Van

So, I got to try my car on the track with manual steering today.

With street tires (PS2s - 225 front and 265 rear) it was really quite OK - not really much different than the power steering at speed. More road feel, and it took a little more effort, but not much.

One neat thing was the improved communication of weight transfer - when weight was transfered forward, the steering was heavier, when weight was trasfered backwards, the steering got lighter.

Then I tried it with track tires (BFG R1s - 245 front and 285 rear). It took more force with the bigger, stickier tires, but WOW, it took a huge amount of force to turn the wheel while trail braking. So much, in one spot there I trail brake into a turn, and then downshift, I couldn't... I couldn't hold the wheel with just one hand while my other hand shifted! I had to modify my line and shift points!

Perhaps it's because of how heavy the steering was under forward wight transfer - but it also seemed like the steering was lighter when weight transfered to the back of the car. It actually made driving out of the corners quite pleasurable.

That's my 2 cents - take it for what it's worth!

TonyG

Try 275's in the front. It's brutal.

I now run 315's in the front. I couldn't imaging how silly it would be.

One thing for sure... back to back testing, with multiple drivers, proves that manual steering is slower (about a full second per lap) with 275's up front.


TonyG

PorscheDude1

Eat some wheatie's and hit the gym.

333pg333

I think the guys that push for manual steering haven't driven anything with much wider than stock wheels/tyres on there. I tried it inadvertently when my p/s dropped all it's fluid the other day and with 275/10/18" up front it was pretty bad as Tony suggests. Sort of ok if you're just going through minor curves or straight along, but yes, into tighter bends it was useless. I can relate to your experience Van. It's p/s or nothing for me on the track.
Thanks for the feedback though Van. It's always valuable.

Darwantae951

Have yet to drive my car on the track...but I like my power steering

Chris White

Most guys that go on about the benefits of manual steering are just repeating what they heard about other cars. The power steering system in the 944 gives much better feedback than other power steering systems of the same period – especially American cars.

Van is right about trailbraking – it also gets much harder to keep ahead of the vehicle dynamics when ‘on the edge’. Corrections come just a tad later and you can’t do a quick enough correction if the car gets upset.

I have almost gotten tired of posting ‘don’t do it’ when people mention changing to manual steering – thanks to Van for posting a real world review!!

Oh yeah, and I am jealous that he is on the track already….

spyder348

Manual steering rack i got from my parts guy was a reman p/s rack changed over. It fit right in which is nice. They are costing me 200 right now. They said they change some things over inside the rack then you are suppose to plug the line holes. Anyone ever heard of this?

shiners780

I'd have to respectfully disagree with Chris' notion about manual steering being harder to keep ahead of the vehicle dynamics when on the edge. I found that the signals came quicker with manual steering; as a tire began to lose grip that sensation was transferred immediately and with more emphasis than with power steering, allowing me to make a quicker correction response. With power, the signals got somewhat lost and came a tad later; the tire was farther past that initial point of losing grip and that sensation was more subtle, resulting in a slower correction response.

Personally, I have tracked with both, and prefer manual.

And yes, Van sucks for already having hit the track.

xupkid2

I recently did the change from PS to the manual rack and ran for 3 days last weekend at Autobahn CC. I run 245/285 Hoosiers. At first I was not a fan of the manual rack. It took more effort to steer and I wasn't sure I liked all the "feedback." I've driven a PS 944 for the past 4 years or so. During a fun race at the end of the weekend I found myself not even realizing I had changed the rack. I didn't find any difference in my driving style and in the end felt the same in terms of car control. All in all there are pro's and cons to each setup and each person will have their own opinion. To me I could go either way.

jmj951

When converting a p/s rack I've heard the line holes are supposed to be connected to each other to allow the fluid to move, otherwise you are creating additional pressure in the rack.

Fluidplay

Very timely topic... as I'm about to install a manual rack, more because of a perpetually leaky system. but...

I'd really like to hear more opinions on this. Pro & Con

Definitely two sides to this argument...

Manual - increased feedback of the road and handling?

P/S - quicker response, ability to run larger wheel/tire set-ups, less fatigue

Let's hear it...

drift a 944

I've tried a manual rack n/a 944 vs. power steering rack n/a 944 on the autocross circuit as well as a drift course, and the manual rack at those relatively slower speeds with tighter cornering is no bueno for me. I would think on a road course where higher speeds are achieved that the manual rack would feel much easier than at slower speed cornering.

my .02

Chris White

We could debate about the ‘feel’…but I the vehicle dynamics I was referring to is once the car requires correction I find that I can correct much quicker with power steering. The “tank slapper” type oscillation is the perfect example – with manual steering you can correct fast enough to recover.

Of course you have to have the ‘touch’ to not over power the steering inputs when you drive. I am a ‘finger tip’ driver – no steering wheel death grip for me! With the power steering I can drive with straighter arms – which gets me much better heal / toe position, with manual steering I have to do more of the’ Nascar hunch’ to keep leverage on the wheel.

The other issue is endurance – if I am driving a three day event and instructing I really appreciate the power steering on the last day!

As with most things…to each his own!

Lemming

I run a true manual rack with 275's up front with no problem; including 3-hr endurance races. Yes my lats are a bit sore after a weekend of racing, but I still prefer the manual.

Van, I have to admit, I never felt a difference in steering while braking vs accelerating with the manual rack, will think about that in two weeks at CMP where there are ample opportunities to trail brake.

TonyG

The question is: Are you as fast and consistent with manual steering vs the power assist?

None of us are and we've been doing this for a long time. The lap times tell the story.

After all... it's about the lap times.


TonyG