Steering, Suspension, & Brakes

Just finished an install into a Volvo p1800.
It transformed the car! Was a complete bear to drive at low speeds and during parking.
Now it's a pleasure to drive. Couldn't be happier.
Should have taken pictures during the modification but didn't have my camera here yesterday.
Remote mounted the control unit and flipped the assist unit upside down so that the pedals had max clearance.
Took an afternoon including some time on the lathe.
Will definitely do it again.

Fit well into a car with no room.

Cheers
Fred

Fred, what did the EPS unit come out of?

05 Equinox

Fred, Very well done!

Any news on the VSS controller?

I haven't seen anything yet. I have about 5000 miles on mine this summer. You get used to it pretty quickly. The VSS could help the over 45 mph cruising. Definitely need to be careful in the early cars with the quicker rack ratio. I still get a smile on my face when driving!

What controller are you guys using? Looking to do the Saturn vue to mgb swap

Conner,
As posted elsewhere:
[www.ebay.ca]
Ken

What exactly does the Bruno box do?
It has a pot, it has power. Does it do any more than just send a variable voltage?

Jim

Quote:

The controller processes the steering effort and hand wheel position through a series of algorithms for assist and return to produce the proper amount of polarity and current to the motor.

[www.knowyourparts.com]

HIWD on a V8 RX7.

[www.driftworks.com]

So a pot and a chip, but we don't know what the chip outputs to the controller. Could be a complex waveform, could be a reference voltage. Or anything in between.

Jim

Well, if it's running algorithms, it's kinda hard to build it unless you can copy & burn PROMs.

Too bad somebody hasn't been able to put a scope on the output yet. There are just two wires going to the controller. Two wires from the pot to the Bruno, a hot wire and a ground. The Bruno was described as, "having a small chip" (which these days might not mean much).

I have a bit more than an academic interest. On my bench is sitting an electric power steering pump which I thought could be a good portable source of hydraulic power, like maybe for a tubing bender or something. But it also has inputs for control. Interestingly enough the built-in controller takes DC and creates a 3-phase current to power the motor so just wiring it direct would not work. Probably a waste of time and money to mess with it and I may end up throwing it away but I was curious enough to pick it up at the junkyard, and to take it apart.

Jim

Lots of great info on EPS/EPAS. Backs up Fred Key on not needing the Bruno module.

[www.forabodiesonly.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/22/2016 07:01PM by MGBV8.

Sh!t, I'm running out of excuses for putting this off!

Great info Carl! Are you considering it?

Great info Carl!! Thanks for finding and sharing. Looks like no more excuses not to transform your driving experience! It'll make you faster through the Mountains!

They were discussing it over on the main MG Experience. Someone linked that page. I was amazed at all the info there. Figured it need to be here, as well. ;)

That could work out really good. I've been driving the RM with the Bruno dial set in various positions and have just about settled on 3/8 as being the best setting. 1/2 is also good. So if those other units in limp mode run at about 1/2 it should be a good set up. Although you CAN vary the setting for different driving conditions, in a very practical sense it is best to find one setting that will work acceptably well for all conditions and just leave it there, and that is exactly what most drivers will do.

I had not noticed the lack of centering but next time I drive the car I will check it out. Considering the light weight of the car, one of the two smaller units should work well, hard to say yet which might be the better choice. But few new cars are in the 2100-2500 lb weight range, or even sub 2700 lb. That should be a consideration when selecting a unit, as should steering rack ratio or turns lock-to-lock. Perhaps the turns should be a divisor of the weight in making a comparison. That would give us some real numbers that we could use.

Jim

Since this is THE main thread on EPS/EPAS, I am cross-posting this from the Triumph section thread.

Quote:

Pick your donor car EPS very carefully. Why buy a Bruno box if it's a set it & forget it situation. Fail Safe mode may be all we need for our LBC.
The Bruno controller is needed for the Saturn Vue, Chevrolet Equinox, etc. do NOT have a factory Fail Safe mode built-in in case it is disconnected from the original vehicle's CAN bus system. Fred Key put an oscilloscope on a Bruno & found out that is about all it does, give the Saturn Vue a fail safe mode (with a potentiometer).

According to this tutorial linked below, a Japanese EPS can be used in Fail Safe mode without the need of a Bruno Box & its variable assist.

The Saturn Vue steering does not self-center well (Mike Moor has discovered this, as well). The author suggests that a Toyota Prius electric steering ECU could be used on the Vue to correct this, as they have the same torque sensor.

[www.forabodiesonly.com]

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/23/2016 12:16PM by MGBV8.