New to the forum and with another 73 CJ5 power steering conversion question

Hello,

I am looking into getting a CJ5 for my girlfriend, as of now I have my eye on a 73 CJ5. The issue is it doesn’t have power steering and she will need it.

I have been searching on this site for the last 3 days on a conversion but I can really find a concrete answer. For some reason every time I think I am close to the answer the link that the post is referring to doesn’t work.

Is there a thread that list all the required parts and where to find them? I will appreciate your help on this since this could determine if I buy this jeep or not.

Also what is the average cost of this conversion?

Thank you!

r_unda

 

I am familiar with a 74 CJ5 with power steering ..Maybe the 73 is the same?? I do know the steering shaft bell coupler will have to be changed to a bigger size. The saginaw box, I would almost gaurantee would bolt right in. The 74 uses a cast iron box mount. The power steering brackets and hoses I don't know for sure. The pump is a saginaw (GM) I believe. The main issue is getting the factory PS pump brackets.
You will have to watch out for the old style and new style box .. though. old style inverted flare fittings . New style O ring Gord

 

http://www.earlycj5.net/forums/showthread.php?17911-Saginaw-power-steering-(pics)-please-add-yours!!

 

6 or V8? Makes a big difference.

A '73 will already have Saginaw steering, so the link about conversion to Saginaw steering will not help you.

Conversion to power steering for a '73 is a bolt-on process, if you can find the parts that you need.

 

Sorry is a 6 cyl.

Thanks for the help guys!

 

Ok. A 6 is harder than a V8.

The new steering gear will bolt up to your existing steering gear bracket. You can pick a Jeep steering gear, or any gear from a large GM car. Likely the easiest route is to buy a rebuilt steering gear for the same year/model as your Jeep. This will give you the fittings that match the replacement hoses for Jeeps, and will provide a turns ratio that is appropriate to the Jeep. Someone will want your manual steering gear, so don't throw it away.

You will need the PS bell coupling, as mentioned above.

Mounting for the pump can be problematic. The steering pump itself is a commodity item, and you can use one from the junkyard or a remanufactured one. There are several variations of the pump brackets and pulleys. The safest approach is to take all the stuff off the front of a donor engine - pulleys, water pump, brackets and accessories. Then put it all on your engine, and it will line up. Get hoses that match the year of the donor.

 

Here's a Google search that might help:
http://www.google.com/search?q=site....,cf.osb&fp=9ed169a75f53af9b&biw=1186&bih=996

 

Timgr is right, the small parts for the swap will nickel and dime you to death. Go to a junkyard or find a donor and pull everything off you may need.

When I converted mine I swapped the alternator to the pass side and used the old mounting bracket as a template to build a 1/4" bracket.

If you go this route, get a water pump and hose for a 76 cj5. The correct way would be to get the dual belt pulley, timing cover, alternator bracket, and ps pump brackets. I modified the alternator bracket on mine to take a 12si internally regulated alternator and did not need the timing cover, but some do.

Also, chances are very good you will not have the mounting hole for the PS pump on your existing intake manifold. So you will have to build something to shore up the front to rear movement of the PS pump.

Good luck, converting mine to PS was perhaps the best modification I have done to it to date!

 

Thanks for all the great information guys!

Does anyone has a photo of the passenger side bracket so I know how it looks like?

Do you have a photo you can post? would like to see your setup.

Thanks!

 

There are a few of the alternator bracket on here http://www.earlycj5.net/forums/show...s-cruising-now!-PS-12si-drive-shafts-and-more

I don't think I shot any of the ps pump bracket, but it is just a simple triangular cut flat 1/4" from 4" flat bar. Two bolts to the water pump and one to the pump bracket.

 

I have a complete 258 motor from a 68 scout that has the passenger side power steering pump.
Anyone know if that will work on the 73?

Was the scout motor actually a 258 or 232?

 

Thanks for the link!! Really helped me visualized what I need to do. Do you happen to know how much more you added to the alternator bracket? what is the final measurement of the bracket width?

Thanks!

Thanks!

 

if its an amc either would work.

 

Maybe. The pre-71 232 is a different bell pattern, and different from the 258 and later 232. The easiest way to tell is by the starter location. The early engines hae the starter on the driver's side, and the later engines on the passenger side.

The AMC 258 did not exist in 1968, so something else is going on here. The AMC 6s in 1968 were the 199 and the 232.

 

I was thinking of offering up the power steering pump and brackets to the op if they'd fit. Just wanted to determine if it would.

 

They might. If it's a '68 AMC engine, I'd guess it's a 232.

The engines are basically the same except for the bell pattern and the deck height. The 199 became the new 232 and the 232 became the new 258, in 1971. The front of the engine did not change.

 

If memory serves it was about 1/2" or so. It was nothing to scientific, just mocked it up and used a square to figure out how far out the bracket needed to be.

 

Thanks For the help guys! Picked the 73 up on Friday.

73 CJ5, 258 engine, minimal rust, everything seems to be working fine.





It is hiding it at a friend's house. Will give it to my GF probably next month. I am sure she will be happy!

Now I need to add the power steering. The seller gave me the power steering box and pump that he had in his garage. Box part number is 7806688



Would this box fit?

Thanks!

 

Nice looking Jeep. The box should fit, but the splines on the input don't look like CJ to me. Can you get a better picture of the input shaft?

 

Ya, what 74Renegade said, that input shaft looks tiny. The best bet for both of those I would think would be to use for cores for rebuilt units.