The final piece of the puzzle...
The final piece of the puzzle is the power steering pump and mounting bracket. Every engine has its own challenges (pulleys, A/C, and so on), but we were lucky in that this engine doesn't have A/C on it since it is a northern California car. The machined bracket is bolted directly to the cylinder head for our installation using the aluminum spacers. Note the spacers are designed to be adjustable for pulley alignment by either cutting them shorter or adding shims to lengthen-that's trick!
The supplied power steering...
The supplied power steering pump is an aluminum casting with AN pressure and return fittings already installed. The blue pressure fitting can be replaced with different flow rate fittings to adjust the pump's pressure. The included hardware makes the installation a simple job.
To determine your belt length,...
To determine your belt length, a section of rope can be quickly wrapped around the pulleys and measured for overall length, just be sure your pump is situated in the middle of its adjustment travel to give you room to tighten the belt.
The included remote mount...
The included remote mount reservoir is one sweet piece. Not only is it fully polished to show quality, but it features a multi-port return flow path to prevent pump starvation as well as a vented cap with splash shield.
TCP designed the mounting...
TCP designed the mounting bracket with hidden fasteners for a clean underhood appearance. It also offers an optional 14-degree adapter for the reservoir's mount that is designed for the inner fender panel on classic Mustangs to give the reservoir a perfectly vertical mounting setup when bolted to the Mustang's inner fender.
We positioned the reservoir...
We positioned the reservoir at the left front inner fender apron where the original windshield washer bag and bracket was located. We simply moved the windshield washer bag bracket rearward and drilled new mounting holes for the power steering reservoir.
All that's left is to make...
All that's left is to make up our power steering hoses and we'll be done! The base TCP pump kit uses blue fiber braided hoses, but for this build we've stepped up to the braided hose option to go with the polished pump pulley and polished reservoir. Install and clock your line fittings per the instructions and then measure your hose length needed. Wrap the hose tightly with tape where it needs to be cut and use braided hose cutters, a fine tooth hacksaw, or a cut-off wheel to cut the hose to length.
To assemble the hoses, the...
To assemble the hoses, the outer threaded nut is slipped over the hose first, then the braided outer sleeve is gently spread open to allow the ferrule to be installed between the inner Teflon hose and the braided sleeve. Press the end fitting into the Teflon hose and thread the outer nut onto the fitting. Ensure the fitting is clocked in the direction needed before tightening the outer nut. Clean out all hose assemblies with hot water and then compressed air to dry them.
After you've assembled your...
After you've assembled your pressure and return hoses (three total), you can install them between the reservoir, pump, and rack. The rack fittings are clearly marked-P-for pump and T-for tank/reservoir. The large -10 hose will route from the reservoir to the red AN fitting on the pump, while the two -6 hoses will connect between the blue pump fitting and the rack, and the rack and the reservoir respectively.
Routing of the rack hoses...
Routing of the rack hoses can be made easier by picking up one of these TCP hose brackets. The simple affair allows for a clean routing and keeps hoses away from hot exhaust or moving parts that can damage the hoses.
Project Cost
Since this is the first in a series of upgrades for this car, we figured instead of listing product pricing throughout the story, as we normally do, we'd keep a running tally at the end of each story to see the cumulative cost of building a capable classic Mustang for spirited driving that you can live with and drive on the street every day.
| Product |
Part Number |
Cost |
| TCP Rack-and-Pinion |
TCP RCKPS-FD |
$2,098 |
| TCP Power Steering Pump |
TCP PSP-FD |
$698 |
| Polished Pulley Option |
N/A |
$20 |
| Braided Hose Upgrade |
TCP HOSE-02 |
*$120 |
| 14-degree Reservoir Adapter |
TCP PSR-01 |
*$30 |
| Total |
$2,966 |
| (*when purchased with kit) |
Personalizing Your TCP Steering Setup
Three elements of the TCP power steering system enable the level of assist to be varied to meet individual driver needs. The system can be adjusted to have low effort at the steering wheel for easy maneuvering in mostly low-speed conditions. For high-speed driving and racing, the steering effort can be increased to give the driver improved road feel through increased feedback. Initially set at the middle of the required range, the power steering pump output flow valve (1) can be easily changed to provide eight additional assist levels. Settings outside the range of the flow valves can be accomplished by changing the internal torsion bar (2), shifting the base point of the tuning range. Many vehicles have a tendency to drift right or left while going straight. The causes for this are numerous and many cannot be resolved. To solve this problem, steering bias can be adjusted to perfectly center itself with a simple adjustment on the servo (3).