serialtoon

My girlfriend has a 1997 Honda Civic Hatch. I believe its a lower end model, maybe a LX or something of that nature. I took it for a spin and noticed that her steering wheel is hard to turn. I thought maybe it was the steering fluid that was missing...but the car has no power steering option installed. I was thinking is it supposed to be like that? I mean i was flexing my muscles like crazy trying to turn the wheel on this thing. Any ideas? Im new to the boards, you guys seem very knowledgeable about this type of vehicle so i decided to join and ask around. Thx fellas!

Syndacate

I didn't think it was an option (I thought it came always) on taht model, though I may be wrong, if I'm right, then obviously it was removed after it was bought..

Also, if u have to flex ur muscles to turn the wheel, then ur either really weak, or ur doing it at a dead stop, just from what I've been hearing (I don't know the actual reason) it's bad to turn ur wheels from a dead stop, it's better to turn them hwile ur moving...less stress or some **** like that...although that may only be for not overworking the power steering pump which in this case u really don't have to worry about...

But it's still easier to turn while the car's moving

serialtoon

LOL! Im not weak..i was simply stating how bad it is. It was from a dead stop, but even when you engage the clutch and start gassing the car, its still rather difficult.

aquabob89

are you sure its an lx. thats rare for an lx not to have ps. its not a problem if it does not have it though only an extra hassle. i drive everyday with no power steering.

97civicdx

Welcome to manual rack and pinion. My 97 dx coupe has manual steering. You do get used to it.

dRuNkEnMoNkEy97

i dont believe hatchbacks ever came in an lx...

ekcivic9

cx maybe?

jdm*

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by dRuNkEnMoNkEy97 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i dont believe hatchbacks ever came in an lx...</TD></TR></TABLE>

haha

CardDealer

Modified by CardDealer at 2:29 PM 11/16/2006

XtremeZ

you're right...they don't come in lx, only cx and dx in the hatch..

I drive a 97 civic dx coupe...no power stearing..

its hard when you're not use to it but it gets easier with time...and definitely tough while stopped.

serialtoon

Well i just finished looking and nope, not there. Im not sure which model it is as they stripped the emblems from the back. the car is in good shape but a mechanic told her that she needs new "axle boots" to fix the problem. What do you guys think?

maacb16

when the exle boot breaks they let out all the grease that lubricates the axle joints yeah it almost feels like you cant turn the wheel almost like if its gonna break so yeah when you get that fixed you should see some improvement but if its your girls car then you should get her power steering!!!!!

ccjustin

"axle boots" unless the axles are being replaced also, new boots aren't going to make the steering better. I have a 97 dx hatch w/o PS, couple things, the steering wheel needs to turn 4.1 times from hard left to hard right, as apposed to a PS rack's 3.6; turning the wheel while stopped is very hard and isn't very good for your tire tread, try to let the car move a little while turning. there is a bigger "dead spot" (from what I've noticed) before the wheels start to turn than a PS rack, feels loose, but isn't. make sure your tires are inflated properly, this makes a huge difference as far as effort needed to steer and if you get rims it becomes even harder to turn the wheel.
I love my Hatch

Syndacate

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by XtremeZ &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
you're right...they don't come in lx, only cx and dx in the hatch..
I drive a 97 civic dx coupe...no power stearing..

its hard when you're not use to it but it gets easier with time...and definitely tough while stopped.
</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yeah, ur probably right, my mom's jeep lost power steering (or it never had it, pick one), and I don't recall if it was hard in the beginning but I was able to drive it np when I was driving it normally, and so was she...and she's weak...

EDIT:
and I'm pretty sure it weighed more than a civic so it'd be harder to turn (jeep cherokee) - tg she sold that POS and started buying real cars

serialtoon

I guess thats just the way the car is. Im gonna inflate her tires accordingly for easier turning of the wheel. Im sure you guys know women and thier bad habits of keeping thier car on tip top shape.

turnsignalandy

didnt all ek hatchbacks come without power steering? I know the dx didnt and all the other models are lower.

ccjustin

I worked with a kid who had a 99 hatch no ac,but had PS, he also had a cool hatch relase handle above the license plate

CHONCH

no power steering is hard to turn on all cars from a dead stop. once you get going it is ok though. if you want to add it to the car, you'll need to get a power steering pump and rack.

Paxil4x4

Your not going to notice any steering effort change by replacing axle boots

serialtoon

Cool! Thx cause this moron mechanic was trying to get my gf to pony up the cash for axel boots. Good thing you brought this up. Thx. I dont own a Honda, never have, but i know my way around Toyota ;-) (Supra) Thx alot fellas, my next car is an Si for sure.

XtremeZ

It might be smart to get a second opinion or something. If you know someone who drives a car with no power stearing...

only reason I say this is because everyone who drives cars without the ps knows its stiff but maybe what you're feeling is really something more...

I'm sure it's nothing and the mechanic is trying to make some cash off you but I would get a second opinion if I were you.

Good luck either way.

MasterKwan

If the boots are busted and you don't get it fixed. You're going to be buying axles before too long. It might already be too late. The CV joints need to live in grease.

My DX 98 hatch used to have AC and PS. Now it has a PS rack (with Teg internals) but no pump so, it's basically manual. It is hard to turn because it has the quicker Teg ratio.