1972 F100 4x4 power steering conversion victory!

[Ken Bernard]

Hi all - new to this site but thought I should chime in. I've been reading/researching for about a year re: how to convert a 72 f100 4x4 to power steering. There are a bunch of threads about this issue but they all were a bit over my head. It was pretty frustrating and confusing for me so I thought I might share.

I finally discovered that there was no easy way to add power steering to this version of the f100. I didn't have the skills or confidence to do some of the salvaging and fitting that others recommended. After much research, I bought and installed a power steering box from "benchworksteering.com".

I called them and explained exactly what I was trying to do, being very specific about the year and model of truck. They were very helpful and I was confident that they were going to ship the right equipment. I had located a pump bracket from a salvage yard (FE 360) and bought a rebuilt power steering pump from a local parts store.

I ordered the "kit" from benchworks. $1400 gets you a steering box, new power steering lines, and a new steering shaft. For $300 more they would have sent me a new pump.

A buddy (pretty good car guy) and I dove in. The large nut holding the pitman arm in place was a handful (had to go and get a pitman arm remover from the parts store, even then, I had to apply some heat to get it to break free). Removing the original box and the shaft was easy. The new steering box is much larger and a different bolt pattern from the original. The only hole that fits is the bottom right. We placed a bolt in that hole, placed the new box in the right position (per the instructions) and marked the two new holes. We drilled the new holes and mounted the new box on the frame. This was a bit of a chore, as the top right hole conflicts with the crossmember, lots of drilling and customizing, but we got it secured.

Tip: we should have attached the new shaft prior to mounting the new box on the frame. The bolts for the new box were such a pain, that I opted to cut down the new shaft rather than remove the box and start over.

Everything else was relatively easy.

I did have trouble getting the new system"bled" properly. There will be a ton of air in the new system. After multiple failures, I called benchworks. Best tip was to put a long clear funnel into the fill tube, fill it up so there is plenty of fluid in the funnel. Start the motor, let the fluid get warm, and then slowly, very slowly, start turning wheel from 11o'clock to center, to 1 o'clock, to center, 10 o'clock, center, etc. the fluid in the funnel would go up and down dramatically, and there was a ton of foaming and bubbles. Patience and eventually it will clear.

Truck steers like a dream now. Big investment and more of an install job than I bargained for, but a great upgrade. Hope this helps the next average guy trying to get power steering into an awesome truck!

[1972hiboy]

Congrats! power steering is a wonderful thing. I have often thought about diving into that one on a couple of my f250 4x4s, Welcome to the site and post some pics!

[Raiver]

Howdy Ken! That is an incredible write-up and tips. This is a great future reference.
Can't wait to start working on the F100 soon right after I got back from a trip. We'll just finish installing the new set of tires and the ready lift kit on the other F150 project before we can have all the time working on the F100. Power steering definitely one of the mods we will be doing. Can't wait!