When you're building a car for the track and the street, there are many conflicting elements that must be resolved when combining these two functions. What's good for the street may be a poor addition to a race car, but sacrifices and compromises need to be made. One of them is fitting the car with power steering. It isn't too common to see a car out on the track with power steering, unless it's because it spends a lot of time on the street. The convenience of power-assisted steering on the street is impossible to overlook. The popular Pro Touring style of today's muscle cars usually includes a smaller-than-stock steering wheel and large sticky tires up front that make manual steering difficult to manage, especially for a smaller person like me. With so much focus on comfort in these rides, power steering is a no-brainer.
Our '66 Mustang, Project Street Fighter, is tuned more to the track than to the street when it comes to creature comforts, but this is one thing we had to have. So far, our front end is loaded with Total Control Products coilovers, sway bar, and quick-ratio power rack. Out back is TCP's matching coilover four-bar setup with a sway bar. This car is going to do some serious turning in its life, and a factory pump was not going to be able to take the heat. We're using an aluminum remote-reservoir-style pump with a KRC bracket and pulley to pressurize the system. We mounted Total Control Product's polished aluminum reservoir right next to the coolant overflow to keep things neat in the engine bay. From there we assembled the power steering hoses from TCP's line-and-fitting kit, mating the pump, rack, and reservoir together. For an additional $120, TCP will upgrade your hoses from the high-pressure blue lines to stainless steel braided versions. Both are plenty strong, but the stainless may work with your engine bay better. We stuck with the basic blue lines since there isn't a stitch of steel braid in our bay so far.
Routing the hoses was definitely the most difficult part of the project because you must take special care to avoid any place where they can rub or be heated. Because the Mustang doesn't run yet, we didn't get to bleed the system, but once Project Street Fighter is up and running, we'll get that taken care of.
WHERE THE MONEY WENT DESCRIPTION: PN: Cost: Power steering reservoir, pump, bracket, hoses, and fittings TCP-PSP-FD $689 Reservoir 14-degree adapter (to mount to inner fender) TCP-PSR-01 $39 ALL PARTS, DEAL $728
THE COST SO FAR ITEM: PHR ISSUE: PRICE: The car $3,800 Battery replace and relocation (11/08) $299 Radiator and fans (12/08) $1,398.12 Spindles, front brakes, wheels tires (1/09) $3,067.04 Trunk rehab and tool box (2/09) $40.48 Rack-and-pinion steering, column, and wheel (4/09) $3,012 9-inch rear and brakes (5/09) $4,631.02 Rear suspension (6/09) $2,918 Front suspension (7/09) $3,034 Engine bay cleanup with engine sale (8/09) -$394.75 Smeding 427 Windsor (9/09) $9,995 Keisler five-speed swap (10/09) $4,181.55 Paint and body supplies (3/10) $1,607.85 Engine brace (6/10) $459 Rollcage (7/10) $628.95 Wiring harness (8/10) $659 JME gauge pod and glove door (9/10) $1,175.90 Interior overhaul with seat sale (10/10) $1,219.83 Subframe connectors, center support, and loop (12/10) $498 Power steering accessories (1/11) $728 Total: $42,957.99
