EZ Power Steering kit

Got it...it's a general purpose motorsports engine unit (well, use for anything but primary market is motorsports). I was thinking a Bosch or MAT unit (crazy $$$), but Engine Lab makes more sense (only slightly crazy $$). It'll definitely be fun to tinker and tune, but as you've indicated, the EZ Steer is probably the simplest and lowest cost. But not as much fun

Also, good luck on the Fiesta controller hacking -- I have a feeling that might be a bigger project/task than you're expecting.

Shoot me a PM if you get stuck or need a sounding board. Happy to give you free bad advice anytime....

 

I have very limited hacking skills. I bought a box on ebay for $55 from a guy who already did it. Plug this thing in and the EPS unit works like the toyota in fail safe more, output proportional to input with no speed sensitivity, so I know I can at least get it working. My hope is when I hook up a CAN sniffer there are only a few IDs going back and forth....hope.....

Cost wise
EPS unit $90 delivered
Hack box $75 delivered
Steering quickener (est) $200
extra bits (est) $200

so...$500-$600ish in parts then however long it takes to make it all fit nice. I've got a lot of other things on my plate right now but

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You're going to install the power steering unit AND a steering quickener?

I'm surprised that there's that much room.

 

Well, I say I'm going to......sometimes reality gets in the way, but I am quite pig headed at times.

The fiesta unit can be cut down to about 6" long. Quickeners are 7-9", there is about 14" ujoint to ujoint so its possible. The issue I see is I think ideally it would go steering wheel, quickener, EPS, rack so there is less torque needed out if the EPS and less electric load on an already marginal vehicle charging system.

That doesn't really work out though because the EPS really only fits where the EZ steer people put it not all the way down at the lower ujoint...so it has to go EPS-quickener or shorten the inner steering column shaft which is what I'm leaning toward.

This is all still in planning phase....lot of details in flux.

 

quickener bought, $122 deliver and comes with a pair of weld on couplers I thought might be helpful....it was $115 without them. This should be narrow enough to fit between the factory column mounting brackets. I'm still worried about the length or everything but I figured get some parts and see what can be done.



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I will be amazed if you can get that to fit.

I bought one years ago.....I took one look at it and put it back in the box where it still sits many years later. Another dust collector!

I was going to put it on my 355.

 

You maybe right, but remember I have a sawzall and I'm not afraid to use it.

My thought at the moment is to see if there is some way to shorten to better yet combine things to make a manageable package....there may not be and for sure this stuff won't fit if that's the case. The kind of plan is to try to modify the column side of the EPS housing to be the rack side of the quickener housing and save about 4" or 5". If I can pull that off, it'll go I think, if not its headed to ebay I guess.

 

Lol fair enough!

 

I get you like thinking outside the box, but why not just fit a quicker rack rather than "complicate" matters with a quickener in the column ?

 

Its more a question of finding a suitable rack really. I think the super performance unit Aaron and a few other have is a good option and much better than stock, but still a long way from the 1.33 modern cars have. If I can make this work it will be at 1.6 (2.13 also an option with a 1.5:1 quickener) with a stock rack or 1.25 (or 1.66) with the super performance rack. But for sure the 2.5 rack is the fallback position.

Also, if this all works out the way I'm hoping then its going to be about $500 in parts all in which won't even quite buy the rack upgrade....it would be a 1500-2000 "kit" probably with the labor assuming it will be another of my tig welded wonders requiring a lot of my time to build, a bit less if it just a bit of machine work to build it.

But you're right....maybe its more bother than its worth.

 

There are several companies in the UK who would cut/machine a rack and pinion with the ratio you're proposing, there must be numerous such companies in The States that could do the same ?

FWIW I ran 2.5 turn lock to lock manual rack on an Opel Manta 35 years ago :

https://shop.quaife.co.uk/opel-manta-lhd-quaife-quick-rack-and-pinion-kit-2-5

It was heaveeeee !!
I was a mere 22 then, but I rapidly acclimatized to it, and found 2.5 turns lock to lock more than pointy enough (especially when the original rack was something ridiculous like 4.2 turns lock to lock)

 

2.5 is available, that is what Aaron just installed and as he said its a 2 finger operation at parking lot speed due to the EPS so the force is not a concern.

There must be someplace that can build the 1.3-1.6 rack I want but I've not found it yet. Mostly they take a standard rack and make it the correct length for a custom application, lots of places do that but custom ratios not so much. I have to believe a 1 off rack would run $2500+ though compared the the $120 for the quickener. I helped design/build a custom rack years ago for an fsae car so I suppose something like that is an option too, but its certainly more work than the quickener so its a 3rd or 4th choice I think....but possible.

 

I was just thinking that the 308 steering rack is identical to the rack used in the De Tomaso Pantera... City Racer LLC sells the EZ electric power steering kit for the Pantera as well as the 308, both listed at $2600

A search for "Pantera power steering" found another Pantera kit from SACC Restorations for only $1550. It uses a steering shaft substitution, I don't know if it's an alternative or easy fit in a 308.

Gordon

 

That is what I was hoping to do, put it on the column itself right behind the dash but I just did see how it was going to go without a lot of work. For sure the column mounts would need to come out then probably also trim the bottom of the dash and I guess make a new lower cover to hide it all.

Same up front. There is a space between the column and rack that could be removed and the EPS put in, but that means rebuilding the front of the pedal box.

No easy answer that I saw.

 

here is the space behind the dash, which is mostly consumed be the steering column bearing housing that would need to be replaced, but it holds the ignition switch
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Tonight I ripped apart the steering, pulled the peddle box so I can see behind it, found where a mouse had been living at some point, and realized all to vent hoses are disintegrating.

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Maybe the mouse is still in there somewhere...have you been hearing a squeak on hard left turns?

 

no, I found the mouse a couple months ago.......

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OMG

 

This guy was staring at me when I pulled the door panel off my new Lotus Esprit project.

Aaron
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All these worthless threads "Post your pic of XXX car" and "Post pics of pretty girls and Ferrari's". Meh.

Where's the "Post pics of your car mouse" thread? I'm sure it'll be popular enough to make it to the weekly Fchat newsletter!

 

My fuel tanks ended up vacation villas for them. I was able to get them (dead) out of the driver side but I can still hear one bouncing around the pass side tank. I have tried everything and can't get it out there.... unless there is a gate that's flapping and I'm thinking that it's a mouse..

 

Somewhere I have a picture of the inside of the passenger fuel tank I cut and narrowed as part of making room for the v12...yes, baffles but no flap but at least you'll know what you're fighting.

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Oh wow. That looks like a perfect Mouse Four Seasons in there...

 

did you have play this game? if not its time to learn

In steering news I see the hackbox sitting on my front step so now I'm only waiting on the quickener. I may start cutting to see if the rather bulky fiesta unit can be made to fit or if I need to retreat and get a prius or similar toyota unit.


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I'm convinced that he will be staying in there.... unless..... Mark, should I bring you my tank?? LOL