Power steering cooler

candphall

Active Member
Jun 8, 2009
488
32
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Orlando Florida
I am relitively new to this forum but from what I have seen there is someone who has an answer for everything. I am currently rebuilding a 69 Sport Roof. The car has been apart for about 10 years and I am in the process of putting it together as a daily driver. It has a 351 Cleveland, four barrel, C6 transmission, power steering and factory air. My current question, and ther will be many more, concerns the power steering. I have found a small cooler about 2.5 inches wide and 8 inches long. I believe it is a power steering cooler. If so could someone tell me where it mounts and where it is tapped into the system. Also could someone explain the PS hose routing from the pump to the control valve.
Thanks in advance,
Chris
 
Typically, on the few installations which had PS fluid coolers, the return hose connected to the cooler, then the cooler outlet went to the pump inlet.

If you reverse the hoses on the PS cylinder, the steering will experience violent reverse feeback, which can only be stopped by shutting off the engine.

70PShoses.webp
 
I can't help thinking that the power-steering cooler was only intended for A/C equipped cars. I don't really know, but without the A/C, the cooler looks like dung IMO.

Though 71-73s are different in many ways, I suspect they are the same when it comes to the power steering cooler installation (if so equipped) on A/C equipped cars. Here are a few pictures I've collected over the years:

mvc-516f.webp


mvc-517f.webp


78027401_6.webp


77758042_6.webp
 
the hose routing is all done on the return side of the PS cooler. what is needed is the normal return line from the control valve routes up to the PS cooler and then there is another hose that connects the cooler to the return side of the pump. my car has a later model PS cooler on it as well.