Early Bronco Power Steering Kits

Early Bronco Steering Systems: Manual vs. Power

From 1966 to 1977, the Ford Bronco's steering system saw several significant evolutions. In this article, we break down the key differences in the various early Bronco steering configurations. We will do our best to identify not only what changes were made, but why they were seen as necessary. We will also provide some technical advice and information for those of you looking to upgrade or repair your early Bronco steering. 

Before we get started, here is a quick reference to answer commonly asked questions about the stock early Bronco steering systems:

• 66-77 Ford Bronco Manual Steering
  • 6-turn Ratio Steering Box
  • 3/4" x 36-spline Input Shaft
  • One-piece Manual Steering Shaft
    
    
• 73-75 Ford Bronco Power Steering
  • 6-turn Ratio Steering Box
  • 13/16" x 36-spline Input Shaft
  • Two-piece Power Steering Shaft with Fixed Lower Shaft
    
    
• 76-77 Ford Bronco Power Steering
  • 4-turn Quick Ratio Steering Box
  • 13/16" x 36-spline Input Shaft
  • Two-piece Power Steering Shaft with Collapsible Lower Shaft
    
    
• Steering Box Output to Pitman Arm
  • ALL early Bronco steering boxes have same output shaft connection for pitman arm.
  • 1966 Ford Bronco uses small taper pitman arm to steering drag link.
  • 1966-75 Ford Bronco uses large taper pitman arm to steering drag link.
  • 1976-77 Ford Bronco uses small taper pitman arm to steering drag link.

66-77 Ford Bronco Manual Steering: 6-Turn

From 1966 to mid-1972, manual steering was the only configuration available on the Ford Bronco.

The stock manual early Bronco steering gearbox was a 6-turn lock to lock steering gear. This meant that if you turned the Bronco's steering box all the way to the left, you would need to turn the steering wheel six full rotations to get the steering gear to lock out to the right.

Connecting the early Bronco manual steering gear to the steering wheel was a long one-piece steering shaft that went all the way from the steering gearbox, through the steering column and into the back of the steering wheel. The steering gear end of this box featured a steering bell assembly that connected to the 3/4" x 36-spline input on the manual steering box.

This steering gear required notable effort to turn the wheel due to the lack of hydraulic assist. As the years passed and early Bronco owners began opting for larger tire configurations, manual steering became even more burdensome as the larger tires were heavier and much harder to turn. The call for power steering grew louder, and Ford eventually took note.

73-75 Ford Bronco Power Steering: 6-Turn

For the 1973 year model Ford Bronco equipped with a factory 302 V8 (and actually in some late 1972 year models), Ford added the option to upgrade the Bronco to power steering. 

This new early Bronco power steering system retained the 6-turn ratio that the stock manual steering gearbox featured. The 73-75 Bronco power steering gear retained the same mounting pattern to mount onto the Bronco frame.

A new steering shaft was implemented for the early Bronco power steering systems. This new shaft setup featured an upper steering shaft that mounted to the steering wheel and came down through the steering column. Just past the column, a steering rag joint was used to connect the lower steering shaft. The lower shaft featured a heavy duty u-joint at the end that connected to the new Bronco power steering box's 13/16" x 36-spline input.

Next, a hydraulic power steering pump was added to the driver side of the engine's front drive. This pump had a v-belt pulley attached to it that connected to new dual-groove water pump and crankshaft pulleys. As the engine ran, this pump would pressurize the hydraulic steering fluid heading to the new power steering gearbox, resulting in hydraulic assisted steering that made turning the Bronco much easier.

Additional consideration was taken in regards to the radiator core support. A stamped cutout relief was added to the core support to accommodate the power steering gear's larger footprint. 

The new early Bronco power steering upgrade option was a hit, and just as soon as it was released, Ford was already working on an upgraded version.

76-77 Ford Bronco Power Steering: 4-Turn Quick Ratio

For the final two years, the early Bronco recieved its most advanced power steering system with a new 4-turn quick ratio power steering gearbox and a newly designed telescoping lower steering shaft to reduce road feel and provide improved safety in the event of a front end collision. 

The most noticeable upgrade to the 76-77 Ford Bronco power steering system was its new 4-turn, quick ratio power steering box. This box was much more responsive than the earlier Bronco steering gears, requiring two less revolutions to turn the wheels from lock to lock. This improvement gave early Bronco drivers better control on the road.

Less obvious, but equally effective was the addition of a telescoping lower steering shaft on 76-77 Broncos. With this shaft, the lower steering shaft was separated into two shafts that were capable of collapsing together (one inside the other). This took out a lot of the rigidity felt in early solid Bronco steering shafts. It also meant that there was room for the shaft to give in a front end collision, where the earlier steering shafts had nowhere to go but through the steering wheel if the front of the Bronco was collapsed too far in a crash. This new collapsible lower steering shaft also connected to a 13/16" x 36-spline input on the Bronco power steering box. 

Early Bronco Power Steering Conversions

As more and more early Bronco drivers saw the benefits of power steering, they quickly began upgrading their manual steering early Broncos to power steering. Through the years, there have been several ways of doing this but generally required sourcing used or rebuilt components to perform the upgrade. Today, WILD HORSES' early Bronco power steering conversion kits are available with all new components to quickly and effectively upgrade your early Bronco to power steering.

Early Bronco Power Steering Upgrade Component Requirements:

If you are upgrading your early Bronco from factory manual steering to power steering, there are a few specific items that you will need. Don't worry about sourcing them, these items are all included in the WILD HORSES Master Early Bronco Power Steering Conversion Kit. The following is a list of those items required for the upgrade:

• Early Bronco Power Steering Gear Box
• Power Steering Hydraulic Pump with Mounting Brackets
• High & Low Pressure Power Steering Hydraulic Hoses
• Double Groove Crank Shaft & Water Pump Pulleys
• Telescoping Lower Steering Shaft

Minimal Modification Requirement: 

Your new power steering conversion kit is designed to easily bolt in to your Bronco.

Our early Bronco power steering gearbox will mount directly to the three factory steering box holes in the early Bronco frame. However, our box features a fourth mounting flange to allow for additional support. Drilling of the frame is required if you opt to use this additional flange. We feel this is a worthwhile modification as the factory mounting system was not built to handle the stress of today's common 35" to 40" tire sizes. 

The only other modification necessary is to cut and grind the factory manual steering shaft. This could be avoided by installing a new upper steering shaft, but we feel it is much easier to modify the manual shaft than to remove and replace the steering shaft. You will simply need to cut the steering shaft at the desired length and grind two flat spots on the shaft opposing each other to create a double-D for mounting the lower shaft.

Vacuum Wiper Considerations: 

66-68 Ford Broncos came with fuel pump-driven vacuum wipers. If your early Bronco still has this wiper setup, you may experience clearance issues with the power steering pump. Due to this issue as well as the common issues associated with running vacuum wipers in general, we highly recommend you consider upgrading to an electric wiper system and a new fuel pump for compatibility.

Early Bronco Power Steering with Ford 351W Engine Swap: 

Installing power steering in an early Bronco equipped with a Ford 351W engine necessitates the use of an adapter bracket (WILD HORSES part #8048) to ensure correct component alignment. This is an inexpensive adapter and is exceptionally simple to install.