Need some advice on PAS!

[shamil]

My Volvo 340 steering is very heavy, its very very difficult to park the vehicle in congested areas ,so am having a though of fixing a PAS rack, since we don’t have experts on 340in SL, I would like to get some advice from you guys 340

Has anyone fixed a custom built Power steering rack in to a non PAS 340?

Is there any Japanese PAS that can be fixed ?

[Speedy88]

I've been planning on fitting one myself, the ones from Corsas are mean't to be good. It needs to be electric I think.

[shamil]

I've been planning on fitting one myself, the ones from Corsas are mean't to be good. It needs to be electric I think.

When will you be fixing ? did you purchase a rack?

[shamil]

Any Japanese power steering rack that will fit in?

[trabitom99]

The only PAS rack I know of that fits 1.4 340s is the PAS rack from a Volvo 360. I haven't heard of anyone doing the conversion with parts from another manufacturer so far, what's that about Corsa racks, Speedy?

Personally, I don't think 340s are too bad steering-wise but non-PAS 360s can be a pain to park ...

Cheers

Tom

[shamil]

The problem is in SL there is 0% Volvo 360, and all the 340 here doesn’t have power steering I am sure that Volvo doesn’t manufactures these racks any more if they do it will be very expensive, even the 360 PAS rack are more than 20 years old and there is no guarantee it will work perfectly

I hope that some genius will come up with a better idea !!

[Speedy88]

Don't think Corsa uses a rack, that's the point? I don't actually know yet but I've heard a lot of people over at RR using it on non-PAS cars. Apparently it's really straight forward and can basically fit in anywhere with some slight mods. When I've got 2 cars over the summer I might have a go.

[macplaxton]

Steering shouldn't be that heavy on a 1.4 - sounds like an underlying problem.

[JPB]

Steering shouldn't be that heavy on a 1.4 - sounds like an underlying problem.

It's ok for you big, butch truck-driving types, the rest of us may find the steering a little heavier and, bizarrely, lower-geared as well, than that of our daily cars, how did they manage that eh; Both heavy and requiring loads of twirling between locks?
What system was it that was fitted to some Motability-supplied 340 Varios in the '80s then?

Don't think Corsa uses a rack.....

Corsas all have rack & pinion steering, always have done and probably always will. However the versions that come with PAS use exactly the same, unassisted rack as the pov-spec versions, the assistance is by electric motors that operate on the column, so the rack isn't relevant and that's how the system can be adapted to work on cars with boxes too.

[macplaxton]

What system was it that was fitted to some Motability-supplied 340 Varios in the '80s then?

360 PAS rack with a few brackets, pump, labour and a £1645 quid (1990) price ticket.

Even wee petite girlies can drive trucks these days, PAS and all that. I think I developed my upper arm strength from battering around in that old TN Merc 207 - now that was a Man's van (and fecking slow to boot with it's 65 'orses of raw power )

[Chris_C]

1.4's really shouldn't be that heavy, I'd check your strut top bearings and mounts if you have a chance.

John, the normal response to why 300's have such huge amount of turns lock to lock is that it has an awesome turning circle but going as you have a dolly I'll not try that Is it any worse than the dolomites steering though?

[JPB]

Chris, the strut bearings were my first thought too, but they're fine, when I jack up the front end as closely as possible to the hubs, and turn the wheel from lock to lock, the steering feels smooth, light and just as it ought to be really. Ball joints are ok, as are all of its bouncy and twisty bits.

The Dolly has only 2.8 turns between locks, a 27 foot turning circle and a smaller steering wheel than that of the Volvo yet, even if I wind its column down so that the wheel is as far away from me as it will go, the Triumph has very much lighter steering.
I suspect that the recently-fitted, Avon Enviro tyres that the Dolly wears all round are, at least in part, responsible for its lightness, especially as the last set of tyres wore out gradually so I'd not have been aware of any sudden change.
I'll soon know how much difference tyre choice makes on the 340 as I shall be fitting fresh rubber up front soon.
I did experiment with over-inflated front tyres on the 340 recently, thinking that would show up any stiffness caused by the tyres when they're correctly inflated, and doing so just made the car even more understeery, almost as bad as a typical FWD car in fact.

On electric steering columns from shopping trolley cars though; I reckon that 360 PAS must be a better way to go as it would use parts that were meant to go in there with the exception of the pump and locating that shouldn't be too hard to fathom out, given the fact that there's so much space around that cute ickle baby engine.

[volvodspec]

the 340 Turbo: 195 wide tires, 50kg extra weight on the front axle (1.4T engine). welded diff and yet it steers much lighter than my stock 1980 343 (same brand and type of tyre but 185 wide)

all because on the 340 turbo i've relubed the steering rack and placed new upper bearings. my dad has weak shoulders and was complaining about the heavy steering on my other 340, also on 195 wide (also same brand and type tires). i've lubed the steering rack on that and lubed the topmount bearings; it still steers heavyer that my 340Turbo but my dad was happy..

the first PAS kit from another car bolted to a 300 has jet to be found... maybe porsche 924 is an idea, the steering joints fit that car too. but if you're a handyman; buy yourself a brandnew 340/360 PAS rack for 350/400 euro's, fabricate a set of pulleys and use a unknown brand pump + resevoir and make a few hoses; done..

[shamil]

i came to know that Subaru Impreza PAS rack can be fixed with some modification.

any ideas?

JCB
Can we fix Corsas Rack & pinion steering with some modification

[JPB]

......
Can we fix Corsas Rack & pinion steering with some modification

Why would you want to though? The Corsa doesn't have an assisted rack, its PAS acts purely on the column, the point being that a Corsa steering column can possibly be used to add assistance even to cars that have a box and idler system. But that column is pretty bulky and having had a look at the space available on the 340's bulkhead and under the dash, you'd need to remove the fuse box from the bulkhead, make a large hole where it used to be, relocate the fusebox, replace the 340's lower column joint with one that would mate it to the Corsa column, fabricate and fit a tubular steel reinforcement to replace the strength lost in cutting away chunks of the bulkhead..... There's more, and the wiring would be the simplest bit of all.

Fit the 360 rack, find out what kind of pump was fitted to the Motability 340 varios, easier and arguably already known to the insurance industry, which doesn't take kindly to modifications at the best of times.