Hey Folks,

Anyone know an online source of that oddball M17(x1.5?) return fitting on the Toyota PS box? It's definitely a bit larger than the 16mm supply, so that doesn't get it; someone here implied that their box had dual 16mm fittings but that's not the case here. One local Toyota dealer said they can't get it.

Talked with someone at one place (CCP? have to check notes at work) and he said he'd never seen a 17mm invert flare fitting in 30 years and suspected Toyota slipped in a threaded 3/8" pipe (dimensions are close) to get a larger return. Dad opined that Toyota or their supplier had a million surplus 17mm fittings laying around from some ill-fated exercise and used those until they were gone. Appreciate any help here; we're getting close on corralling/fabricating the parts for this "little" project. Thanks.

John

 

Mid Fifty sells a 17mm adapter fitting in their hose kit if you have the room. Gotta Show makes their own 17mm banjo fitting for tight quarters, that's what I'm using with their SS braid hose kit. Otherwise you can look for a returnline fitting from a Toy box.

 

AX,

Thanks for the info, though it's not what I was hoping for. Mid-Fifty has the fitting as part of a $100 kit with both supply and return hoses and fittings/adapters and they won't split it up. I've already picked up a new supply line from Advance Auto for $29 and there are a slew of folks locally in NoVA that'll crimp on the end that fits the Ford canister-type PS pump I'm using once I put it all together and get a good length/path measurement. Fred at Gotta Show has a little better deal for the return, but that's going to run about $53 + shipping and that includes their stainless braided line, which is kinda dopey here since, as mentioned earlier here, this is my daily driver (preservation, not restoration/show). Plus I'd planned on running the return to a tube coil heat exchanger I picked up off the '70 F-100 and will run from that back to the PS pump using simple rubber 3/8" hose and hose clamps. The braided route seems expensive and overkill, but what are you going to do?

Tell you what I'd like to do: go back in time and stand over the idiot Toyota engineer(s) that spec'd this oddball 17mm fitting and give 'em dope slaps until they chose a readily available 16mm, 18mm or SAE fitting. What baloney.

John

 

John'
When I bought my toy. gear from a Canada salvage it came with one of the connections missing...I ended up calling Mid-Fifty and asking for the number of the company that does the rebuilds...they then gave me the number of the company that rebuilds for them, I then spoke with the owner of the third company and he was great enough to mail me the fitting I needed as long as I promissed to let him do thye rebuild if needed...unfortunately I dont remember the names after 2.5 yrs. So, you can call Mid-fifty and try it this way...or pay the lesser cost for the kits.
The folks at Mid-F were very understanding and helpful to me...
Good luck with it.

 

You can always try to find one of the return line fittings from a Toy box. Unfortunately I modified mine when I wasn't having any luck finding one to try to get enough header clearance. I cut down the tube and nickle brazed it into the fitting so it doesn't swivel any more. I indexed it to point in the right direction with my box.

 

call Hydraulic House at 512-385-7100 they are in Austin, Texas and that is who I have had make all my hoses and connections for my brakes and steering. They should either have it or know who would.
second thing, I just decided to not do the toyota conversion. Know anyone who would want the complete power steering box with pitman arm and mounting brackets? I have it listed in the classifieds. 75.00.

Thanks
Billy

 

Is this the Toyota pitman arm and mounting bracket or the conversion ones?

 

Billy,

Thanks for your help, but no luck there either; he did refer me to a few other Austin spots to no avail. I also spoke with a couple of custom motorcycle sites that strangely supply M17x1.5 titanium nuts, but not bolts that large; my thought was if I can find the bolt, a shop can chuck it up in a lathe and bore out the center with a drill for a convenient-sized flared line, say 5/16". The last guy I spoke with at Mid State Bolt said he just can't find that size bolt and the only recourse is a shop; apparently any lathe equipped to cut threads can easily be set up/programmed to cut this thread based on readily available specs. Where the cost of that is going to be here in expensive NoVA relative to the $50-$60 return line kit is another question. My previous take stands: I'd still like to get my hands on those Toyota design buoys and ....
Thanks for your help.

John

 

Check with this guy he may have what you need.

http://www.toyotatruckland.com

Rod 51F1

 

John,
Going down the same path as you. Can't find the fitting anywhere, thought it would be an easy find. Alternative, Mid-Fifties offers a kit that includes a new hose and an assortment of fittings they said would do the trick 99$ sounds like alot until you figure a new hose built could cost 50$ or so by itself. Good luck. Joe

 

I was in the same boat on my 49. I was trying to find the fiting so I could connect my GM pump to the Toyo box. I ended up scrounging around the foreign section of the wrecking yard and found that on certain model cars the power steering pump is on the passenger side of the car and the power steering hoses are a combination of rigid lines and flexible lines. I was able to find a power steering hose from the pump to the rigid lines that had male fittings (on the pump side) and a female fitting on the other end. I took this hoes and a chunk of the rigid line (to get the fitting) and then I cut down my GM pressure hose adn kept a small length of the hard line portion of it. I installed the metric fitting and reflared the line thus giving me a short length of hard line with an American fitting on one end and a metric fitting on the other that I could connect to the metric flex line down to the pump

I maybe spent $20 total on it.

Good luck
Bobby

 

AX- yes its the Toyota stuff. I didn't buy the kit before I changed my mind. Supposedly you can use the old pitman with the toyota pitman and fab if you want to.

Sorry they weren't any help, I thought they had EVERYTHING!!! guess not. You may try a place here called American Bolt Company. They are another good place or a place called Bohl's Bearing. Sorry no numbers at my diposal. They are both here in Austin, Texas.

Billy

 

Bobby,

Sounds like I need to return to the wrecking yard and start searching through import cars; Lord knows there's enough of them out there. Thanks for the tip.

John

 

Unfortunately according to the person I talked to at Gates hoses only Toyota used the 17mm fitting.

 

Be that as it may.... ...I have power steering, it doesn't leak and I didn't spend a fortune

I'm pretty sure it was Toyota that I took my hose from but I've slept a few times since then and wouldn't be able to tell you what year or model......

Bobby