MKIV Coyote + KRC Power Steering

[bansheekev]

Well I finally finished my power steering setup on my MKIV Coyote build. Figured I would share my experience...

KRC's power steering setup for the Coyote is designed to run off of the water pump pulley and is mounted via their custom bracket just to the left (when looking from the front of the motor) above where the factory AC compressor would be. They provide a replacement water pump pulley with an additional belt location for the power steering in front of the water pump belt. Their design uses a 4.25" water pump pulley and a 6" power steering pulley which keeps the RPM of the pump below the max rated 5500 RPM of their cast iron pumps (unless you want to break the bank and get one of their aluminum pumps). Their pumps can be adjusted for boost pressure by replacing the output/pressure line 6AN fitting which has an integrated flow control valve. They have 8 different fittings you can buy with different flow rates for about $20 each. I bought the second to lowest flow rate valve which is rated at 1.75 GPM. The pump supply line input is a 10AN fitting and I routed that to one of KRC's remote reservoirs which is internally baffled. All of the AN fittings and lines came from Breeze.

From the top:
IMG_2098-1.jpg
From the bottom:
IMG_2100-1.jpg

Only thing that is a little bit of a challenge is that since the pump is high and gravity fed, the reservoir also has to be up high. I found that the only place that the reservoir could be mounted and be high enough was above the radiator shroud next to the Coyote radiator tank. The F panel didn't work as the clearance required for the hood strut forced it to be a bit low. I searched everywhere for an power steering reservoir that was lower profile and more horizontal (longer rather than taller) but could not find anything. My placement worked out fine with the 90 degree 10AN fitting from the reservoir being about 1" above the pump inlet (another 90 degree 10AN fitting) and was routed above the radiator fan.

IMG_2097-1.jpg

The routing of the pressure lines took me a while to figure out. After a couple different approaches I realized that adding a cooler simplified the routing. So, I mounted a small cooler (8" long) down in the oil cooler opening in the nose. I used a 90 degree 6AN fitting off the pump outlet and routed the line above the radiator fan, a 45 degree 6AN fitting at the rack inlet, a straight 6AN fitting at the rack outlet, straight 6AN fittings at the cooler inlet and outlet, and a 90 degree 6AN fitting returning to the reservoir routed along the driver side edge of the radiator shroud. Without the cooler the return line to the reservoir would have been 6" long which probably would have lead to heat problems anyway.

IMG_2105-1.jpgIMG_2103-1.jpgIMG_2104-1.jpg

Overall I really like the product, all the components are top notch machined aluminum with black anodizing. The whole setup including cast iron pump, brackets, pulley, hardware, reservoir, lines, and fittings was around $700 (not including the Fox 3 turn lock to lock rack).

Finished late yesterday and didn't have a chance to get it down off the jack stands to give it a drive and try it out. I did prime the system and started the motor to purge air. This pump is very quiet, no whine - I couldn't tell it was even there compare to what it sounded like before installing it. The first drive probably won't be until this weekend. I will report back as to how it performs and feels...

Kevin