Electric power steering?

[Motorcitydak]

Saw this on another board and wanted to see if anyone has used or thought about using one on a car. Its a simple electric steering assist box that you can put on any car. You can also dial up or down the level of assist you will get which would be great for a car that runs tight autoX stuff but also hits higher speeds. It is not a quickener, just power assist. You can run it straight to a manual steering setup saving weight and the parasitic drag from the normal PS pump. The more I think about it, the more I want to run one on my car.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/POWER...Q5fCarQ5fParts

[absintheisfun]

what is the actual loss attributed to PS? Has it improved since the years of the saginaw monsters of the 70's-90's?

[Motorcitydak]

I have no idea how much power is used to turn the PS pump and obviously the alternator will be doing more work to operate the electric steering. I just think that this thing would weigh less that all the power stuff, plus it will move weight off the front of the motor and put it by the drivers knee. Also worth saying that it would be more simple.

[CamaroAJ]

"I HAVE THIS KIT FITTED TO MY ESCORT AND IT HAS TRANSFORMED IT, I CAN NOW STEER IT WITHOUT NEEDING ARMS LIKE "POPEYE"

not saying much about him if he has a hard time turning the wheels on a escort.

the only problem with that set up is it doesn't change pressure with speed. so when your driving slow you'll have a nice and light wheel to turn, but at higher speed you want some of that assistance turned down to its not too touchy. it would be like driving a car without the flow control valve in or stuck open on the freeway.

[neki67]

the only problem with that set up is it doesn't change pressure with speed. so when your driving slow you'll have a nice and light wheel to turn, but at higher speed you want some of that assistance turned down to its not too touchy. it would be like driving a car without the flow control valve in or stuck open on the freeway.

Well, this company does sell them speed sensitive and they say the old hydraulic P/S pumps take about 4 hp: http://www.ezpowersteering.nl/index.php?p=0&lang=us

[CamaroAJ]

Well, this company does sell them speed sensitive and they say the old hydraulic P/S pumps take about 4 hp: http://www.ezpowersteering.nl/index.php?p=0&lang=us

that would be a lot safer and have a better feel to it at speed.

[neki67]

that would be a lot safer and have a better feel to it at speed.

BTW: the system originally referred to has manual control for the assist in case there's no speed signal available. According to ezpowersteering that can even be solved by a GPS speed signal!

[Motorcitydak]

"I HAVE THIS KIT FITTED TO MY ESCORT AND IT HAS TRANSFORMED IT, I CAN NOW STEER IT WITHOUT NEEDING ARMS LIKE "POPEYE"

not saying much about him if he has a hard time turning the wheels on a escort.

the only problem with that set up is it doesn't change pressure with speed. so when your driving slow you'll have a nice and light wheel to turn, but at higher speed you want some of that assistance turned down to its not too touchy. it would be like driving a car without the flow control valve in or stuck open on the freeway.

The kit has a knob to adjust the power the unit puts out, you just have to tailor it to the speed you are going. I know it would be a PITA especially compared to a system that knows how fast you are going but it still seems like a good option.

Edit: sorry, I did not see the above post answering this one


I agree that I would like to drive a car with this installed or atleast get feedback from someone who has. That is why I made this post

[CamaroAJ]

The kit has a knob to adjust the power the unit puts out, you just have to tailor it to the speed you are going. I know it would be a PITA especially compared to a system that knows how fast you are going but it still seems like a good option.

Edit: sorry, I did not see the above post answering this one


I agree that I would like to drive a car with this installed or atleast get feedback from someone who has. That is why I made this post

that could be on the dangerous side on a road coarse to mess with that and drive.

[Jim Nilsen]

The benefits are quite a few for a unit like that. The fact that you can turn your key on and push the car and steer it if the engine quits is a big plus. being able to adjust the feel is even nicer. For the cost of brackets, hoses, pulleys, reseviours and belts ,not mention the pumps to choose from these things look great to me. I would use one just so long as I went and test drove something with one in it. You might not like it? I think you will if you do it just because it is so much more compact.

[Nessumsar]

This seems like it could be pretty cool, I could see if you had the unit barely helping you at a stop that it would be fine at speed.

I have been playing with the idea of using a 2nd gen MR2 electric powersteering pump. It is speed sensitive, and could be remotely located.

[CamaroAJ]

I have been playing with the idea of using a 2nd gen MR2 electric powersteering pump. It is speed sensitive, and could be remotely located.

would that work though? i mean those cars top out at like 73 mph so it might not know what to do over those speeds lol.

[silver69camaro]

Modern hydraulic steering is wonderful and the only need to change it is very, very minor gains in efficiency. Also, power steering pumps really only draw power when the assist is required. I really don't see that assist unit being able to withstand loads created by our vehicle's weight, cornering ability, and wide front tires; it's really taking 1 step forward and 15 steps back.

[ace_xp2]

It seems like it would be lighter than its hydraulic counterpart. Plus many people have and prefer manual steer. Having this would just be that little extra for the occasions you need it.

[High Plains Mopars]

I've had the chance to dyno the same engine in two different chassis; one with manual steering, one with a nascar style pump with divorced reserviour and cooler. I couldnt say there was any attributable HP loss because of the power steering that was any greater than the simple variations in atmospheric conditions. So a modern hydraulic system is not a huge power hog. Can't comment about vintage Federal or Saginaw set ups.

I can see some real advantage to an adjustable assist system and eliminating thepossibility of fluid spills is attractive, but I also tend to be sceptical of something made for a smaller, lightweight foreign car working well on a large, heavy american car.