TKOPerformance wrote:

Unfortunately a lot of that is because it has power steering.  That's how the power steering systems of the day were designed to feel.  Today its all about road feel and feedback, back then it was all about grandma being able to turn the wheel with her pinky. 

What can you do to improve it?  How far into it do you want to get?  The only way to really get over that is to swap to a different style steering system.  My car has manual steering, and I originally planned to convert it to power using stock parts I had from a parts car.  After test driving another Mustang with power steering I decided t just keep the manual setup.  Its a pain making tight turns, but otherwise its tight and responsive.

Driving my car again after years away has got me thinking about my power options again though.  I've looked at the rack and pinion setups out there, but those are all expensive and most compromise turning radius.  What most people seem to be really happy with though are the Borgeson setups which go to a pump and power box setup like most cars before rack and pinion was the norm.  They use a Saginaw pump which are much better than the Ford pumps ever were.  Cost is going to be right around $1,000 for the kit, plus you may need some other stuff, since you already have power steering and I think the kits are designed for manual steering cars.  From a cost/benefit standpoint I think this is a really solid way to go though.

Suspension wise there's a lot you can do, but it all starts with parts that are in good working order.  If you've got worn out bushings, shocks, etc. nothing you do is going to make a difference.  If everything is serviceable then a good alignment is always your first step, plus assessing the condition of the tires.  Most tires develop invisible damage after sitting for about 3 years, at which point they contribute to vibration and other issues that will drive you nuts trying to track down before you ever consider something as stupid as the tires.  Alignment specs I shoot for are about 1/16" toe in, 1 degree of negative camber, and as much positive caster as they can give you. 

Beyond that you can change springs, shocks, and bushings to tighten things up and change handling characteristics, but its also a question of how much is to much because what makes a great track car makes a poor street car.  The key to happiness is defining what you want it to do and choosing the parts accordingly. 

+2 on all that TKO said...I switched to the Borgeson box and am very happy with it...don't waste your time and money on the original stuff unless your a purist....jj

TKO is spot on with the alignment comment.  If you have not replaced your rear leaf springs, the typical Mustang sag will affect your steering.  Kind of obvious, but had to mention it.

I replaced rear springs and bushings in my 65, as well as all the consumables up front.  Putting Bilstein shocks on really made a big difference.  They eliminate bounce, and harsh feel.

Don't compare it to a new car.  If you have stock vintage size tires, you will not have the same road feel as newer low profile tires. 

Last edited by TimC (1/27/2016 1:44 PM)

That's also very true.  New cars handle so much better than cars of just 20 years ago, let alone 40+.  The average new truck would probably out handle a stock Mustang on stock tires. 

That being said, the suspension geometry and design that you have to work with on the Mustang is a solid foundation for handling.  Its just the case of which pats to tweak, change, etc.  Look at what Carrol Shelby did to the '65s when making the first GT350s and you'll see that it didn't take all that much, just the knowledge of where to go from the starting point Ford had given. 

Another important thing to understand is that the Mustang chassis is not terribly stiff, and adding some subframe connectors, export brace, etc. greatly reduces the amount of work the suspension has to do.  We used to see this with the Fox cars all the time.  The GTs were stiffly sprung, guys would lower them and usually those springs had even higher rates.  The car handled, but it rode like a covered wagon.  By just welding in some subframe connectors we could drop the spring rate 100lbs or more per corner and the car would still handle as well as it did before, but it rode WAY better.  Instead of the springs having to twist the flimsy chassis to jam the tires into the pavement the springs could now just push the tires into the pavement from a strong backbone.  If you doubt this look at a hatchback GT under the quarter windows sometime.  You'll see a subtle kink in the sheetmetal that wasn't there when these cars were new.  That's from 25 years of the chassis flexing as the car goes down the road. 

May try(I still have manual steer) tightening up the suspension to help.  Monte Carlo bar and export brace made a HUGE difference in mine. Check the center link and associated parts too.  Poly bushings and 1" sway bar will help too.(NOT old fashion poly bushings butt the newer stuff on the market. )They replace the old rubber bushings. I did the arning/Shelby drop and cut a coil out of the front springs to get the front down some.(that will back it ride a little firmer)
Other than that.....just replace the old steering for something more modern$$$.
Let us know.
6s6

Is it the suspension that is bugging you or the steering?  Suspension goes up-down and steering goes left-right.

They do work with each other, but you can have great suspension with crappy steering and vice-versa.  Sounds like everyone is on the steering, and that may be mostly correct, but suspension parts can also cause steering to wander.

I do not know if the problem is steering or a combination of both. As I am driving when I come across a rough patch the front end seems to want to just float. Almost like it wants to leave the ground. The steering is very easy to turn, almost to easy. There is no play in the steering, but like Jerseyjoe stated A little old lady could drive with just her little finger. I do not know if it will help but I did not change the sway bar and I will try replacing the bushings.
Is there anyway to adjust the steering box to tighten it up? I know someone stated try restricting the pressure to the unit. Any thoughts there?

The comment "come across a rough patch the front end seems to float"  tells me you have too much rebound damping in your front shocks. Nearly all typical shocks have too much rebound damping to make you think the shocks are working based on the typical shock test of pushing down on the fender and watching the car settle real smooth. You need to remember that rebound damping is just a force pulling your tire off of the ground. I usually find that a car seems to wander when it does not have enough caster in the alignment settings. I made my own upper and lower control arms so I could get a lot more caster. It also improves corner point in when you are going really fast.

Monkeying with the pressure isn't a good idea, and unfortunately what you are experiencing is kind of intrinsic to this type of power assist.  Put it this way, the only people still using hydraulic rams to assist their steering are rockcrawlers and guys with 54" tires.  You'll never get what you're after with the stock stuff.

Positive caster definitely takes the wander out of a front end.  The problem is that you can only dial in so much with the stock setup, maybe 1-1.5 degrees positive.  Don't get me wrong, that's a huge improvement from the 0 degrees that was probably the factory spec, but we used to shoot for more like 4-6 degrees in stuff we really wanted to handle. 

I would imagine.  I'm also assuming you've got power assist or I think the wheel would laugh at you when you tried to turn it with that kind of caster and tires wider than pizza slicers.