I decided this past weekend to take the PS out of an old 90' Civic EX and put it into my 90' CRX DX. I began comparing the two cars and realized they are almost identical when it comes to parts and connections. So I did it! No drilling or major modification.
Remove the unit from a donor vehicle. This was a real pain in the butt.
After removal you should have:- 1 Power steering pump and mounting bracket
- 1 Power rack and Pinion and mounting bracket
- 1 Cooling tube with mounting bolts
- 3 tubes that connect to PS box (1/2 metal 1/2 rubber)
- 1 Reservoir and mounting bracket
- 3 short 90 degree sections of rubber tubing
- 1 12"-14" section of 1" rubber tubing
- 1 section of metal dual-line tubing
- various nuts and bolts
A.)Bolt the PS pump bracket to the motor.
B.)Bolt the PS pump in place leaving the bolts a little loose. Tighten later!
C.)Remove manual rack and pinion from CRX...Install power R&P. (see further instructions on removal of R&P)
D.)Mount cooling tube in front of the radiator...the holes are already there. (see photo)
E.)Mount section of dual-line metal tubing to engine wall between AC compressor and wheel. Make sure that the tubes closest together are pointing towards the front of vehicle. (see photo)
F.)Attach metal cooling tube to dual-line metal tubing with two 90 degree sections of rubber tubing. These will attach under existing AC tubing.
G.) Under the car, attach the 3 metal lines(1/2 metal and 1/2 rubber) with the different threaded fittings to the power R&P steering box. You cannot mess this up. Each fitting is a different size and will only fit in the designated hole. Run the 3 tubes between the floor of the car and the R&P mounting brace. The tubes should come up above the distributor and go to the designated fitting.
H.) Mount the reservoir. (see photo)
I.) The small tube goes to the small fitting on the reservoir, the large tubing (high pressure line) goes to the PS pump and the third goes to the bottom tube on the dual line section...which goes on to the cooling tube.
J.) The upper tube on the dual line section goes to the medium size fitting on the reservoir with a 90 degree piece of rubber tubing.
K.) Last...the 12-14" section of 1" tubing goes from the PS pump to the reservior.
L.) Fill with fluid, install new belt and cross fingers.
R&P removal)...Remove the 4 mounting bolts holding it on, disconnect the tie rod ends and disconnect the steering column. Steering column disconnect is directly behind the brake pedal, behind a dust shield...inside vehicle. Installation is reverse of removal.
More instructions with the pics!!!!!
Here is a pic of the Civic. POS! but has power everything and the PS was free.
These are the two rack and pinions. Notice the difference in size. The Power R&P is a tight fit and has less toe adjustment. The tubes in the back fit into the PS box on the R&P. You cannot put them on wrong. Each fitting has a different size threaded connection. However, it is tricky getting them into place. I would suggest getting some new dust boots for the power R&P. I had new ones on the manual R&P and had to improvise. The tube on the power R&P going from one dust boot to the other is a air exchange tube...you will need it! Quik tip: turn your steering all the way to the left before removing the R&P's
Various PS parts. Reservoir, pump bracket, tubes and cooling tube. Make sure you get the mount for the reservior, the bolts for the brackets and get some hose clamps. You may need to replace some of the rubber tubing. Notice the different size connections on the reservoir...you can't screw up. The rigid dual-line tubing in the front goes on the inner side of the wheel well...under the driver side engine mount. As for the pump bracket, I could only get 3 out of 4 bolts to line up. The civic was only using 2.
PS pump with V-belt pulley. You may need the grooved pulley, I do. I have mine rigged right now, waiting on a grooved pulley.
Cooling tube goes in front of radiator. The tubes connect under the AC tubing.
Cooling tube installed. The mounting holes are already on the CRX.
Different angle pics.
You can see the top of the dual-line the tubing in front of the pump pulley.
Look close and you can see where the dual-line tubing is under the engine mount. And the larger 1" rubber tubing goes from the pump to the reservoir.
Full engine shot.
Extra stuff. There was a skid plate on the Civic. I couldn't get it to fit on the CRX. Do you see the little bracket next to the "No Leak" bottle? You will have to bend it to get the holes closer so it will fit the CRX. You may not need the rubber spacer?
That's it fellas. It is just as easy to show you the pics as it is to explain it all. Also the 3 tubes that come from the power R&P box. One goes to the pump, and the other 2 to the reservoir...each being a different size. Fire it up and check for leaks. Take the reservoir cap off and while the engine is running, turn your steering wheel back and forth to get the air out of the lines. All this may sound confusing but once you see it all...it looks really simple. It was much easier to install than it was to remove from the old civic.
This my first write up so please excuse me if I left any details out. Enjoy!!!
8/22/06
UPDATE: You can use the corresponding PS pump and bracket that goes to your engine. You will almost have to do this in order to match the pulleys. You will also need the high pressure hose that goes with the PS pump. The only unkown variable is the threaded HP hose connection at the R&P PS box. A splice could easily be made to retro-fit a newer HP tube to make it connect to the 90' PS box if it does not connect otherwise. I am not sure about using any other model power R&P. I know for a fact that the 92' and 98' PS pumps do not match up with the 90' high pressure hose...but they have the grooved pulley. Make sure you have a 3rd pulley on the CS pulley to begin with.
I am still running the V-belt and pully on the 90' PS pump to the grooved pully on my 97' crank pulley. I works fine but is not text book perfect.
New parts list coming soon 
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