It seems to me that if you steer REALLY fast when you're moving, it's a little TOO easy to out-steer the power steering and cause it to lock up...

I wonder if there's a way to fix this?

I think I might just go find a 15.2 rack, depower it, and call it a day... obscenely heavy steering and all (combined with a 350mm steering wheel...hehe).

I imagine that even if I used a steering quickener to improve the 17.5:1 ratio'ed rack, it would just lock up from being too fast... unless the rack and pump were highly modified.

 

What about modifying the steering knuckles? You could use the slower rack, then modify the knuckles and get quicker steering and more angle.

 

True... but I don't know have a welder.

Also, I think it would take a lot of work to find just the right position so that you get a decent increase in speed but don't have it so that the tires jab into the fender well every time you get close to lock.

I suppose just upgrading to a 15:1 power rack might avoid this problem since I wouldn't need to turn the wheel so damn much (although it's only a 12 percent improvement).

 

just switch it over to a manual steering rack...thats what im doing when i have some time and after my coilover install

 

I ran into that problem all the time. Switching to a 15:1 rack while maintaining the power will be hard, as it requires a different pump and a control computer. The problem isn't with how much you turn the wheel, it's with how fast the rack moves, with a faster ratio rack or a steering quickener the rack moves the same amount, requiring the same amount of fluid, making it get ahead of the power and giving you a sudden increase in effort. So a faster ratio won't solve the problem.

I'd depower the one you've got now. You can always go to the 15:1 later on if you want faster, but I'd suggest trying it out now on the existing rack. I quite like my 17.4:1 depowered rack, it's very nice.

 

I know... I'm hoping to find a parts car in the local junk yard with the 15:1 rack and all the parts to make it work.

If not, it probably has a manual rack that I could at least sell here...

I'm not really sure if I want to try depowering the rack that's on the car right NOW since I can't really afford to have it out of commission for more than a day or so at the moment (assuming I do it the "proper" way, which is permanent).

 

Do you have an s4 or an s5? The s5 cheapo power steering system sucks. I've never had a problem on either of my s4's

 

Well, the S4 does have the 15:1 rack and a different pump, so maybe the difference in the pump (it's got more hoses and hoses in different places) allows it to steer faster without locking up.

It also has the superior velocity-sensing pump... I'm starting to get the feeling that my PS doesn't actually shut off at ANY RPM... either that or I seriously need to get new control arm bushings (the tie rods seemed OK and I get an alignment a few months ago... balance is kind of iffy though).

It is an S5 though...

Unfortunately the only FC at the junk yard I went today was a manual steering 86, and it did NOT look like something I could sell for a decent price either (nothing on that car was in decent condition, besides a few choice parts I picked up).

 

It only took me an afternoon to modify the rack, so I wouldn't worry about it being out of comission for long when doing the mod.

 

I think I'll consider doing it after I get the front bushings replaced, and get my front wheels re-balanced... that way I'll know whether it's the steering that's causing the crappy feel or just something that needs to be fixed.

 

I've never had a problem with my S4 stuff either... and I steer REALLY fast sometimes. lol.

 

I guess the question I should be asking now is how much lighter is a depowered rack compared to when the car is off for a PS car? I would hope it's at least two are three times lighter.

(not that I can't move it, just that I'd probably break something if I had a 15:1 rack depowered :p)

 

There's no comparison, it's much lighter with the power steering disabled than with you outsteering it. You'll really only notice a big increase in effort when going very slowly, like when parking, otherwise you'll get used to it very quickly and will stop noticing any increase in effort, but the increase in feel is worth it and never really escapes notice.

 

I agree with Black 91. I disconnected the sending unit and took out the power steering pump altogether in my old T2. Man was i glad too. Not to mention much less headache to get to the plugs!

 

Turns out I need 1. a new wheel (bent...this explains a lot of the wierd feel at speed) 2. front bearings (loose... this explains a bit of the steering slack) and 3. outer tie rods (boots are cracked and they're not gonna get any better with cracked boots...this may be part of the steering slack).

 

Someone at an autocross event suggested I flushed out my power steering fluid, so I did, and replaced it with Valvoline synthetic...

I also replaced the tie rods for the hell of it (bad boots, could have been contaminated...no effect on steering slack) and got it realigned, and the problem of steering lock when changing directions seemed to have gotten a little better, but it still rears its ugly head when I try to change direction quickly.

Perhaps it's the pump itself? The guy I talked to said he'd never heard of a car with a good pump having the same problem, but my pump seems to work fine (steering is a little heavier than the other cars my family owns, but that's to be expected), and you can definately feel the difference when the car is off...

Or perhaps it's the shocks/springs?

I figure it could be related to the way my front end goes up and down when I'm braking at under 25 MPH, or when I brake firmly (not max braking) at ~90+.

 

I dunno, my pump was fine as far as I could tell, but it still did it for me. Maybe you could overdrive it? I don't really think it's a problem with motion up and down, because I had it one time in particular in a transition not under throttle or brake in particular, just maintaining speed.

 

Don't loop the lines, do it the right way!
https://www.rx7club.com/showthread.p...=1#post6735269


I'm going w/ properly depowered s4 15.4:1 rack
I was thinking of a s5 17.4:1, but am going to try the s4 quick ratio first and just see how bad it really is w/ sticky tires
-Ben Martin

 

Well, that guy has never hung around a small autocross course then, because it happens all the time in a wide variety of cars when making repeated quick transitions such as a slalom in an autocross. In normal street driving? No. But in autocross, definitely. When the pump and rack are moving the fluid too quickly, it can foam, and loses all its ability to push the rack seals. In my Miata, it would start puking fluid out of the reservoir too. I tried various synthetic fluids, but the only one that cured the problem was Redline PS fluid. Give that a try if you don't want to do the depower. Empty the reservoir, disconnect a line at the lowest point and move the rack back and forth to purge most of the old fluid. Reconnect and refill, cycle the rack a few times and you're good to go.

However, I've driven Black91's car and the steering feel is exceptional. You can't easily crank the wheel when stopped, but once the car is rolling even a tiny bit, it's no problem. At speed, you'll never miss the assist. This is how we all had to drive in the 50's before PS was common and it becomes 2nd nature pretty quickly.

 

So, Redline oil actually SOLVED the problem?

I wonder if this only effects the cheaper RPM-sensing pumps, and not the better speed-sensing, fast-rack (15:1 ratio) pumps.

 

i removed my pump and looped the lines, i dont like the manual rack just for the ratio difference, i dont even notice the manual sterring anymore im just used to it i guess