Thanks for the input. I remember reading about this. GM did'nt want to put too much emphasis on the Camaro as being in direct competition with the Mustang. Early advertising even pionted out that there was a 4cyl./155 c.i. w/90hp & 152 lb-ft of torque. Can you imagine? Maybe to keep Ford from running too fast with performance options.
Then GM advertised the 67' SS396 Camaro justafterits debut in the fall of 66'. I'll double check that though, unless someone can add to this.
Oddly enough though, this Fri & Sat I was helping a friend of mine replace the rear seal and bushingon aT-10 4-speed man. trans on his 65 Mustang GT (clone). Leaking gear oil after trying to beat my SS. jk... it was leaking soon after he bought it.

 

FYI My 350SS was built early November 66 the first big block came off the production line January fo 67. I think they had to wait fora modifcation (aka Tracktion bar)to reduce wheel hop before they could put in the big block. That kind of tells me there was not a lot of big block testing going on before product release.

 

So, poly vs. rubber argument aside, I'm planning to replace inner and outer tie rod ends, upper and lower ball joints,
idler arm, pitman arm, upper and lower A-arm bushings, and sway bar end links. While I have the master cylinder and booster off, I'm also replacing the steering coupler. Are there any other parts I should consider while it's torn down?

Also, any input on the fast-ratio steering question? Is there an easy way to tell without removing the box?

 

Check your sway bar mounts, they can get pretty out of shape with age.
Not certain on the steering box, but I think the standards had a little over 4 turns lock to lock.
Quick ratio was around 3 turns.

 

just turn your box lock-to-lock and see how many turns you have. depending on how much you want to spend, you can get boxes with a lock-to-lock that's as low asjust over2 full turns

 

They have body stiffening rails that run from the front subframe to the front of the rear leaf spring housing they come in either bolt on or weld on , I would start there and take care of some of the body torque that comes from hole shots fast acceleration etc , would also take some of the twist and preasure off of the frame bushings . As for the handling issue if you are concerned more with the handling asspect than the original asspect i would go with a rack and pinion upgrade with adjustable coil overs , i know you mentioned that budget is an issue but my opinion has always been save your money and fix it so you dont have to fix it again later . I know people that have had handling issues with older style suspensions and were amased at the difference in the rack and coil over upgrades .

 

first off those "rails" are called subframe connectors. also, that is one of the last things someone should worry about if they are looking to fix handling issues. you should ALWAYS start with your 'wear' parts before you start adding things that didn't come from the factory. as a final note, coilovers are a great item, but they are much more unfriendly to the car, on day to day street use, than a good quality shock is