So, when electric steering systems first came into play, many road testers complained about a lack of feedback. As hydraulics are tactile due to the presence of a viscous fluid, they are loved by purists due to the amount of feedback that can be transferred through the steering rack and back to the steering wheel. The main argument against eletronics is steering feel. Electrical charge is used to rotate the motor and through energy transfer, a lateral force is produced that aids the movement along the steering rack. Electronic sensors pick up the amount of steering lock being applied and add in a proportional amount of additional force to the steering input.
The motors are usually placed either at the base of the steering column or directly on the steering rack and have become a fairly simple solution to advancing power steering into the 21st Century. This is not convenient for hydraulics as the hydraulic fluid being pumped through the system will have a set viscosity (how easily a fluid flows) therefore some alternate form of restriction has to be used.Įngineers in the last decade then decided to replace the old-school hydraulics with electric motors, which isn’t surprising considering the general shift towards entirely electrically-powered cars.
#Epas 3 rs driver#
Performance cars these days also need to produce a set of modes for the driver to pick from and most of them include a steering adjustment. This means that a small amount of power is sapped from the engine to run the pump, which reduces the overall efficiency of the powertrain. As the pump is technically driven by the engine, hydraulic assistance is deemed as a parasitic loss. The hydraulics amplify the amount of load being applied to the steering rack, thus reducing the levels of effort needed to change direction.Īlthough hydraulic systems are still very much used today and have been all but perfected, they do have their downsides. A control valve then dictates how much hydraulic pressure is needed to move the wheels in either direction depending on the steering input. A power ram is moved by the hydraulic fluid which is pressurised through the movement of the belt. This form of system uses a hydraulic pump which is powered from a belt attached to the engine.
Next came hydraulically-assisted steering, which dominated the automotive world from 1951 when pioneered by Chrysler. In simpler times before any form of driving assistance, steering was as analogue as it gets, using a rack and pinion system to direct a car in the desired direction.
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