inbou

i was looking at an fc that i want to buy and the owner said that he removed the power steering to produce more precise steering. I dont understand exactly whats going on here, i think it would just be a pain but . please if anyone knows a little more about the pros and cons, post.

YaNi

iTrader: (2)

The pump and fluid act as a damper between the rack and the wheel. You will be able to feel more of what the front tires are doing. If he did it properly, such as TitaniumTT's method, and weld the valve assembly you will remove about 5 degrees of pure slop.

eage8

iTrader: (9)

did he replace the rack with a manual rack? or did he just take the power steering pump off?

arghx

iTrader: (3)

I've driven a factory manual rack and I've driven s4 power steering (the "better" power steering, engine speed based?), and the only difference in 99% of all driving is that the manual rack is a pain in the *** in parking lots. FC's have the most precise steering of any car I've ever driven, including an FD, a 2002 Z06, and a 2008 M5. I don't think you will be able to tell a difference except at an autocross or something.

Black91n/a

It can help give you more precise steering, but the big thing is that it gives you more FEEL. That's why I did it and I can now tell much more of what the front tires are doing. This can be an asset for autocross and track use, if you can manage the extra effort.

ITSWILL

iTrader: (12)

Depowered racks and manual racks are easy to steer even from a stop.

Slow Rotor

Well while i haven't driven my car with the power steering removed, i did have to drive it to a stop when the engine blew, so i was steering with the engine off and far out was it heavy to turn

HHTurboVert

I tried to live without power steering in my convertible with 225's in the front and an aftermarket smaller steering wheel and I thought it was horribly difficult to maneuver below 10mph. I put it back on in a jiffy.

clokker

iTrader: (2)

That isn't the same as driving a manual/depowered rack.

Whether or not you find the swap from power to non-powered difficult is also affected by your tire size and steering wheel diameter.
Smaller than stock steering wheels (which is most aftermarket units) makes a bigger difference than you might think.

Black91n/a

Offset will also have an influence. The lower your offset gets, the heavier the steering will get due to the increased scrub radius.

You really don't know what manual steering is like untill you do a full conversion. Especially if the power steering is still in place, but the pump not turning, it'll take WAY more effort to steer the car than with a proper manual conversion.

I only really notice the conversion when going really slow, like when parking (if you adjust your technique and steer only once you start rolling it's a lot easier), or when driving really hard on the race track. Mostly it's not that noticable. Yes it's heavier everywhere, but mostly it's not by much and you'll get used to it within a few days and then you won't really notice any more.

farberio

iTrader: (7)

+1!!!

I had a s4 non power rack than I was used to, then switched to a S4 GTU with power steering. I hated the power steering so I took off the belt, when I first took off the belt it felt a lot heavier then the non power rack, but after a while I hardly notice. As a bonus when I drive my friends non power rack it feels like it has power steering its so light.

Black91n/a

You're putting unneeded stress on all the steering parts, just do the conversion and you'll be rewarded with lighter and more direct steering. Yes it's more difficult than taking the belt off, but you'll thank me later. At least drain the fluid and loop the lines.

arghx

iTrader: (3)

again, if you do a lot of parallel parking and not a lot of autocrossing, don't bother--not because manual steering is so bad but because the factory power steering is so good.

NCross

iTrader: (18)

If you want to see what it feels like unplug the PS ECU under the steering wheel and drive around. That will give you an idea. It's a royal pain in the *** to steer out of parking spots etc, but you don't really notice over 30 MPH.

I personally wouldn't do it, but to each their own.

Black91n/a

I thought we covered this already, nothing you do with the hardware still in place will give you an idea of what it's really like to have a full manual conversion. It'll be a bunch heavier and you will still have the slop associated with the pinion shaft valving.

NCross

iTrader: (18)

It feels the same to me. If your PS works keep it.

farberio

iTrader: (7)

I got rid of my p/s because it was too light, when I can move the wheel with a pinky I am not happy about it.

kleetuz

iTrader: (2)

Done this mod. Definitely better than with power steering, feedback is much much better and steering really is only heavier below 15mph. If you just disconnect the pump then you will be fighting the force of the fluid with no assist, which adds much more required force at low speed than when you depower the rack.

Just steer after your car is moving, even if really slow, rather than while the tires aren't rolling the effort isn't anything to bother you. If you are autocrossing and come up on a tight turn... .
the power steering shuts off/on between 25-30mph. What happened to me several times is that you start the turn with the power assist off then drop just slightly below that threshold while in the apex of a slower turn and the power steering kicks in again...

Black91n/a

I removed mine due to a similiar type of problem, when autocrossing and doing fast transitions at low speeds involving lots of steering motion I'd get ahead of the boost and it'd suddenly go super stiff. Not good.

I don't really like power steering any more.

YaNi

iTrader: (2)

I am 5' 10" and 155lbs, and had no problems with just the belt off. The power steering deletion has only made it easier. It's my opinion, but you have to be a pretty big weenie to have trouble with a manual rack.

NCross

iTrader: (18)

It's just easier and more practical for a street car that sees most of its time in the city under 40mph to have PS. That's just my opinion though.

TitaniumTT

You opinion on this matter is useless. This post should be deleted or at the least COMPLETELY ignored. You had to push fluid through a maze of lines and a non moving powersteering pump. You opinion here is uselss.

How did you do the conversion? Did you do it my way or did you just leave a pint of fluid in the lines and loop them? This is needed information before your opinion should be considered.

ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm?????

Than you've either done a poor conversion or you're weak. My de-powered 15.2 rack is not that much stiffer than my buddies 20:1 manual rack. How many people bitch about the steering effort in thier manual rack? Most of the complaints are about the need for 33% more rotations to get the same effect.

NCross

iTrader: (18)

Ok thanks for your valuable information.

stage3_rx7

All i ave to say is, i bought it with a blown pump, did the conversion cuz it was cheaper and one less belt for the motor to move all in all, dont be a wuss convert it =D

NCross

iTrader: (18)

If it's not broken, don't fix it. If you want to take the front end of your car apart to swap in a manual rack and delete the pump to save 10 pounds then go for it. I'm not knocking it. I'm just saying I like PS better. AND this is not a place to make personal attacks on someone giving their opinion on something.