So i just received the power steering relooping/breather kit put together by Padawan which, i must say, is a VERY well put together, inclusive kit. it all looks fine and dandy for my ek coupe. I put the car in the garage on jackstands today and proceded to try to install the kit.

link for padawan kit:
https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=563116

However, about 30 min into my project, i realized this was gonna cause a lot more swearing than i anticipated. I didnt have a lot of time to work on the car, so i made a temporary fix. I took out the ps pump, and i connected the inlet hose from the reservoir and the outlet hose that originally connected to the pump, and just put a screwtype clamp around both to hold them together. now it's Q&A time.

1. is this system safe in the long run? (basically, will this cause accelerated wear on my rack for any reason?)

2. the screw clamp hold a lot stronger than the spring clamp in the pics, but is there a better way to hold them together?

3. will i see a significant difference between this setup and installing the full reloop/breather tank kit? (seems to be about the same idea, except for the diameter of the hoses)

4. the steering actually feels easier than jsut when i took the belt off. am i just imagining this, or does the fact that the fluid doesnt have to go through the pump have a real effect on resistance?

5. any other comments/suggestions about this setup?

below are some pics of my setup (the spring clamp has since been replaced with a screw-in clamp)








Modified by smoke traces at 8:39 AM 3/21/2004


Modified by smoke traces at 8:55 AM 3/21/2004

 

http://www.imagestation.com/pi...7.jpg

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by smoke traces &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">So i just received the power steering relooping/breather kit put together by Padawan which, i must say, is a VERY well put together, inclusive kit. it all looks fine and dandy for my ek coupe. I put the car in the garage on jackstands today and proceded to try to install the kit.

However, about 30 min into my project, i realized this was gonna cause a lot more swearing than i anticipated. I didnt have a lot of time to work on the car, so i made a temporary fix. I took out the ps pump, and i connected the inlet hose from the reservoir and the outlet hose that originally connected to the pump, and just put a screwtype clamp around both to hold them together. now it's Q&A time.

1. is this system safe in the long run? (basically, will this cause accelerated wear on my rack for any reason?)

2. the screw clamp hold a lot stronger than the spring clamp in the pics, but is there a better way to hold them together?

3. will i see a significant difference between this setup and installing the full reloop/breather tank kit? (seems to be about the same idea, except for the diameter of the hoses)

4. the steering actually feels easier than jsut when i took the belt off. am i just imagining this, or does the fact that the fluid doesnt have to go through the pump have a real effect on resistance?

5. any other comments/suggestions about this setup?

below are some pics of my setup (the spring clamp has since been replaced with a screw-in clamp)







</TD></TR></TABLE> u gots to take the .org.jpg off the end
what does it do?
post some pics of it
sry i really cant help much more than the pics


Modified by H22A EG6 at 2:58 AM 3/21/2004

 

basically (as i've been told) taking off the pwr steering belt effectively frees up the power and disables the PS, but when you turn the wheel, you still have to push fluid thru the non-moving pump parts which makes it signifficantly harder to turn.

i took out the pump, and made a big loop out of the PS hoses, so instead of the fluid going thru the pump and increasing resistance, they just go right back into the rack which makes it easier to turn.

i realized jsut now when i took the wheels off the ground, that the majority of the diddiculty in turning the wheels ceoms from the riction with the ground, duh. so my main concern now (since im fine the the turning resistance) is the reliability/safety of the connection i made.

 

1. i dought it would cause any cause accelerated wear on your rack. i would not think it affects your rack at all b/c it just elimates the power assisting system

2. i think the screw clamp would be the best but dont tighten it too much you might bust someting

3. got no idea

4. i would think the fluid resistance would cause a prob it will slow it down guite a bit. i have driven my civic that cane with out ps and a 240 sx with the belt off it was ******* hard to turn that wheel

5. i think this kit looks great i would prob get it if i had ps

any one want to back up amy answers?
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by smoke traces &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> so my main concern now (since im fine the the turning resistance) is the reliability/safety of the connection i made.</TD></TR></TABLE>
i think the connections look fine if ya got the screw clamps throw them on there


Modified by H22A EG6 at 11:09 AM 3/21/2004

 

oh just to clarify, the setup i show here is NOT the kit, its my "temporary" fix, which im thinking of making permanent. the kit i bought from Padawan has other cool **** in it, like a fancy shmancy breather tank thing and aeroquip fittings, but im getting decent results with what i have now so i might just leave it.

i just got back from driving about 100 mi around the hills here, not fast or anything, but plenty of turns, and it seems fine still, no leaks.

 

 

bump

 

I have my rack looped with the aeroquip fittings and the "power cooler", but don't have the fancy breather setup. I like my setup though...it looks clean and steering aint hard at all unless you are in a really tight space. Also...i used to have mine setup similar to how you have yours now until I could finish installing the fittings and all. I don't think it will really hurt anything.

PS: good luck with getting the lines out from the bottom of the rack and getting the fittings and new hose in to loop it. It was an extreme pain in the *** on my civic being that there is no room at all to work with taking that metal line out and putting the fittings in. The position of the lines running into the rack sucks on civics, but on integras it is so much easier because you can do it without having to jack the car up or anything .

 

I was told that even just cutting the ps likes wont lock up your rack.when i do a swap and ppl dont want to buy the manual rack, but dont want the ps i'll just loop it together at the rack.keep in mind though i ps rack without the pump is way harder to turn then a manual rack.

 

the bottom hose i have plugged with a bolt...and the top hose that goes to the pump acts as a breather

thats how i did it
very ghetto, and id like to do something better later on

 

you really should put a breather in there , it will make the effort required to turn the wheels much less.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 96cpe &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I was told that even just cutting the ps likes wont lock up your rack.when i do a swap and ppl dont want to buy the manual rack, but dont want the ps i'll just loop it together at the rack.keep in mind though i ps rack without the pump is way harder to turn then a manual rack.</TD></TR></TABLE>

yea I wouldn't bother with a manual rack. They have less of a turning radius.

 

well the truth is, i don't mind the turning resistance at all, in fact i kinda like it, like a bit of a steering damper if you will. im just making sure this system is long-term safe.

 

any other opinions?

 

hmmm... bump so i can try this till I order my kit