well for the NA guys i wonder the difference between a header vs. that HEAVY craptacular manifold

 

Never thought about that Faith. and I would assume a CAI is just about the same as the stock intake

 

Damn, good point. My HVE headers have to weigh at least 20 lbs less than the stock manifold with the cat in it (although I do have a cat mid-exhaust now).

Are there any preferred methods to properly draining the power steering fluid? I would think the rack would wear out faster due to lack of lubrication if we did drain it?

I might have to do it though, if it isn't THAT much harder than stock. Would lose that entire steel bracket along with the parasitic drag of the belt turning the pump. Not only would we lose the weight and drag, we would also get better throttle response too.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (JonGTR @ Aug 17 2006, 08:37 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>Do you have your PS?</div>


No, i removed my P/S in march and havnet regretted it once lol, which is why i was able to weigh the pump and tank, and which is why im advocating you take it out.

I noticed a little extra umfh, and a little better gas mileage.

PLUS being turboed you will LOVE the extra room in your engine bay Jon, wow i feel like i can get everywhere around my turbo now even with the ramhead manifold.

As far as taking it out, i doubt i did it the easiest way because i did it in my apartment parking lot at my old apartment at my old school (lol) and i just unbolted the pump, and ripped the lines out haha.

I havent noticed any wear on my steering system, and i havent heard any people having problems

If you guys lived closer id let you test out the steering and im sure youd go home and rip yours off. haha

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Are there any preferred methods to properly draining the power steering fluid?</div>

1.)Remove 22mm nut with attached hose from top of power steering pump completely.
2.)Gather friends around engine bay
3.)Start car from the protection of inside your car
4.)Watch them run...

Your fluid will be drained after a minute of running... HAHA! lmao.gif
Plus an hour later you will have a VERY shiny engine bay. wink1.gif


.......



and surprisingly the one on the left weighs considerably less than the one on the right. smile.gif

 

Alex, did you leave some fluid in the rack? How did you cap it off?

 

I think I will remove the reservior first, then disconnect the 22mm nut on top of the pump, then remove that line from the rack. After that, (of course I will have a drain pan under the pump and rack) I will turn the wheel back and forth with the feed line disconnected to drain most of the fluid left in the rack.

I will definately be sure to do all of this carefully so I can re-install the system later.

I'm sure I can find a bolt at my local hardware store to cap off the rack (they have an excellent selection of misc. nuts, bolts, washers, etc.).

Well, I removed the P/S and can say it IS pretty difficult to steer without moving. Once you get going, it gets easier. Not QUITE as easy as with the pump connected, but pretty close, under ONE condition. If you try to steer farther than say a 1/4 turn of the wheel, it becomes difficult to turn again.

I would say that this is a race only mod if you enjoy easy cornering. Removing it is not very safe for daily driving IMO because your steering response time in case of emergeny is drastically reduced. Also, when you hit bumps and potholes with only one of the front wheels, the steering wheel easily jerks in that direction, making it more difficult to maintain the line you want in a corner.

Maybe I will get used to it though, I dunno. Right now I am pretty pissed because I could not get the pressure and return line fittings out of the rack (they were EXTREMELY tight), so I just cut the lines from the rack and used a couple of bolts and RTV to seal it. Before I sealed it though, I turned the steering wheel from lock to lock about 15 times to get the rest of the fluid out of the rack (probably another 1/2 quart, lol).

Anyway, I weighed all of the components involved with the P/S system that I removed including the heavy ass mounting bracket and the fluid (1 qt - I estimated). I came up with 15 lbs.

Throttle response is EVER SO SLIGHTLY quicker and it MIGHT have better pull but I am probably imagining both just to make it seem worth while, lol.

I can always yank the parts off my spare tib and put it back in though, and right now I am thinking about it. I decided to give it a few weeks first.

 

Seems like not only a race mod, but a straight line racing mod. Doesn't sound like it would be beneficial for autocrossing.

 

Yea for autox I dont think it would help at all. Even if you could turn the wheel you would have to pay more attention to the muiscles instead of the track. Im not going to do it.

 

^^^You guys are precisely correct. I so wish I never removed it. Now I have to spend another few hours removing lines from my spare tib and re-installing the p/s. Damn this sucks.