The new
electric steering assist is no downgrade, either, thanks mainly to the judicious application of that assist and the belt between boost motor and steering shaft.
2016 F - Types will also be the first Jaguars with
electric steering assist.
It might be the belt for
the electric steering assist inside the rack that may be the problem..
The electric steering assist delivers even, nicely weighted feel.
Any issues with
electric steering assist should tell you to avoid the car.
Not exact matches
Traction control helps prevent skidding; crash - avoidance systems fling radar waves in every direction, looking for approaching vehicles; the Lexus LS series even features a windshield - mounted camera that monitors the lane markings in front of you and gently nudges you back into your lane, via
electric motors that
assist your
steering, if you drift.
The
electric -
assist steering proffers appropriate effort levels, without being annoyingly overboosted or wildly variable.
Standard Equipment: 3.0 - liter turbo - diesel V - 6 engine 7 - speed automatic transmission 4Matic permanent all - wheel drive 4 - wheel Airmatic suspension Hill start
assist Speed sensitive power
steering 4 - wheel
electric traction control 4 - wheel disc brakes with ABS Tire pressure monitoring system 19 - inch alloy wheels Power tilt / sliding sunroof Fixed panorama sunroof over 3rd row seats Rain - sensing wipers Comand system with 6.5 - inch display Bluetooth connectivity In - dash 6 - disc DVD / CD changer Three rows of seating 8 - speaker audio system Dual - zone automatic climate control Premium leather - wrapped
steering wheel Heated front seats Power windows / locks / mirrors Privacy glass
Electric power -
assisted steering (EPAS) is a plague that's spread across an industry in search of improved fuel economy and lower emissions.
All A5 / S5 models switch to
electric power
steering and get new optional safety tech like active lane
assist and attention
assist.
Oddly enough, the multi-link independent suspension helps the car respond to
steering inputs with more liveliness, and you don't mind the new
electric -
assist steering system at all.
The standard equipment runs to a comprehensive list (for a Porsche) and includes a seven - speed PDK gearbox (there's no manual option), sports seats, digital radio, front and rear park
assist, multi-function
steering wheel with gearshift paddles,
electric tailgate release, USB port and Bluetooth.
Rex's rack and pinion
steering with
electric power
assist is tight, engaging enough, and definitely preferable over fully
electric systems.
Chassis
Steering:
Electric power -
assisted rack - and - pinion Turns lock to lock: 2.6 Turning circle: 18.0 ft Suspension, Front: Strut - type, coil springs Suspension, Rear: Multilink, coil springs Brakes, F / R: Vented disc / disc, ABS Wheels: 18 - inch alloy Tires: Dunlop SP Sport 7000 all - season tires Tire Size: 235 / 45R18
The
steering, which relies on
electric power
assist for its autonomous feats, feels unnaturally weighted just off center.
We were less impressed by the
electric -
assist power
steering, which offers no less than three different levels of effort, not one of which truly appeals.
Light, quick
electric -
assist power
steering telegraphs its nimbleness, although we wish it telegraphed more of the road surface.
When we pushed it, we found the
electric -
assist power
steering a bit too boosted for our taste at higher speeds with more than a little dead space on - center, and the brakes seemed on the soft side in hard stop situations.
Great
steering — a consequence of clever
steering geometry to compensate for the relatively uncommunicative
electric -
assist steering linkage — is another of the Mazda 3's positive attributes.
Also look for an
electric power -
assisted steering system, which incorporates knowledge gleaned while Jaguar was developing the F - Type.
BMW has also tuned up a few key mechanical and chassis elements, including revising the
electric -
assist steering system, strengthening the mounting points of the front suspension struts, and firming up the rear dampers for better dynamic response.
You'll also notice that the effort level of the
electric -
assist steering decreases to a light arcade - game calibration at low speed, although considering the amount of time that you cruise parking lots in Southern California in the search for an open space, maybe this is a good thing.
All models get the
electric Direct
Steer system that varies both
assist and
steering ratio.
Using the
electric power
steering and 360 - degree Around View camera, Intelligent Park
Assist can drive itself toward the charger as soon as the car enters a parking garage.
The
electric -
assist power
steering is said to be light and accurate for use in the urban environments in which the Q30 will likely be most popular.
The Renegade feels alert, and the
electric -
assist steering is fine for a ute, where you want a higher degree of isolation from road rumble anyway.
The
electric power
steering might play a part, as its feedback isn't as good as it was in the best of BMW's now - endangered hydraulic -
assist implementations, but it's good enough that a casual driver wouldn't know the difference.
This is the same reason belt - driven hydraulic
steering pumps have been replaced by
electric power
assist in many cars, including the 5 Series.
Base Price: $ 847,975 Powertrain Engine: 32 - valve DOHC V - 8 / plug - in
electric hybrid Displacement: 4.6 liters (280 cu in) Power: 608 hp @ 8700 rpm Torque: 390 lb - ft @ 6600 rpm Motors: Two permanent - magnet AC synchronous Electric output: 129/156 hp (front / rear axle) Batteries: 6.8 - kWh lithium - ion Total output: 887 hp Transmission: 7 - speed automatic Drive: 4 - wheel Chassis Steering: Electrically assisted Front suspension: Control arms, coil springs Rear suspension: Multilink, coil springs Brakes: Vented carbon - ceramic discs Tires: Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 Tire sizes F, R: 265 / 35R -20 (95Y), 325 / 30R -21 (104Y) Measurements L x W x H: 182.8 x 76.4 x 45.9 in Wheelbase: 107.5 in Track F / R: 65.5 / 63.5 in Weight: 3715 lb Weig
electric hybrid Displacement: 4.6 liters (280 cu in) Power: 608 hp @ 8700 rpm Torque: 390 lb - ft @ 6600 rpm Motors: Two permanent - magnet AC synchronous
Electric output: 129/156 hp (front / rear axle) Batteries: 6.8 - kWh lithium - ion Total output: 887 hp Transmission: 7 - speed automatic Drive: 4 - wheel Chassis Steering: Electrically assisted Front suspension: Control arms, coil springs Rear suspension: Multilink, coil springs Brakes: Vented carbon - ceramic discs Tires: Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 Tire sizes F, R: 265 / 35R -20 (95Y), 325 / 30R -21 (104Y) Measurements L x W x H: 182.8 x 76.4 x 45.9 in Wheelbase: 107.5 in Track F / R: 65.5 / 63.5 in Weight: 3715 lb Weig
Electric output: 129/156 hp (front / rear axle) Batteries: 6.8 - kWh lithium - ion Total output: 887 hp Transmission: 7 - speed automatic Drive: 4 - wheel Chassis
Steering: Electrically
assisted Front suspension: Control arms, coil springs Rear suspension: Multilink, coil springs Brakes: Vented carbon - ceramic discs Tires: Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 Tire sizes F, R: 265 / 35R -20 (95Y), 325 / 30R -21 (104Y) Measurements L x W x H: 182.8 x 76.4 x 45.9 in Wheelbase: 107.5 in Track F / R: 65.5 / 63.5 in Weight: 3715 lb Weight dist.
The V - 8's accessory belt spins a hydraulic
steering pump in the S8, but the S7 uses an
electric assist motor mounted on the
steering rack.
The
steering has also been improved by the adoption of the
electric power -
assisted rack first seen in the Tamora and T350.
Electric power
assisted steering will be tuned specifically to the various wheel / tire combos offered.
Some will bemoan the change to
electric - power -
assisted steering — the previous hydraulic system was magic in terms of feel — but the 13:1 - ratio rack, the quickest yet in an Aston, is predictable and communicative.
The somewhat digital feel of the
electric -
assist steering quickly became unnoticeable, while the linear calibration of the throttle and the predictable, yet authoritative response from the brake pedal made fast driving pretty effortless.
The GLC's
electric -
assist steering is totally numb in Comfort mode, but it really comes alive when you switch into Sport.
The variable - ratio, rack - and - pinion
steering system incorporates
electric power
assist.
The good news is, almost all the serious performance enhancements available in the European - spec GTI will make it into the 2015 GTI for the U.S. Naturally we'll be getting the new, more spacious bodyshell with independent rear suspension, plus the
electric -
assist steering that features a variable - ratio rack - and - pinion to reduce the number of turns that the
steering wheel requires to go from lock to lock.
They all have reinforced frames, new four - wheel disc brakes, and
electric variable -
assist power
steering systems.
Just as so many car companies have begun to embrace
electric power
steering, Ferrari has reset the
steering feel benchmark — and, of course, it's with a hydraulic -
assist system.
The
electric -
assisted power
steering is nicely weighted in both its settings («Sporty» and «Very Sporty,» the engineers joked), telling the driver exactly what he or she needs to know, but not much else.
The
electric -
assist power
steering has been tuned to deliver firmer effort and more on - center feel, and while this tuning is usually a recipe for disaster in a system where the
electric motor is attached to the
steering column (as it is here) rather than the
steering rack, the 2015 Trax feels fine to us.
A new, rack - mounted
electric -
assist steering system affords far more natural levels of effort and better on - center behavior, but it isn't as precise as we'd expect from a sport sedan.
Baja mode puts the truck in four high, and automatically sets the
electric power -
assisted steering rack to Sport.
The smooth action of the
electric -
assist power
steering is superior to what we've experienced in BMW's conventional cars.
Whereas the GT2 packs a dual - clutch transmission and some form of
electric -
assisted steering, this GT3 comes from a generation of Porsches that still had hydraulic
steering and manual transmissions.
The variable -
assist electric power
steering on four - cylinder models is very light on center, with a bit of weight — but still not enough — coming on at turn in.
Some electronic reprogramming adds welcome on - center feel to the
electric -
assist steering, and additional structural reinforcement in the rack - and - pinion
steering itself and the front strut - type suspension deliver crisper response.
Its
steering, still hydraulically
assisted, feels sharper than the Corvette's
electric power setup, and its rear end rotates sooner in a corner.
The placement of the motor for the
electric -
assist system on the
steering rack has been optimized for the same reason.
The
electric -
assist hardware is now mounted on the
steering rack itself instead of the
steering column, and the result is a clean, nicely weighted feel from the
steering wheel in the corners, although it's slightly dead on - center.