Power Steeing Specialists
We have been given Power Steering Specialist status by the MGOC. There are going to be a few centres nationally offering Power Steering upgrades to the MGB and MGC.
MGC and B Power Steering Kit
I can supply and fit the MGC and MGB power steering kit.
MGC Power Steering
For too many years people have said that MGCs are very heavy on the front. Right from the first press release these cars were criticised for the weight of the 6 cylinder engine that gave the car a bias weight of 52% over the front wheels. This made manoeuvring the car difficult at slow speeds and twitchy in the corners. The handling in the corners has been made much better with the upgraded items available like torsion bars, shock absorbers and of course, much better tyres. This just left the slow speed awkwardness of the C. Now power steering is available and it’s really rather good.
MGC Power Steering
This is the kit of parts laid out and ready to go. The car needs to be jacked up and supported with axle stands on the chassis and the steering wheel needs to be centred using the indicator cancelling arm and then strapped tight to stop any movement.
MGC Power Steering
I gave the brackets a quick blast and paint in etch and 2K black as they are mild steel and would corrode.
MGC Power Steering
Out with the old. The old rack can now be removed; you can also remove the steering arms from the stub axles and refit the modified arms. The engine mounts should be changed if they are sagging at all and the bottom engine mount screw has to be left off as this would obstruct the new column.
MGC Power Steering
The new adaptor plate is then fitted ready for the new power rack.
MGC Power Steering
The rack has to be centred prior to fitting and the modified lower steering column also has to be connected and checked for clearance. The adaptor plate also needed slight modification as the new column hit on the chassis. Because the car I fitted the kit to was an automatic, I also had to reshape the gearbox cooling pipes ever so slightly.
MGC Power Steering
Remove the alternator, remove the pulley and fit the modified double pulley. I have been fitting MGB power steering for a few years and found the recess for the nut was always too small to take a standard socket but this has been taken into account now.
MGC Power Steering
Fit the alternator mounting plate and refit the alternator and belt in the new position.
MGC Power Steering
Now fit the power steering pump, pulley & belt, making sure all the belts are in line. This takes a few goes to get the spacer washers in the correct place but is crucial or the belts will not last at all.
The pipes are next and connect up to the pump, rack and fluid reservoir. Fill the reservoir and start the car, working the steering wheel from side to side while topping up the reservoir and then check for any leaks.
I fitted new track rod ends, set the tracking, refitted the wheels and also had to move the outer steering column down slightly to make the indicators cancel themselves and then it was off round the yard for a drive. The steering feels wonderful, it’s light and responsive and makes manoeuvring and parking an MGC really easy. Another quick check over and then off up the road to see what the car feels like at speed. The car is not at all twitchy at speed and feels very natural in the roundabouts with no squeal coming off the tyres.
Finally, keep all the old parts as you could go back to the old rack if you wanted to…..but why would you want to?
Update. I have now fitted 50 or so MGC’s with power steering and every customer has said that it has transformed the car for them.
MGC Power Steering
I did not want to like this kit but have fitted a few now and I love the way it makes the car feel. There are no downsides and makes MGs much easier to drive.
MGB Power Steering
We can now offer power steering for the MGB.
The crossmember has to be altered with welding so takes longer to fit than the MGC kit.
MGC Power Steering
We can now offer power steering for the MGB. These are available in kit form for you to fit yourself or we can fit it to your MGB. The crossmember has to be altered or we can supply a crossmember with the modification already done.
MGB All years £830 plus £680 fitting.
MGC £1000 plus £544 fitting.
All prices plus VAT.