up grading our 67 restoration with a mini truck power steering conversion, boy those boxes are hard to find, just got one. We are using 33 inch tires, do we need a power steering cooler?
Do I need a Steering cooler
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How do you plan to drive the truck? And are the 33s 12.5s or skinny?
If you're doing a typical minitruck PS conversion, your 33s need to be skinny or they will rub the pitman arm on left turns.
For a cooler, I used a 4' piece of prefab steel brake line with the nuts cut off (but the flares left on), and bent it into a tight oval. This lives behind the driver's side headlight and does a nice job of cooling the PS fluid. It's plumbed into the return line, so it's low pressure. The flares on this prefab line help keep the hose from sliding off. I have never had my PS overheat during any form of wheeling or driving and the fluid says pink and fresh.
For a cooler, I used a 4' piece of prefab steel brake line with the nuts cut off (but the flares left on), and bent it into a tight oval. This lives behind the driver's side headlight and does a nice job of cooling the PS fluid. It's plumbed into the return line, so it's low pressure. The flares on this prefab line help keep the hose from sliding off. I have never had my PS overheat during any form of wheeling or driving and the fluid says pink and fresh.
The mini truck has about a foot long U shaped tube (3-4 ft of tubing al together) mounted on the radiator support in front of the radiator. Its the piece of hard line in the picture. Something like that would be the minimum. You may be able to find something like that off an old Toyota PU in the pick n pull.
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What pump are you using ? If its stock Toyota I would put a cooler on it.
No you will not need a cooler IMO. I’m running 33-12.50-15 tires and a mini truck steering box and a Saginaw type box for my V-8 conversion. Never had an overheating issue and yes I take mine off road it’s what I have it for. Yes it will barely rub if I turn to the left limit so I avoid doing that vs wheel spacers. I have hundreds of off road hours on my set up, it’s been solid and problem free. I have gone thru a few pumps over the ten or so years but I just installed a Tuff Stuff new pump about a year ago and all has been good so far. My steering unit was used when I bought it and I haven’t had to touch it since I installed it, Toyota tuff.
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It will be driven mostly on the road and the tires are 33 x 10.5, I was planning using the pump that comes in the kit from JT outfitters.
I really appreciate all the great feedback.
I found on my cruiser that if you have headers the spacing is real close to the power steering gear box and there's a lot of convection heat between the two. A stock exhaust manifold would give more room. So I put in a cooler to save the gearbox seals.
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Was there room for a stainless heat shield to be used?
^^X2^^
My headers run 450* in the warm Nevada sun... my PS Pump fluid was almost boiling, next to the headers.
I added a cooler and never had another problem.
The gear box was never a problem... it picks up more air down on the frame rail.
With very slight modifications, you can use the heat shield from an OEM FJ40 manual steering box on the minitruck power steering box, when used on an FJ40. Easy and a good way to keep heat away from the box.
Good Solid question ,
my TOYOTA factory FSM answer is very simple : Why would u Not want to keep your Power Steering Fluid and all the Components is flows
through as Cool as humanly possible under any driving conditions ?
adding heat will just lead to fluid break down sooner & leaks at components even sooner
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Go to your local auto salvage yard and pull a transmission cooler off of a smaller car. I used one from a Ford Taurus. Can be mounted on the driver side fender without drilling any additional holes if I recall correctly (but that was on a 77).
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I would say yes, add the cooler and x2 to a used trans cooler. Toyota found it necessary to run length of hard line under the bib of the 75 series as a cooler so that's indicative of the need.
Need... NO. Should you, I would... but was considering running a Scout II box without it.
I’ve also been planning on upgrading my trans cooler on my 7.3 PSD trans, and using its old one... or perhaps using its P/S cooler if we play musical coolers.
Now to find a 6.0 E350 van trans cooler and I can get the music started.
I’ve also been planning on upgrading my trans cooler on my 7.3 PSD trans, and using its old one... or perhaps using its P/S cooler if we play musical coolers.
Now to find a 6.0 E350 van trans cooler and I can get the music started.
On the 7.3 cooler, I replaced mine with the 27 row 6.0 trans cooler and I will say it works. I pulled my tag along trailer up several major mountain passes here in the California Sierras and my tranny temp never budges. Prior I had to pullover and let it cool down on Monitor pass with the stock cooler. As far as steering box, I’m not running one and never had a heating problem on my mini truck set up.
Around here it’s $400 for a 6.0 cooler or $140 for a universal one that many others on expedition portal that’s rated for a 40k lb load... I’m leaning that way since it’s been equally effective.
