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-   PV, 120 (Amazon), 1800 General (https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/forumdisplay.php?f=9)
-   -   Power steering for your 120,140,1800 & ES (https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showthread.php?t=47651)

Derek UK Nov 15th, 2007 14:09

Power steering for your 120,140,1800 & ES
 
For all those who dislike fighting the heavy steering on their Volvos, this might be the answer. Not cheap but many have given up driving these models because of the problem.
http://www.ezpowersteering.nl/
Electric PS fits entirely under the dash and is silent in operation. It can be adjusted to suit your needs and steering reverts safely back to original feel if there is a failure.
I'm guessing it's adapted from something like the current Vauxhall set up.

archieboy69 Nov 15th, 2007 16:46

They sound good to me, how much are they? i didnt see a price

amazondean Nov 16th, 2007 07:42

I didn't see any english either!!

Alec Dawe Nov 16th, 2007 08:45

Quote:

Originally Posted by amazondean (Post 319578)
I didn't see any english either!!

If you hunt round the site, there are English sections, alternatively, cut and paste into Bablefish to get a sort of translation!

B20F Nov 16th, 2007 16:45

Built in by Ezpowersteering it will set you back about €1600,00. They are working on a DY version, that will cost about €1400,00 and 3-4 hours work. It's a pretty straightforward job it seems, no welding needed. At least that is what they said....

Derek UK Nov 21st, 2007 00:31

This reply from EZ got slotted into my ISP, online spam folder, so it's a little late arriving here. It also confirms B20F's prices.
Long post..............!!!

Dear Derek,

Thank you for your interest in the EZ Powersteering system. The Volvo owners that have had the system installed are very enthusiastic about it.
The cost here in the Netherlands is 1300 Euro's fitted excluding VAT for all the Volvo types requested. If the original horn in the steering wheel is to be used it will be an additional 75 Euro's. This is because we have to use a wireless system as the lead which goes through the hollow shaft can no longer be used. The steering system is similar to the Opel/Vauxhall Corsa and fiat Panda/ Punto. It is speed sensitive and we have adapted the software so that the total assistance can be slightly adjusted to suit the owners preference (allowing for variations in steering effort caused by wider grippier tires and/or a smaller diameter sports steering wheel. Here is some text from our new website which will be launched soon:
Company:EZ Power Steering is specialized in converting classic cars to electric power steering (EPS). Our goal is to produce powersteering systems for classic cars that are virtually invisble and don't require any welding or drilling to the chassis and/or bodywork.

The advantages of the EZ Power Steering compared to normal hydraulic systems are numerous. The EZ system is not visible under the hood of the car as the whole compact system is built in under the dashboard of the car, thereby retaining a completely original appearance. With a hydraulic system the pump is continously driven by a fan belt even when the car is driving in a straight line which costs extra horsepower and fuel. The electric system only draws electricity when the car is turned at low speeds. Unlike a hydraulic system, the EZ Powersteering uses the standard steering rack/box, therefore the original steering ratio and characteristics are retained. Most hydraulic systems don't have speed sensitive power assistance giving a "mushy"feeling at the wheel. The electric system is speed sensitive, giving light steering at parking speeds and heavier steering at higher speeds. It is even possible to adjust the level of assistance over the complete range by turning a knob/potentiometer. Hydraulic systems are noisy, prone to leakage and when failure occures, extremely heavy to steer, even at speed.
Electric systems are completely silent and in the unlikely event a failure in the EZ Power steering system occurs, a built in fail-safe reverts back to conventional steering, meaning the car will steer exactly as it did before powersteering was installed.

Products: Presently we have complete systems available for the Volvo Amazone, Opel GT, Volvo P1800 series and Volvo 140 Series. Other cars that we will be devolping systems for in the near future are the Alfa Romeo Spider, Alfa Romeo Giulia, Alfa Romeo GT, Mercedes 190 SL, Mercedes 300 SL Gullwing and the Datsun 240 Z. If you have interest in a system for a car not mentioned here please contact us.
F.A.Q.:

1. My car is not listed, can a system be made for my car? Yes, a
bespoke system can be made however this will be very expensive for one car.
If we judge the system to be interesting for a large group of enthusiasts we will shoulder the devolpment costs making the system affordable.

2. I live in Germany, will the system be TUV legal? We have sold
numerous systems which have received an "einzelabnahme".

3. We are a classic car specialist and want to be a distibutor for the
system, is this possible? Contact us for the possibilities.

4. Can I install the system myself? All our systems are designed to be
plug and play however some cars might require specialized tools and can have a higher degree of difficulty than others. We can supply extensive installation instructions but recommend a skilled mechanic.

5. How does it work? The EZ Power Steering system has a sensor built
into the steering shaft. When the steering wheel is turned and there is resistance from the tires, the sensor is activated due to the torsion created in the shaft. The sensor gives a signal to the EZ ECU (computer) and based on the program we have written for the particular car, makes a calculation of the road speed, engine speed and position of the steering wheel and then sends the signal to the electric motor to assist.

6. I have mounted wider, stickier tires than originally fitted. Is the
system strong enough to cope with the extra load? No problem, we have purposely chosen an extremely strong electric motor that is also suited for cars with wider tires and/or smaller diameter sports steering wheels. By adjusting the potentiometer it is always possible to find a appropriate level of assistance to suit the drivers needs.

7. Do I have to upgrade my existing electrical system? Provided that
the electrical system is in proper working order, no changes need to be made.

8. I heard that you loose the "feel"of the steering when a car has
powersteering. Don't you hear these comment's from customers? The old-fashioned hydraulic systems could be very vague. The electric systems can be very direct and the settings can be adjusted to the drivers preference. Formula one cars and WRC cars presently use powersteering where the "feel" is extremely important (please note that Formula one cars do not use electric power steering, this forbidden by the FIA as it would give the teams to many options of programming the system. For our American friends, Indycar prohibits powersteering, although there are rumours that Danica Patrick, the female driver does use powersteering. There is a strong possibility that powersteering will be legal in the 2008 season). We have not had a single unsatisfied customer to date.

9. I have a friend who say's he can convert my classic car to
powersteering for an extremely low price. Why should I buy the system that EZ makes? We are talking about the steering system of your car! Think before you let somebody cut up your steering system. We work with an enormously skilled fabrication shop and the only reason we can offer the system for an reasonable price is due to the high numbers produced. The fact that the system has a German TUV approval speaks for itself. We have spent an enormous amount of time developing the software of the electrical system which normally gets its signals from a modern cars CAN (controller Area
Network) bus data system. Driving a car without a speed sensitive system will be dangerous as it will be too light at highway speeds.

10. If I sell my car, can it be converted back to the original condition?
Yes, but the buyer will definitely prefer to buy the car with the EZ system!
Since we do not weld or drill any part of the chassis/bodywork, a standard steering system can be built back into the car at any time. It is also possible to switch the system off, the car then steers exactly the way it did before it had powersteering.

Best regards,

Roger Reijngoud
0031651845088

Gordon Hunter Dec 4th, 2007 09:42

Hi folks,

I've been speaking with EZ power steering over the last couple of weeks and they are going to visit my workshop here in Leicester on 16th January.
We already have an Amazon and a P1800 for conversion, but if anyone else would like to have the unit fitted then I'm sure we'd be able to fit it in too.
Please contact Roger Reijngoud directly to confirm arrangements.

Tel. 0031651845088

Gordon

classicswede Dec 4th, 2007 13:46

Sounds very interesting but not for me. I've always found the amazon steering to be very light. Fitting wider tyres does help but the most important thing is making sure the wheel alighnment is correct.

Looks a lot neater than fitting merc PS box.

Gordon Hunter Dec 4th, 2007 18:12

Hi Dai,

Good to hear from you.
Yes, perhaps the ladies and / or disbled owners could justify this conversion a lot more than most folk who perhaps use their car less frequently.
I happen to have 5.5J rims on my 1800 and as I will be doing a lot of B road exploring in Scotland next year am looking forward to it.
However if you use your Amazon / 1800 a lot around town, it would certainly pay dividends in a tight parking situation.

Gordon

Curator Dec 7th, 2007 17:21

hmmm
 
sounds pretty interesting, although I dont think Id ever need, steering works great on my amazon, my friend actually likes its overall handling better than his car, which has power steering...its a funny thing that my car even drives though considering everything is a random jumble of wires and things hooked up wrong by the previous owner, but im in the middle of rectifying that...


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