Indysupra Posted February 8, 2017 Report Share Posted February 8, 2017 Anyone running an e36 rack in your e30? The time has come for us to replace our steering rack due to a blown seal and now quiet a bit of play in the rack gear. WE have not been running power steering since we built the car so I may need to add that back. Figured since I have to replace it might go with a e36 rack. If anyone has done the swap how many points if any did they assign. Thanks. Eric Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hi_Im_Will Posted February 8, 2017 Report Share Posted February 8, 2017 It's 10 points if you use the 1.8 Z3 rack with the original E30 tie rods, and modify the original E30 steering coupler. If you use a rack that requires different tie rods, it's an extra 10 pts per tie rod, if you use an aftermarket coupler, its 10 points for that too. You won't need to add power steering back in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indysupra Posted February 8, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 8, 2017 Seems excessive for what you gain but thank you very much for the info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enginerd Posted February 8, 2017 Report Share Posted February 8, 2017 Anyone running an e36 rack in your e30? The time has come for us to replace our steering rack due to a blown seal and now quiet a bit of play in the rack gear. WE have not been running power steering since we built the car so I may need to add that back. Figured since I have to replace it might go with a e36 rack. If anyone has done the swap how many points if any did they assign. Thanks. Eric Curiosity... What's the benefit of an e36 rack? (referring to this part of your post: "Figured since I have to replace it might go with a e36 rack") Cheaper? Fewer turns lock-to-lock? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hi_Im_Will Posted February 8, 2017 Report Share Posted February 8, 2017 Much smaller ratio. No more school bus steering. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indysupra Posted February 9, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 Yes closer ratio. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mender Posted February 9, 2017 Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 With steering it's called a quicker ratio. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Team Infiniti Posted February 9, 2017 Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 ......... school bus steering. Wait, e30 steering is like Infiniti? Going to have to drive one someday 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pintodave Posted February 9, 2017 Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 Could be worth the points hit if you can lose weight off the nose and you can eliminate the chance of a p.s. failure.... heck I might research a quick-ratio manual rack for the Camaro... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indysupra Posted February 9, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 No weight savings, don't run power steering with a power rack. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron_e Posted February 9, 2017 Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 Wait, e30 steering is like Infiniti? Going to have to drive one someday Can't be any worse than the first gen RX-7 at 4.5 turns lock to lock. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hi_Im_Will Posted February 9, 2017 Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 Can't be any worse than the first gen RX-7 at 4.5 turns lock to lock. Yeah, that's actual school bus, with the recirculating ball, pitman arm, and everything else schoo bus-y. E30 stock is 4.0 turns on a 20.5:1 rack - still way too much, but usable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skierman64 Posted February 9, 2017 Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 Never underestimate the usefulness of a nice rack. 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mender Posted February 9, 2017 Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 Yeah, that's actual school bus, with the recirculating ball, pitman arm, and everything else schoo bus-y. E30 stock is 4.0 turns on a 20.5:1 rack - still way too much, but usable. I replaced the stock Fiero 19.2:1, 3.0 turn lock-to-lock rack with a WS6 rack with 14.4:1 and 2.28 turns. I ran the ps lines from the ps pump on my swapped engine to the rack and have enjoyed quick steering with good feedback, a rather noticable improvement over the slow and somewhat numb stock set-up and no longer have the annoying kick-back over bumps and curbs. It was one of the most noticable improvements in the Fiero: quick enough to catch insipient spins easily and lower effort for less fatigue while retaining very good communication with the road. I've raced a few cars with power steering, only had one failure due to a leaky hose, so I have no qualms about using it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hi_Im_Will Posted February 9, 2017 Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 I replaced the stock Fiero 19.2:1, 3.0 turn lock-to-lock rack with a WS6 rack with 14.4:1 and 2.28 turns. I ran the ps lines from the ps pump on my swapped engine to the rack and have enjoyed quick steering with good feedback, a rather noticable improvement over the slow and somewhat numb stock set-up and no longer have the annoying kick-back over bumps and curbs. It was one of the most noticable improvements in the Fiero: quick enough to catch insipient spins easily and lower effort for less fatigue while retaining very good communication with the road. I've raced a few cars with power steering, only had one failure due to a leaky hose, so I have no qualms about using it. We've looked at replacing the E30 rack with a Z3 non-M rack, 13.9:1 and 2.7 turns. Bolts in with a mild steering shaft modification and a few washers, so it's only 10 points, and it seems to be the quickest reasonable rack available for an E30. Problem is, when the car is 450 points to begin with, it's hard to justify a 10 point driveability improvement that doesn't raise the car's limits. Is the quicker rack really worth a lap? Is the capacity for quicker inputs outweighed by the increase in driver fatigue? If the swap was points free we'd try it, but for the cost of a wing... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mender Posted February 9, 2017 Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 It cost me 40 points when I first did it but I had room for it. I had the choice between headers for 50 pts and the rack for 40 pts; I chose the rack and never regretted itI look at it as a raising of the driver's limits averaged over a two hour stint. It was literally the difference in feel and feedback between driving a Chevette and driving a Trans Am, since those were where the two racks came from. I doubt a BMW would see as much change. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mhr650 Posted February 9, 2017 Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 Could be worth the points hit if you can lose weight off the nose and you can eliminate the chance of a p.s. failure.... heck I might research a quick-ratio manual rack for the Camaro... Can't be any worse than the first gen RX-7 at 4.5 turns lock to lock. I am going the opposite way of most people and converting my car from manual to power steering. Like Ron says the stock ratio is very slow on my car but with big tires and lots of caster the effort is really high and wears a driver out over a 2hr stint. Power steering was a rare option on RX7’s, it is a little quicker ratio but with the power assist it will also be less tiring to drive. I have been able to find a steering box to install, and I have some connections to get a really nice pump for the new engine, I will experiment with different flow rates to dial in the amount of boost that works best. A side benefit for me is that since I moved the seat over to be able to fit the new containment seat in the car the steering wheel is a couple of inches off of the seat cl. The standard RX7 steering box and shaft are all one piece so there is really no good option to get the wheel centered back up on the seat. The power steering box is a normal design with just a splined shaft out of the box, I will get a circle track style steering shaft which I can center on the seat and then run some universals to connect it with the steering box. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elongoran Posted February 9, 2017 Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 Condorspeedshop.com has the power steering delete kit for the e30 and they have a kit to make the E36 and the Z3 1.9 work on the e30s Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theblue Posted February 9, 2017 Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 waits for somebody to say the delete kits also costs 10 points Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skierman64 Posted February 9, 2017 Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 waits for somebody to say the delete kits also costs 10 points Nope, just the factory useless rear wing. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CBraden Posted February 9, 2017 Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 e46 racks are cheap plentiful, newer, and quick ratio... and they are easy to fit up to a 5 lug swap, in case that is useful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enginerd Posted February 9, 2017 Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 Condorspeedshop.com has the power steering delete kit for the e30 I know you're trying to plug for a sponsor, but it's really an unnecessary cost. We plugged the banjo bolts with epoxy and screwed them right back in.... this method was about $0.50 and has worked flawlessly for us through 10 weekends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indysupra Posted February 9, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2017 I cut the metal lines and looped them with rubber hose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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