Manual to POWER STEERING upgrade

Looking to purchase a Sebring 1986 Replicar, took for a test drive and can barley turn manual steering?? Is this normal ??
OK, can I upgrade to power steering? How much ?? It currently has a edelbrook engine in it.
Suggestions, help ??.. Thanks You...

This SHOULD be a relatively straightforward conversion.  I highlighted "should" because unless it's a factory built kit, there is no standard as to parts.  Some have VW steering columns and some have GM (Sagainaw) columns.  I think I have even seen at least one that had a Ford column.

The good news is that it has a Mustang II front end since it is a Sebring.  Some Saxons had Chevette, which would be a nightmare.

You will need a power rack.  You have a couple of options here.  First is a standard MII rack.  It will bolt straight on to the chassis as is.  No issues with the tie rod  ends, but you may have to shorten the tie rods a little.  Unless the car has been fitted with narrowed control arms this should not be an issue.  The problem with the MII rack is that they are intended for the MII and Pinto low pressure power steering pumps.  When hooked up to a higher pressure pump, like those on typical V8's, you can have trouble with them leaking.  Some leak, some don't.  At the very least, the steering will be overboosted with the higher pressures.  The MII front suspension is a mainstay of the street rod industry and I can personally verify the overboosted thing is true.  There are workarounds for this issue since it is common, but there is a better option.

The Fox body Mustang that replaced the MII had a steering rack that is supposed to be designed for higher pressures and it has internal mods that give it a better road feel.  There is a slight issue with in that the mounting bolt spacing is slightly different than the regular MII rack.  The good news is that the driver side bolt is in the same place as the MII.  The passenger side bolt is 1/2" narrower.  The street rod folks have come up with a set of rack mounting bushings that have an offset hole that allows the Fox rack to bolt in place of the MII rack.  The tie rods are virtually the same so the MII tie rod ends will fit. You will sometimes see this rack listed as a Thunderbird rack, but that is because the 80's Tbirds and Lincolns used the same Fox body suspension parts as the Mustang.

Now that the rack is on, you will need to come up with a steering shaft to hook it up to your column.  There is good news there too.  The street rod vendors sell u-joints that will connect to most steering racks and to most popular columns.  The easiest shaft to use is the Double D shaft and that can be bought in longer lengths that can be cut to length.

The last part of the puzzle is the power steering pump and hoses.  Here again, the street rod folks are you friends.  There are many different pumps and brackets available for both Ford and Chevy engines.  You could also try to find an older stock pump and brackets, too.

As to hoses, it will depend on what fittings you wind up with.  You could have the hoses made up locally or there are braided hose kits available that you can make yourself.  The pressure side is the critical hose.  The return line can be clamped together since it doesn't see much pressure at all.  Most auto parts stores should have the low pressure return hose in bulk.

As you can see, the stuff to do this is available, but some "engineering" on your part is required.  None of it is complicated, though.  Other than the steering shaft which really is easy if you use the street rod stuff, the hoses are the only "custom" parts.  Much will depend on what parts are in the car now.  Post up some pictures of the steering column (top and under the hood) and the front of the engine so we can hopefully make better recommendations.

One other thing, the aftermarket street rod stuff is not cheap, but I highly recommend going with it, especially the U-joints, because it will make the job easier.

Thanks again Hotrod! I'll post pics when I take possession of the car.

rob

An alternative to changing over to hydraulic power steering is to install an EPAS electric power steering system. You can modify your existing column or buy a new column with the assist motor already installed. Straight forward installation and no additional clutter on the engine. Not cheap, but probably similar cost to a typical hydraulic system once all of the costs are added up.

Nice option. I'll look into it.


rob