My electro-hydraulic steering conversion

[mattsGSTeclipse]

I'm very interested in this, please keep us updated.

 

[ziggys95tsi]

Very interested. Ive been thinking of this over the winter. Ive read that a lot of honda guys are doing this and using the same pump. Just curious, do you think the length of your power steering hose matters? other than for how much fluid it can hold, I have my battery in the trunk and am thinking of putting the pump there

 

[mattsGSTeclipse]

What's the height on this pump? I'm just wondering if it could be hidden. by the looks of it, it looks too tall.

 

[gho5tone]

No updates?

I'm just anxious to see the final result.

 

[turbotalon1g]

Keep up the hard work.

 

[Dsm810z]

Hey, I'm woooorking on it I was hard at work on putting all the wiring in over the weekend, got the pump lined up and properly mounted. I actually used some urethane bushings I just picked up from the local auto parts store. They were endlink bushings, now they're pump mounts.

I should have time wednesday to finish up the installation, I'll update with pictures of the wiring/hydraulics then as well. So far the pump will spin when the key is in the on position and when I flip the dash switch so all good there. Just have to get the hydraulics hooked up. I used Russell powerflex braided hose with powerflex hose ends to insure a good seal under high pressure.

As far as the height of the pump, I don't have an exact measurement, the picture by the water bottle is there for just a relevance correlation.... I can try to get a better measurement while it's mounted on the car.

 

[Dsm810z]

Alright, here are the pictures of the install. I don't have a measurement for the exact height of the pump yet.

Foremost, the wiring schematic I used most to wire the in the pump itself (source: EHPS Redone - Page 2 - Honda-Tech

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Fairly straight forward. Far left connector goes to chassis ground. I used a fuse holder with the 50 amp fuse. The wiring I wrapped around the front of the car, under the headlights, but not visible from in front of the car either. The relay I mounted in one of the free bolt spaces behind the passenger headlight.

To tap into the ignition, I tapped into IGN2 which was a blue wire with a red stripe. Check voltage to be certain before hacking away at wires. I wanted power only when the switch was in the ON position. From there I ran wire to a 7.5 amp fuse, then to a rocker switch (see below) and then to the relay making the appropriate splice before the relay to run to the other pump connector. I used 8 gauge wire for the main power wires and 18 gauge wire everywhere else.

I did not use the connector labeled "Speed Signal."

Dash switch:

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The dash switch is just a precaution. Say the battery starts dying out on me I can kill the pump to take some of the drain off the battery.

Hydraulics installed:

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I used -6 an Russell Powerflex hose (good up to 2500 psi) and Powerflex hose ends. After day one it has held up just as it is made to do.

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Fittings at steering rack:

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The two fittings required are power steering fittings size: 16mm x 1.5 and 14mm x 1.5 to -6 an line.

The fitting at the pump is a 16mm x 1.5 to -6 an adapter.

I ordered 20 ft. of steering hose and I have about 13 ft. left over.

 

[gho5tone]

Seems straight forward. How is the new driving experience and how much did you end up spending?

 

[Dsm810z]

The handling is absolutely amazing, so nice to have p/s again Much smoother than the factory p/s system, I hated that thing.

I wanna say I spent about 450 for everything. Cost could be less if I hadn't spent so much on excess hose >.< Guess I'll just use it to run a catch can haha. The pump is the kicker ($300). I have limited wiring experience, but this wiring is very straightforward. Let me say, those powerflex hose ends are just cool

 

[gho5tone]

Is it similar to like how a bmw drives? Resistance but not to bad compare to no PS. Where did you get that pump? Dealer? Ebay?

You could sell those lines to people who are interested in doing this.

Just not me yet, spent money on a talon awd just recently

*edit* Don't forget to tech article this! If you want that is

 

[99gst_racer]

Thanks for sharing! I'm glad to hear you like how it feels. I'm even more excited now to get started on mine.

 

[snowborder714]

You better do a full write up Paul. I might consider doing this as well. I was having issues with my power steering not working during my last autox and I didn't like it.

 

[99gst_racer]

Ohh, I definitely will. Lots of pics.

 

[Dsm810z]

I will say this, I had a small amount of difficulty in pushing the -6 an line over the reservoir inlet. It can be done, but I'd probably run -8 an line on the low pressure side (into the reservoir). Your call, I've got mine all sealed up and working properly. There's a toyota dealership down the street, I think I'm gonna get the connector for the main power supply so I can have a bit tighter seal there.

I got the pump off ebay. It took me a month to get one in the mail because I purchased from a company for a rebuilt, lifetime warranty pump for $300. Without notifying me, they deposited it back in my account, when I called them I always got no answer and finally they called back, stated "we cannot find the pump you're looking for" and hung up on me. They then reposted THE SAME AD for the same item, but for $600. Do not purchase from carsteeringparts for this pump, they will rip you a new one.

I finally ordered from a more reliable company and they were VERY helpful. I cannot recall the name, I did the transaction separate from ebay.

 

[99gst_racer]

I'm using the Clio pump, so it may be a hair different for the pump connections.

I had issues with the same seller! Mine was for a power steering rack.

 

[greengoblin]

Thanks for the info. that give use two pump to pick from.

Kevin

 

[Dsm810z]

I also looked into the clio pump. Agreed, the setup is pretty much the same. The 2nd generation mr2 pump can also be used. The second gen just doesn't have the reservoir built in so you so you could really mount that one wherever you wanted and then mount the reservoir in a reachable area. Also the second gen can pull about 80 amps whereas the one I used pulls about 50. How much does the clio one pull? I know it has a built in reservoir too. Wiring on the second gen pump on requires the main power and ground, so simpler wiring.

3rd gen (mine): 50 amps, quieter, built in reservoir

2nd gen: 80 amps, bit louder, no reservoir.

 

[99gst_racer]

The Clio pump is said to pull 5-10 amps when running at idle, and 40-50 amps when under full load.

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[Dsm810z]

Yeah, that's what the 3rd gen mr2 pulls at idle, just a few amps, then about 50 at full steering lock.

You won't have to deal with a built in relay like is on the one I'm using either. Looks like the reservoir inlet may be smaller than what's on mine so you should be fine with all -6 an line.

 

[polarmoment]

Interesting.

Another lightweight option would be to use the electric assist steering column out of the prius. It's the same setup as used in the NSX, but they're easy to find and dirt cheap (~$70). No idea on spline counts or anything like that, unfortunately (a friend and I had considered it for a single seater race chassis we were building), but I think it draws significantly less current, since it's gear reduction and it's on the input side of the rack- which is why they used it in the prius. It's got a control module that's pretty easy to hack as well.

I've been looking into both, since my MR2 didn't come with PS and sometimes I think it might be worth it to have it, especially if I ever move to a quick ratio pinion setup. The MK3 stuff is definitely cleaner and more compact than the MK2 stuff though.

 

[Dsm810z]

I adapted a bit of -8 an braided line to the -6 an line coming from the rack to the reservoir (low pressure). Fits perfect now.

 

[mattsGSTeclipse]

Any chance you can take a measurement of the height of this pump?

 

[gixrman]

Ahh beat me to it! I have the MR2 pump, wiring harness and both ECU's that I want to set up. Having no time sucks.

Need to talk to Tom and Dave to see if I can get link to run it based on vehicle speed.

 

[mattsGSTeclipse]

Ahh beat me to it! I have the MR2 pump, wiring harness and both ECU's that I want to set up. Having no time sucks.

Need to talk to Tom and Dave to see if I can get link to run it based on vehicle speed.

That would be sweet to have it run through link somehow.

 

[ramsack]

I like the power steering lines you used. A nice, clean look.