Mr. Em1

iTrader: (1)

Hey guys i had a rough time trying to find a way to loop my power steering. Alot of people just remove the power steering lines and let the seals in the rack dry up, I have used a setup that my friend (93allmotorcoupe) came up with. I wanted to share this with everybody because I know i had a hard time finding a straight forward answer. so for all of you 96-00 civic guys who have been converting your power racks to manual racks, here is a solution for your power racks. 92-00 Civics have the same size fittings but the 92-95 has 3 holes instead of two (96-00). A Flywheel bolt fits in the location of thrid hole on an eg.

2 fittings you need to loop. One is 14mm X 1.5 and the other is 16mm X 1.5. I used these adapters (I ordered from this site too and they came in a few days): http://bakerprecision.com/adapt20.htm

Youll need part numbers FCM2240 and FCM2241. From there I used whats called socketless hose. Part number FCM1512 on this page ( http://bakerprecision.com/aqp1.htm ) fits on the adapters listed above. Part # FBN0600 is the hose I used to loop them, I bought 2 ft but you could probably get away with 1 ft. I did drain a lot of the fluid out of the rack though, only leave a little in there to keep it lubricated. If you wanna use full SS braided off the adapter fittings you can do that and piece together your own lines. The hose im using has been working great though and its black so it stays out of sight.

I hope this can help you guys looking to CORRECTLY eliminate power steering!!



UPDATE
If you would like to take the time to figure it out, i noticed that you can build the same setup with Earl's Fittings and hose for a fraction of the costs from baker.
www.anplumbing.com

trustdestruction

Nice work. I think you're missing something though... I believe you need a reservoir.

What you now need to do is install a T-fitting in that loop hose, and run another hose to your power steering reservoir (put it wherever you want). Then fill the system up with power steering fluid just like it would normally be (except your obviously not going to have the pump or pump lines).

This allows the air in the system to bleed itself out through the reservoir, like it does in the stock power rack configuration.



This thread makes me want to convert my steering rack.

So for the 92-95 you just do this same thing but plug up the 3rd hole? Which hole is the one you plug?

unusual71

you said it yourself, the third one. just jokes


Have you driven a car with this looped line vs. one with a T-fitting and a line going to a breather?

Mr. Em1

iTrader: (1)

my friend says you dont need the reservoir at all and hasnt had issues with his car driving it for probably over 10k miles by now.
******PICTURED IS AN EG RACK*******
Look closely at the pic and you will see a flywheel bolt
96-00 civics are different i will take a pic of mine and post it tonight

trustdestruction

Oh okay. On second thought... since you don't have a pump I guess it won't matter if air is in the system.

I noticed the flywheel bolt after I asked the question. lol

NOOdS

why not just change to a manual rack? i have one collecting dust in my garage.

Meoshe

iTrader: (3)

Steering ratio is better on the power rack

Mr. Em1

iTrader: (1)

.............
because of the reason stated above, plus it was easier for me to just keep my rack. i will have the pic tommorow of my 99 si power rack and how it is looped! i have been really busy lately but ill get it to you guys!

Unseen Racer

????
huh??

never-the-less, nice write up

LaTe ApEx

Great post!

So there is really no need for a breather?

Im about to do this to my ek, and have been reasearching alot lately. My understanding is that this way will work, but air does get trapped in the system making it harder to turn, gradually harder even, the closer you get to full lock. I have no experience with this yet and am just going by online print and others testimonials, but aparently with a breather, it is much easier/more consistent to turn than without a breather? Am I interperting correctly?

Mr. Em1

iTrader: (1)

that may be the case but i havent yet experienced it yet, i will have my friend come on here and comment about his setup!

93allmotorcoupe

Thanks for posting this up Jared, ive been meaning to do it but never got around to it

As Mr. EM1 said, thats my setup posted above, which is an EG/DC rack. I have another civic (EJ2) with a true non-PS rack so I can give you a pretty good comparison. The looped setup that Im running is def. harder to turn at slow speeds (meaning when youre parking or stopped, < 5mph) but at any speed higher than that they feel very similar. The looped setup has a slightly heavier feel at the wheel but you still get good feedback and response. I havent noticed any extra resistance turning lock to lock so I dont think air pressure is significant enough to need a breather. My advice is to try it looped like this and if you feel it needs a breather it would be very simple to add one.

Edit: I think im going to make another post for EG's just to make this info easier to find and more specific. And I should also add that I def. noticed a slight power increase at high RPM. Nothing extremely significant, but I could feel that it free'd up some power up top.

Mr. Em1

iTrader: (1)

Def less moving parts on a motor, def freeing up some hp
either way here is how it looks on my em1 rack:

Unseen Racer

looks good

ej1love

so about how much weight would you be looking at saving? 25lbs?... ima do mine when i swap, a/c too...

GetawayInMoscow

Any comments on what it's like having power steering removed? I had no P/S on my EG, will it be similar to that?

dmotoguy

hmm... might do this when I swap.. you have to have something for the gf to complain about when she drives your car.

GetawayInMoscow

dang you are still alive!

93allmotorcoupe

ej1love - Youre probably looking at about 15-20 lbs in weight saving.

GetawayInMoscow - Read my comment above.

Mr. Em1

iTrader: (1)

I didn't loop the rack mainly for weight savings, I looped it because i am running a turbo manifold that doesn't allow for power steering, so in addition to losing weight and relieving stress off of the motor it def looks much cleaner in the bay without it. it probably comes in at about 10 lbs with everything probably a little less.
you will probably save around 25-30lbs if you take out the ps and ac.

I enjoy having a better turn ratio, you really never have to put one hand over the other to turn. I feel as if i have more control over the vehicle when driving and makes u feel the road better, in my opinion

dmotoguy

ha, yep... back to liking cars again

Themouse

Bump looks good man

Mr. Em1

iTrader: (1)

bump for those in need

Mr. Em1

iTrader: (1)

bump to help

Nicky

Anyone know any shops/stores in Toronto that would sell the adapters for the fittings?

I e-mailed the website you gave me but they haven't gotten back to me, and I highly doubt they will.

Please let me know anyone. Thanks