simonr Posted August 5, 2008 Share Posted August 5, 2008 I don't think the 'off road use only' thing holds water legally. A kit of parts might however be a better option. Particularly, if in the instructions you were to suggest other uses for the components - like an interesting moving sculpture for your garden or a variable length prosthetic limb . Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red90 driver Posted August 5, 2008 Share Posted August 5, 2008 Rob (and anyone else interested...):- I have now fitted and fettled the system that I bought from Rob. Once fitted, I found that with the wheels pointing to the right the ram was at 197mm of travel, and with the wheels pointing to the left there was 25mm of ram exposed. Upon investigation and a phone call to Rob I found that our front steering bar is 10mm longer than the Sumo ones, so at the moment, rather than cut 10mm off our steering bar, I have spaced the ram 10mm to one side to get the steering lock back as it was the quickest, least destructive way of doing it. Road driving you do not notice the ram assist, the most I can describe is a slight resistance to fast steering wheel inputs until the ATF warms up a little, and maybe a little less self centering action. I have now had a day of competition (at Wormhough, Buxton) and found that the assist is not obtrusive, but when needed, the extra effort provided is just what I want. If the steering wheel is still hard to turn, then there is a very good reason for it! This means that you will not be able to turn the wheel against huge resistance and break track rod ends or bend steering bars, unlike on full hydro setups! All in all, I am very pleased with Rob's kit, the fitting time was about 90mins, and I had to allow a further hours setup time. The system was easy to install and I just topped up the PAS reservoir, and voila! hydro assist. Nick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robhybrid Posted August 11, 2008 Share Posted August 11, 2008 Morning,Just a quick question really. What size ram are you using in your kit, and where could i source one from ? I'm ideally looking for something with swivels in either end. I'll be up front with you, and say i have the hydrualic hose crimping machine & all the fittings / hoses etc here at work as well as a machine shop and welders shop, so can fabricate all the stuff myself. Thanks Gordon Hi Gordon hope these answers help you. The ram I use is a stock ram which I modify to enable me to have the fixings I require to attach as per steering damper. The ram actually comes to me from Italy through a local hydraulics supplier. The ram stroke is enough to cover the travel required in a land rover system. The ram bore has been experimented with and is the largest bore I can fit that does not affect the "feel" or speed of the steering system whilst not disturbing a stock Land Rover, steering box or pump. The bore can be increased without affecting "feel/speed" if you modify the size of pipes, how you attach your pipework to the steering box and increase the fluid flow to your power steering box. I like the fact that the bore on my system is relatively small in that I can be confident that I am not putting too much extra strain on my steering components further down the line. Is it better to not be able too steer and get out and look why, or to steer the wheels against an immovable object and break track rod ends? Rob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zim Posted August 19, 2008 Author Share Posted August 19, 2008 With regards to installing a bigger power steering pump (ZF etc), would it be possible to add another normal landrover pump ? just having a common header tank, and joining the outputs ? G Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David_LLAMA4x4 Posted October 8, 2008 Share Posted October 8, 2008 Apology for the blatant advert but I know it is a topical subject as I have several enquiries from forumeers and others about it and this was the easiest way to tell everyone in one go... A 'bolt on' hydro assist kit is now ready to market and as such is available to purchase from now... some pics on the website... David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hybrid_From_Hell Posted October 8, 2008 Share Posted October 8, 2008 Hmmm Yep it may be viewed by some as blatent, .....but I for one really like this kit, Makes the SFS one of the past look as horrible as it was vs this one, .... having destroyed now 2 steering boxes in 12 months this looks a sensible do-able and £s acceptable option. In fact I would almost say making your own price wise vs this wouldn't prob save you that much, .... and if nothing else this is a neat solution ............. (apart from the Max Power Blueness ) Hmmm "here little credit card"...... now wheres he gone Nige Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
upnover4x4 Posted October 8, 2008 Share Posted October 8, 2008 Dave, seem to be having trouble opening the page. When I click on hydra assist it takes me to the suspension page Adrian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David_LLAMA4x4 Posted October 8, 2008 Share Posted October 8, 2008 Dave, seem to be having trouble opening the page. When I click on hydra assist it takes me to the suspension pageAdrian Don't know what to say - it works on my 'pooter David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newclear Posted October 9, 2008 Share Posted October 9, 2008 Clicking the link works fine for me . Spend quite a lot of time on that website dreaming . Side note David, there's a rather amusing typo on the Hydro Assist page. "Not recommended for hoghway use." - You may have been told previously, appologies if you have just wanted to bring it to your attention. Just need to get my car sold and I can give the Debit Card a Hammering... I mean.... carefully select mods that will improve my Land Rover . Cheers Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zim Posted October 9, 2008 Author Share Posted October 9, 2008 Clicking the link works fine for me . Spend quite a lot of time on that website dreaming .Side note David, there's a rather amusing typo on the Hydro Assist page. "Not recommended for hoghway use." - You may have been told previously, appologies if you have just wanted to bring it to your attention. Just need to get my car sold and I can give the Debit Card a Hammering... I mean.... carefully select mods that will improve my Land Rover . Cheers Matt since i started this topic, i've bought myself a disco 2 steering box and got a ZF 74 pump... just waiting for my ram now disco 2 box, still awaiting tapping : Gordon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomG Posted October 9, 2008 Share Posted October 9, 2008 Has anyone measured / calculated with the steering centred, how much force (newtons?) measured at the drop arm balljoint can the standard steering box deliver before the pressure release valve trips and with the hydro assist kit added? Just trying to get an idea of how much extra force is delivered, i realise that too much is a bad thing for snapping TREs, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nikojo Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 Will this hydro-assist kit work on a 6 bolt steering box with similar attachments?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomG Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 There was a thread about fitting it to the 6-bolt here: http://forums.lr4x4.com/index.php?showtopic=35913 so you may want to contact the original poster or give David at Llama4x4 a ring, he was helpful with the fittings required for a 3-bolt box. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve 90 Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 Just a quick note, Ive recently fitted one of the kits that Rob/llama4x4 put together. Ive got to say I'm very happy with it. I am going to mod it with a clamp on piece that attaches to a disco type Pitman arm (the same as Mark Dyer has done if any of you have seen it) as I don't like the defender swan neck setup. On the whole the kit works very well and gives a decent level of assist without loosing steering speed in the way my previous set up did. So its a recommendation for Rob and Llama 4x4 for a good bit of kit. Cheers. Steve. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamie_grieve Posted April 4, 2016 Share Posted April 4, 2016 I realise this is an ancient thread but this is exactly a question I have. I'm looking at steering Sumb portal axles with large tyres fitted. My current options seem to be: 1. Heavy truck steering box & associated pump. 2. Hydro assist using 4 bolt landrover parts I have lying around and a GAZ 66 steering cylinder. 3. Original manual steering box with vickers link from an old tractor or complete setup from a GAZ 66. With regards to installing a bigger power steering pump (ZF etc), would it be possible to add another normal landrover pump ? just having a common header tank, and joining the outputs ? With all the experience gained since this was posted, has anybody any real world knowledge on this subject? I'm thinking of option 2 being the preferred option just now as there's no real fabrication of steering components required. At present it's off road only but I'd like to keep my options open. Any input much appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.