power steering in a 67

[tcb1969]

I have a 67 with a 352 and three on the tree. I have acquired a bendix power steering box and pump from another 67. I know I need the crank pulley to match - but what else will I need? I read Keith's page about power steering but it mostly refers to the saginaw box and is kind of confusing regarding the bendix. My column will bolt right up - but do I need any other mounting parts? thanks

[lobuck76]

I got the same gearbox for my '71, but have'nt installed it yet. It sounds like you've got a good hanle on it. The firewall brackets and such should be the same. I've heard it said that you really need to run a cooler with the little gearbox for longevity. Ron

[FORDification]

I reread the article and noticed that maybe it might not have been as clear as it could be, so I rewrote a few areas to make it more concise.

Ron is correct....to use a Bendix box, all you need to make it work is the box, the PS pump/brackets and a belt.

[tcb1969]

Thanks for the responses. Now I have another question on the same topic though - how do I hook up a cooler to a bendix box?

[FORDification]

The easiest way would be to just splice into the rubber lines coming from the power steering pump. The pump has two lines coming out of it...the small one is the pressure side and the large one is the return line. Since the box is what generates the heat, it would seem to me that this would be where you'd want the cooler...in the return line between the pump and the steering box. Just mount a small transmission cooler up in front of the radiator, and then hook up the return line coming from the Bendix box to one side of the cooler and the input line to the pump to the other side. Use inline barbed connectors and hose clamps. Use as little hose as possible but make sure you have them secured and out of the way of any moving parts.

Another possibility for a cleaner installation would be to use the smaller rectangular cooler used on almost every Ford PS-equipped vehicle equipped with a Saginaw pump which sits up on top of the AC compressor or the pump bracket (if the engine didn't have AC) ...there would be no lines to splice, but you'd just have to make sure you got it positioned where there would be adequate airflow. Here's a shot of one on an A/C-equipped engine, for visual reference:



I can't say for certain whether the lines would be the same, but I'd imagine they are. If not, it's easily correctable with an adapter. It probably wouldn't provide as much cooling as a front-mounted cooler, but it would be better than nothing, and the installation would be much cleaner-looking. The Saginaw-type cooler didn't need to be very big since it didn't produce as much heat as the Bendix, but considering the factory Bendix installations didn't have a cooler at all (AFAIK), the smaller cooler is still better than nothing.

[JWW]

I have a 67' as well. I'm planning on converting to power steering. More than likely I will not find a bendix type box, so I will keep my eye out for a saginaw.

If I read the article correctly on converting manual steering "strong arm steering" to power, any saginaw box through 1979 will work. Is this correct? I know I will have to shorten my steering shaft.

Will I have to add an extra pulley to the harmonic balance pulley for the pump?

If I go with a saginaw, will I have to have an extra cooler for the pump?

Does anyone have any pictures of a 240 with power steering?

Sorry for all the questions, I just want to have my ducks in a row when I go to the scrap yard.

[FORDification]

You'd be much happier with a Saginaw box anyway. It's less likely to leak and/or overheat.

Any 2WD Saginaw box up through '79 will bolt right up. If you get the box from a junkyard truck, also get the matching steering linkage, as it changed in '71.

If you're installing this on an I6 truck, just grab the lower harmonic balancer/pulley from the junkyard truck. You might get away with not having a cooler, but I'd strongly suggest adding one on, just to eliminate overheating problems down the road.

When I first got my '67, it had a 240 in it. I was going to add power steering to it, so I went to the junkyard and got this setup from an '80s pickup with a 300:





That's the pump and bracket, lower pulley (harmonic balancer) and the water-pump pulley.

[JWW]

You'd be much happier with a Saginaw box anyway. It's less likely to leak and/or overheat.

Any 2WD Saginaw box up through '79 will bolt right up. If you get the box from a junkyard truck, also get the matching steering linkage, as it changed in '71.

If you're installing this on an I6 truck, just grab the lower harmonic balancer/pulley from the junkyard truck. You might get away with not having a cooler, but I'd strongly suggest adding one on, just to eliminate overheating problems down the road.

When I first got my '67, it had a 240 in it. I was going to add power steering to it, so I went to the junkyard and got this setup from an '80s pickup with a 300:





That's the pump and bracket, lower pulley (harmonic balancer) and the water-pump pulley.

Thanks for the pic and the advise.

I have read both tutorials on disc brake and power steering conversions. Awesome explanations, however, I just want to be sure I understand. I need a big learning curve. I plan to add disc brakes from a 73-79 2wd truck. I thought about saving and getting all the steering linkage, brake setup, and any power steering equipment available.

Do you remove the bolt from the harmonic balancer and just add the extra pulley and line up with the steering pump?

Thanks again for all the help. I'll say it again, this site is why I keep chugging along on my bump.

[FORDification]

On your 240, the harmonic balancer IS the bottom pulley. They're one piece. However, the one-groove pulley can't power both the alternator AND the PS pump. Therefore, you simply replace your one-groove harmonic balancer with with the two-groove version.

[JWW]

On your 240, the harmonic balancer IS the bottom pulley. They're one piece. However, the one-groove pulley can't power both the alternator AND the PS pump. Therefore, you simply replace your one-groove harmonic balancer with with the two-groove version.

I'm with you now. Remove my current balancer and put in a new one...