thanks for the replys.
its just that i find my 1992 cavalier steering heavier than my old 1991 corolla (R.I.P) and someone told me its because the corolla had power assisted steering and the cav only has power steering.
oh well, at least i know it was a lie!
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Don't worry about it. You can turn the wheel on Dad's Mazda just by blowing on it!
Those crazy Japs.
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Which size engine Cavalier is it? Early 1400cc / 1600cc petrol & early (non-turbo I think) diesel Cavaliers didn't have power steering. OK with the 1400cc petrol as the engine was so light, but harder work with the others!!
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there is a big difference between power and power assist .power streering has no mechanical connection between the steering wheel and the wheels as it is done usually by hydraulics but can be electric
power assist is mechanicaly operated to the steering rack with oil assist on the rack ,not too sure of any power steering fitted to cars unless honda had it fitted to four wheel steer at slow speeds to help parking (dont know the model)
anyone know of any other cars fitted with power steering as opposed to power assist?
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Pretty sure it was a version of the Honda Prelude that had the 4 wheel steering.
Rear wheels steered slightly in the same direction at speed but also they steered in the opposite direction when parking.
A very very clever system from Honda.
Also some Prelude owners got other motorists flashing them to stop to tell them the rear wheel are about to fall off because of the strange angles they keep pointing at.
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Some Citroen CX s and XMs had DIRAVI which was full power steering - no mechanical connection between the column and the rack. Never driven one, but apparently quite odd at first - never deviates from the line set, and it self centres - even when the car is stood still :-))
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RichardW
Is it illogical? It must be Citroen....
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A very very clever system from Honda.
Unless you were parked right next to a wall, in which case it steered your back end into it when you tried to pull out fo the parking space.
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Pretty sure it was a version of the Honda Prelude that had the 4 wheel steering.>>
It was the early to mid-990s 2.3i model that had the four-wheel steering - remarkable handling as I found out at the time on the test track near Sherburn Elmet in Yorkshire.
There's an example of one in good nick owned by someone just around the corner from where I live.
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Yep it is the 2.3i that has the 4ws, and I use one daily that has 181k on the clock and still goes like a train, excellent fun on roundabouts just keep your foot hard on the gas all the way for lots of smiles ;o)
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Defender is correct, power steering is used on things like earth movers and New York fire engines, power assisted steering is used on cars (usual disclaimer about exceptions). However, colloquielisms are often technically incorrect! So you could use power steering in normal conversation but not in say a technical thesis.
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it is 1600cc petrol, it does have power steering fluid thingy which i check every few weeks along with all the other fluids. i have driven cars without power steering so i know this has power steering.
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It is simply that some power steering is lighter than others. Japanese cars are generally quite famous for having exceedingly light power steering, good for the OAPS but a little lifeless and lacking feel.
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The steering on my 1994 Peugeot 306TD is fairly heavy considering it is power steering compared with some of the other cars I've driven in the past. I drove a 1995 Mondeo 2.0 Ghia a couple of months ago and the steering on that was considerably lighter than that of the 306 even though the latter is a smaller car. Mind you, the big diesel lump in the front of the car doesn't help things! Very precise steering though with plenty of feel which I like and that contributes to the good handling characteristics of the 306.
Martin
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thanks for the replys. its just that i find my 1992 cavalier steering heavier than my old 1991 corolla (R.I.P) and someone told me its because the corolla had power assisted steering and the cav only has power steering.
Some cars have heavier steering than others, be it power or not, due to several other factors, e.g. tyre size for one. Big fat tyres have a bigger footprint on the road than small skinny ones and therefore more resistance to turning. The car's weight, the engine's weight, the steering geometry and size of the steering wheel are others that come to mind.
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With motoring law as it currently is,all steering,whether power-assisted or not must-repeat must-have a mechanical connection between the steering wheel and the wheels.
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jc2,that was the point of my first post on the difference ,there are many power steering machines on the road with no mechanical contact between the steering wheel and the wheels ,steering is all done by hydrualics on most if not all jcb diggers for example, something from memory says the speed limit for power steering is 40kph.this also covered slow speed rear steering on honda
you are correct about the mechanical connection on power assist so that if thre is hydrualic failure steering is still possible although is is stiffer to operate.
have you ever driven a vehicle where you can change steering mode on the go? it can make life interesting when faults arise
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curious how you can change steering mode on the go if there is no mechanical connection on 1 sort !
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robcars some types of machine have both front and rear steering with a control switch between 2 and 4 wheel steer they can also have crab steer where both sets steer the same way also can have various delays on the rear axle to give precise placing of the wheels ,its called pentronic steering
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I do believe that a hydraulic ram constitutes a mechanical connection. It can fail if someone lets the fluid out, but then a steering column can shear too.
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On all the cars that I've come across with four-wheel steering, the apporpriate turn angle of the rear wheels is extremely tiny, but has a huge impact.
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An explanation of power steering (plus a synopsis of drive-by-wire) can be found at:
auto.howstuffworks.com/steering4.htm
Also of interest re four-wheel steering:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steering
The first Preludes with 4WS had a mechanical system, the follow up versions had electronic versions.
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Lud it may well do but I dont know of any cars without a steering rack.
are there any?
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I thought the hydraulic-only connection was with those giant articulated road-building machines that steer by bending in the middle.
There are still quite a lot of cars around that don't have a steering rack. There are other mechanisms usually involving a worm.
The wire-and-bobbin steering used on at least one cyclecar is happily seldom to be found on the road these days.
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Lud of course you are right on that worm mechanism ,why did I not think of a defender ,what I should have said was a direct mechanical contact and no cars with hydraulic only steering
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Generally speaking, (in non power steering cars) Japaneese car's steering is very light compared to European cars.
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Many earth-mover type vehicles do have a mechanical connection on the end of the steering ram-it usually only triggers the hydraulic valve but could be classified as a mechanical link.
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Change mode on the go??Some Fiats hav a "girlie" switch.
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Large cherry pickers have hydraulic steering.
Steve.
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Xantia HDi.
Buy a Citroen and get to know the local GSF staff better...
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