Adding power steering

[Katana550]

Hello all,

I would like to add power steering to my 1985 1.6VdP; does anyone have experience of this?

What parts do I require?

Can I just strip the parts from any suitably equipped model and transfer them?

Are the power steering pumps universal or are there specific version(s) required?

Any pointers would be great.

Thanks

Tim

[tony]

if you have a donor car you are laughing,its just a matter of swoping everything over,thats the best way of doing it

[malcsmaesty]

as long as you use the bits off a petrol and not a diesel,some bits maybe the same,but the main set up is different(pulleys on opposite sides),as tony has said if you have got a donor car its pretty straight forward:rolleyes:

[SimonR]

Ah, Simon Heap is the chap to help you on this, being as he's done this for his S-Series Maestro Mayfair, but I'll pass on the information he gave me a little while ago and I'm sure he'll fill in any blanks. I have nearly everything I require to convert F153 - just missing a few key parts.....

As far as I can see, the only way to do this is to find a donor car that's the same engine/gearbox config as yours and laborously remove all the bits. Note that I'm assuming that you have a 1.6 with manual gearbox as a) these are more common and b)usually PAS came with the auto.

Find a Maestro 1.6 Manual with PAS and take:

1. PAS Rack (best to remove all the pipes and hoses attached to it as I managed to mangle one when I removed my rack)
2. PAS Cooler pipes (that are bolted to the front of the sump)+ Bracket
3. Driver's side top engine mount (with pump adjustment - you'll see what I mean)
4. PAS pump
5. PAS pulley from cam shaft sprocket + 3 bolts
6. PAS pulley stiffner ring
7. Top and bottom of timing belt covers
8. Steering coloumn universal joint thingy from inside the car (the bit that attaches to the rack inside the car).
9. Plastic cover on bulkhead where rack passes through.
10. Gear change linkage (attached to the rack)

There are probably a few more bits that I've forgotten....

A few things to bear in mind (I spent two days removing these parts in a scrapper earlier on this year):

1. Monty racks will not do (different gearbox you see)
2. Some earlier Auto racks are the same as those used on the manual - look at how the gear change linkage attaches to your current rack and make sure that the PAS rack you get has those two brackets on it
3. You can use Monty cooling pipes and PAS pump
4. You'll wonder how to remove the lower passenger-side bolt that holds the rack on - the way that I found is to remove the engine mount that you want to keep and then get a jack and jack the engine away from the bulkhead as far as you can. You'll now be able to get a socket and universal joint adaptor thing in from below to undo the bolt. Bear in mind that it is a pain in the arse.
5. To withdraw the rack from the car, the easiest way I found was to remove the exhaust front pipe, slide the rack towards the passenger side and then take it out through the top of the engine bay. You'll need to remove some electrics and hoses to do this. Simon H chose a different route and took the subframe apart on the Driver's side and slid the rack out through the wheelarch.
6. You'll probably need to replace the high pressure pipe and PAS drive belt, which will cost about £60 from Rover.
7. If you're taking these parts from a car in the scrapper, take a whole load of tools including metric socket set, metric open spanners, knuckle bar, hammer and BALL JOINT SEPARATOR. That last item will save the day for sure! Oh, yeah - also make sure you have a spanner large enough for the ball joint separator!
8. Oh, nearly forgot, when I did this, the easiest thing was to remove the two front wheels and prop the car up on old wheels. Two each side under the sills was fine. Gives you much better access, you see.

You'll learn so much when you take the parts from the donor that refitting should be a lot easier...!

[Simon]

He's right you know! Most Maestro 1.6 PAS racks whether auto transmission or manual are the same prior to 1987 MY, but a 2L rack or post 1988 Montego 1.6 Manual one won't do because you'll need the lug for the manual transmission relay shaft bracket which these other racks don't have. If in doubt check for a vertical lug about half way along the rack housing. Automatic transmission 1.6's do indeed have a different RH engine mounting with adjuster quadrant than a manual transmission does and they are not directly swappable. At worst you need to purchase a new manual TX mounting from MG Rover dealer for about £75 + VAT. And yes, removing the PAS rack is a bit frustrating to say the least.

What's the end result like? Answer...well worth the aggro. Ensure the PAS belt is tensioned up nice and tight or it will be prone to slipping and the steering will judder on full lock. I had to reset the idling speed on my car after fitting PAS.

Best of luck, remember it can be done!