think with all the information I'm getting here I had better just find something with power steering and brakes.. My girlfriend will need to drive it occasionally so it's got to be easy enough. It'll be harder to find one with all power, but I'll see what I can find. If I'm unsuccessful I may have to get a 90's LHS, Concorde or something for cheap.

I may be leaning that direction with all the newer power options and comfort etc, but just one look at those Slant 6 engine bay's makes me feel comfortable with how simple the car is built, meaning less could possibly go wrong, and if something did I could probably fix it on my own.

You look at the engine bay of a newer car and it's hard to tell what anything is because of all the plastic surrounding everything - Scary!

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In search of 225 /6 Mopar near Ohio! I need a daily driver!

Amen! And, despite the odds, I've owned three Darts over the years, and ALL had power brakes and steering, so I don't think they're that hard to find. Good luck!

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vm

Well, alright then. I've been looking at mostly Valiants, I'll see what I can find in the Dart section of cctol.com

Thanks

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In search of 225 /6 Mopar near Ohio! I need a daily driver!