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I unknowingly leased(rather than bought) a 2005 Malibu that year, and it was the worst driving experience of any car I drove! I was constantly turning the wheel trying to find center, and the car had a pull to the left that no alignment or body shop could diagnose. A pull to the right I could deal with, as we do drive on the right in this country, following the road crown.
GM EPS has indeed improved immensely since then, with a feel 'closer to hydraulic' now, albeit very light in parking lots. Which is only where power steering is needed in the first place. I drove my Aunts and Uncles 2014 Cruze and Malibu, far more car-like than that 2005 disaster.
If 2004 was GM's first year with EPS in select models, 2011 was the same growing pain for Hyundai. Their Elantra and Sonata redesigns were stunning to me, so aerodynamic outside and futuristic inside. But it took three more years to figure out why their cars could not go straight, especially Sonata. Dealer service advisors gave customers the Rumsfeld-spiel, "It's Electric Power Steering, you'll get used to it". There was also a steering coupler replacement campaign, which did more to eliminate clunking in the steering column than anything to do with the constant wandering. The problem quietly went away for model year 2015, with a redesigned Sonata and a revised MDPS motor in both it and Elantra. Few driver complaints since.
There is a growing curve to EPS, as indicated by the above examples of two manufacturers from different countries. Now the concentration should be on the feel, and on not engineering so much assist into the things that they feel like video games, or at least, do what Sonata and Elantra started in 2014: Offer a driver-selectable steering mode. Comfort(hyperboosted), Normal, and Sport/Heavy(reduced boost). It's a small button on either the steering hub or the dash.
The dinky little 2015 Nissan Note I drive as an insurance rental last year had surprisingly good steering: not BMW(!), but again, light at low speed, and then progressively heavier and quite predictable above 30mph, with decent road-feel. It actually steered better than Nissan's bring-home-the-bacon Altima! If they could do EPS right in a Versa, they can damn well accomplish the same thing in bigger cars. Come on!
Electric power steering is here to stay because it gets rid of a pump witch in turn gets rid of weight and drag from the belt to help improve mpg. Automakers don't just do things Willy nilly they are always looking to make their vehicles lighter to meet federal mandates for MPG. Unless anyone on this board has a better way of making a better steering system feel free to submit their idea to the automakers. Every vehicle is going to act differently because of the weight of the vehicle lighter cars are going to respond quicker because of their shorter wheel brace and tighter turning radius. Compared to a heavier pickup truck.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Zen88
Would that make it harder to steer? I like and miss easy power steering.
If you mean heavier, yes. The less PS boost, the more the alignment angles take over, and the straighter(hopefully) the vehicle goes.
I'm afraid we are at opposites on this. I go for heavier steering with fast centering of the wheel from a turn. Safer for this twitchy, ADHD driver that I am. LOL!
If you mean heavier, yes. The less PS boost, the more the alignment angles take over, and the straighter(hopefully) the vehicle goes.
I'm afraid we are at opposites on this. I go for heavier steering with fast centering of the wheel from a turn. Safer for this twitchy, ADHD driver that I am. LOL!
I'm with you on this one. I can't believe people are complaining about EPS as being "disconnected" compared to those old land barges you could turn with a pinky.
For EPS, I like that you that can hit a sport mode button and change up the steering feel.
EPS has come a long way in the past 10 years. My 2016 GMC is very good.
Agree, our 2016 Ford Explorer has it, EPS, and the steering is more positive, e-z turning with no play in the wheel.
And our electronic brake system reaction time is faster, stops on a dime and is more efficient than hydraulics.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wit-nit
Agree, our 2016 Ford Explorer has it, EPS, and the steering is more positive, e-z turning with no play in the wheel.
And our electronic brake system reaction time is faster, stops on a dime and is more efficient than hydraulics.
How is it at high speed, going straight? And do you feel weight build up in turns?
You remove the power steering pump which requires crankshaft HP to turn.
In the case of trucks, it's dumb, put a snow plow on an EPS it kills it.
When doing brakes, we learned with the F150 when the front rotors would seize onto the hubs you didn't pound them off with a hammer. That kills EPS racks dead.
Had to crack the hat hitting vertically downwards to get them off. Would it have killed fomoco to apply anti seize to the backs of the hats?
They're much more expensive and act as programmable module installation when you replace them. They're not really customer wallet friendly... and they don't like big wide tires either... my problem with them is the connectors being placed where road salt can get in and corrode them. I like hydraulic assist.
If I were to design EPAS what I would have done differently instead of having the rack be redesigned, I'd put an electric motor to drive ALL of the engine mounted accessories. Have it turn at a constant RPM. Get the same steering feel, the same AC compressor operation. And not have to have a PMI steering racks with a CAN network to column steering angle sensors etc...
The idea was to free up HP and reduce fuel consumption...
I think what you're witnessing is people modifying a truck without consideration to the rest of the design that needs to be modified to accommodate the larger wheels and the change in steering geometry. It sounds like the old hydraulics systems that could handle the job were just overdesigned in the first place. I've seen hydraulic power steering systems struggle when people do stuff like throw 25" rims on an Impala. Overall though an EPS system is far less complicated. Anytime you can get rid of a pressurized fluid, you've just removed another failure point as the car ages.
EPS isn't just for gas mileage, it's also simpler to manufacture and adds more tricks to the car like self parking and adjustable steering feel.
It is something to keep in mind however as modern, less conservatively engineered designs move forward and people attempt to modify them the way they always have without realizing the new implications that may be impacted.
I've always wanted to know the mechanics behind what gives EPS that distinctive feel. I've searched but unable to see why EPS feels so much different to hydraulic, considering both do the same exact task of providing power assistance to steer the vehicle.
Why can't HPS feel like EPS and vice verse? How does EPS filter out surface imperfections? Driving over water causes no swerving to the wheel with EPS, whereas steering will pull to the side with HPS.
Also I know it's got nothing to do with over assistance - as I've used over boosted HPS and they feel nothing like EPS systems.
The only difference between the two systems is, one uses a hydraulic motor to power assist, and one uses an electric motor. The main reason you'll feel the difference is that electric responds instantaneously and with hydraulic there is a latency from valves and application of pressure. So, that's why you feel a pull going through water, the hydraulic system needs time to react whereas the electric just amplifies the power to maintain the assist boost. They could boost the signal and over assist, and some car makers did, but it's a simple software fix if you don't like the feel. Drive by wire, where electric motors will actually turn the steering and your steering wheel is just a dial, are still further away, I think the Q50 tried it, but drivers hated it, but it's coming as we move to autonomous cars.
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There was also a steering coupler replacement campaign, which did more to eliminate clunking in the steering column than anything to do with the constant wandering. The problem quietly went away for model year 2015, with a redesigned Sonata and a revised MDPS motor in both it and Elantra. Few driver complaints since.
