Electric steering pump vs belt driven OEM pump

[jazzdude]

I have had the Scooby rack on my car for the past few months and paired this with an Astra electric pump, that I fitted on the cross bar between the Y-piece and the radiator.

It is a neat install and I think works well, but I can't help feeling that the pump is being cooked with the intense heat flying out of the radiator and ac condenser, and the y piece, in that area and that the oil is losing its efficiency, possibly being boiled, resulting in the steering feeling heavier as I use it in our hot driving conditions.

There is not a real alternative location to put it as the pump is quite big and although I know the alternative is the Saxo pump which is smaller, there is nowhere else to put this except again, in front of the radiator.

So I am thinking of finding a belt driven RR pump and fitting the remote reservoir by the side of the plenum where it normally goes, which I expect should be a cooler positon, set further back out of the firing path of the hot air flying back over the front of the engine from the rads, and up through the vents.

Being that the pipework will all be bespoke again in connecting to the Scooby rack, is going back to a belt driven pump thought of as a backwards step?

[N7GTX]

Coming from a different perspective, have you considered something like this?

https://h-tune.co.uk/mishimoto-universal-transmiss...

[jazzdude]

N7GTX said:

Coming from a different perspective, have you considered something like this?

https://h-tune.co.uk/mishimoto-universal-transmiss...

I hadn't considered something like this but I suppose to get the best out of it, the pump will need to be fully enclosed and insulated with a heavy duty wine bottle cooler.

Locating the cooling fins will also be a challenge as the space in front of my radiator is filled with a condenser and dryer so I'll need to look into the actual sizes and pipe routeing requirements.

I just thought that the belt driven system is also very simple but I also have seen some on here bin theirs for electric pumps.

[BoostedChim]

I've had my Scooby rack on there for a month, I'm still running the original pump and I use a Mondeo power steering cooler. My steering is really light now, so much so that it needs more weight. I tried adding more castor which has helped but the first half a turn can easily be done with one finger.My next step is going to be removing the pressure relief valve from the pump and removing a coil and see if that helps. As it feels like the RR pump is supplying to much pressure.

I don't think its a backwards step, I was planning on fitting an electric pump under the drivers headlight but I think I'll stick with the simpler setup.

[BoostedChim]

This is similar to mine, its located at the front of the nose and it flows under the drivers headlight and comes back on the passenger side. I've got an intercooler and oil cooler in there so there is plenty of room.

[jesfirth]

I have the saxo PS pump in my griff. it is mounted to the side of the radiator by the wing so well out of the way. if you go saxo pump route buy one with the remote reservoir rather than the integral reservoir as it reduces the size significantly

[jazzdude]

I think that the location of the reservoir where I have it will always boil, regardless of if I put a cooler as the length of piping you are describing going around the front of the car and then into the engine bay, may work but higher up the oil is just sitting there.

So if I went with the saxo pump are you suggesting I swap the location of the expansion tank with the pump, using the space at the bottom, behind radiator, behind the drivers light for the pump? I have a clutch servo where the carbon canister used to be.

Do you fit it vertically like the expansion tank and if so where does the reservoir go?

[jesfirth]

here you go - this is my installation. its been there 7 years and has never overheated

[jazzdude]

jesfirth said:

here you go - this is my installation. its been there 7 years and has never overheated

That's a Griff isn't it, lots more space. Interesting how much smaller the saxo pump is though.

Might get hold of one to try it out.

[Hedgehopper]

BoostedChim said:

My steering is really light now, so much so that it needs more weight. I tried adding more castor which has helped but the first half a turn can easily be done with one finger.

How did you add more castor? Did you widen the gap in the wishbone to accept a thicker spacer...if so what size spacer did you use?

Thanks.

[phazed 11.83]

Plenty of room in the corner at the front of the engine bay, offside. You can just see mine in the corner of the picture.

Heat has never been an issue with the saxo pump.

[BoostedChim]

Hedgehopper said:

How did you add more castor? Did you widen the gap in the wishbone to accept a thicker spacer...if so what size spacer did you use?

Thanks.

Yep, I already had 6mm & 2mm spacers from SC Power. I then bought a set of 4 x 4mm from eBay. I now have a 6mm and the normal 8mm in front, which roughly should give 6deg. I've got a 4mm behind if I wanted to add more.

[jazzdude]

I have decided to give this a try:

http://www.opieoils.co.uk/p-1040-red-line-power-st...

Apparently, it has

'50% greater high-temp viscosity and 1/5 of the high-temp evaporation'
'Greater heat resistance helps to prevent boil-over'

If this does the trick then I will leave the pump as is for now.

What would be useful to know though is, what is the best way to drain the existing fluid and fill it up again without running the pump dry?