Add power steering in 67 coupe?

[Memo]

What's the cheapest way to add power steering to a 1967 Coupe? The wife likes to drive it but has a hard time parking it. It has a 302. Oh and who can do it for me? Been too busy these days and don't have the time.

[Scott Mc]

Put the IFS DJ put on his. Best bang for your buck.

[Baron Von Crowder]

Scott beat me to it.

the long answer is that the factory steering is pretty horrible, and the power portion was worse. I added up what it would cost of rebuild the steering (already power) on my 69 and it was a few hundred away from buying the AJE kit. I already had brakes and spindles, so that was a factor, plus i was going to need ball joints and bushings to rebuild the stock front suspension.

The power rack and pinion kits arent very good options, for the cost.

[BLAKE]

There is another option, especially if your existing steering is in good shape already.

http://forums.vintage-mustang.com/mod-custom-forum/787114-best-200-mod-ever-eps.html

That is a monster of a thread, and it has some twists and turns, but a lot of people are going this route these days. Essentially, it's grafting an electronic power assist unit from a Saturn Vue or Prius into the lower part of the steering column.

Takes some fabrication, but you don't have to mess with leaky and expensive hydraulic systems, and while plenty of people are happy with their rack & pinion systems, that is also a hack, most of which use GM Cavalier racks as a base and suffer from poor turning radius.

Also, I would argue against the assertion that the factory system is horrible. In good working condition, there's nothing wrong with it. Though I would agree that the factory power steering is a bit of a mess. I'd rather run manual (and I do) than that leaky PITA.

I'm sure some racks are fine, but for the cost, I'm going to be doing this EPAS solution.

[homealone]

I am not up to full speed on the Saturn electric conversion but my brother is looking into it on my old 66 and it seems to be a good idea.

Another popular option is a power gear box.

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/clp-cpp5356pskoc/overview/

[Baron Von Crowder]

There is another option, especially if your existing steering is in good shape already.

http://forums.vintage-mustang.com/mod-custom-forum/787114-best-200-mod-ever-eps.html

That is a monster of a thread, and it has some twists and turns, but a lot of people are going this route these days. Essentially, it's grafting an electronic power assist unit from a Saturn Vue or Prius into the lower part of the steering column.

Takes some fabrication, but you don't have to mess with leaky and expensive hydraulic systems, and while plenty of people are happy with their rack & pinion systems, that is also a hack, most of which use GM Cavalier racks as a base and suffer from poor turning radius.

Also, I would argue against the assertion that the factory system is horrible. In good working condition, there's nothing wrong with it. Though I would agree that the factory power steering is a bit of a mess. I'd rather run manual (and I do) than that leaky PITA.

I'm sure some racks are fine, but for the cost, I'm going to be doing this EPAS solution.

the problem with the classic mustang community is that a majority of the owners live with piss poor handling and performance for no reason, other than "that's what people do".

[Baron Von Crowder]

I am not up to full speed on the Saturn electric conversion but my brother is looking into it on my old 66 and it seems to be a good idea.

Another popular option is a power gear box.

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/c...skoc/overview/

that looks like a reasonable option.

[BLAKE]

the problem with the classic mustang community is that a majority of the owners live with piss poor handling and performance for no reason, other than "that's what people do".

There is definitely something to that, but I believe that is offset equally by the psychology of "I spent $X,XXX on this mod therefore it it has to be amazing and 11billion times better than stock".

From my own personal experience, my stock manual steering is in good shape and I feel like it handles great, let alone "horrible". I just wish parking lots were a little easier to manage, but a little extra muscle while parking is worth the trade off for good performance at speed. If I can do the EPAS thing and have the best of both worlds, so much the better.

[Baron Von Crowder]

There is definitely something to that, but I believe that is offset equally by the psychology of "I spent $X,XXX on this mod therefore it it has to be amazing and 11billion times better than stock".

From my own personal experience, my stock manual steering is in good shape and I feel like it handles great, let alone "horrible". I just wish parking lots were a little easier to manage, but a little extra muscle while parking is worth the trade off for good performance at speed. If I can do the EPAS thing and have the best of both worlds, so much the better.

would you consider it similar, better or worse than a fox, as far as steering goes?

[BLAKE]

would you consider it similar, better or worse than a fox, as far as steering goes?

Interesting question. I'll have to say I'm not qualified to answer that though. I have a total of about 5 minutes seat time driving a fox.

My assumption would be that the Fox would be better, simply because it's newer, and that there's still room for improvement in a Fox.

My point isn't that stock 60's steering is God's gift to engineering, but rather in good shape with good suspension mods (most importantly including the Shelby/Arning drop) and some good tires, the stock system isn't junk.

[garycrist]

I saw this somewhere...

http://americanpowertrain.com/c-321388-electric-power-steering-ford-1965-70-mustang-cougar.html

[BLAKE]

I saw this somewhere...

http://americanpowertrain.com/c-3213...ng-cougar.html

Huh. Never heard of that one before. It's a nice idea. I wonder how it works.

[cool cat]

I saw this somewhere...

http://americanpowertrain.com/c-3213...ng-cougar.html

$2,245 at Summit Racing.

[BLAKE]

$2,245 at Summit Racing.

Woof

[4EyedTurd]

Good points on buying shit that might help. Any clue on how to tell if shit actually helps? I asked a question about swapping C4 Vette front suspension into a 60’s Chevy but need to research if you can make a 60’s belair halfass handle.