Is your vehicle’s steering stiff, worn or screeching?

Is the power steering pump or column noisy? Are your car’s power steering reservoir pipes leaking?  Autoexperts Medway in Gillingham can repair or replace any power steering components.

Advantages:

Power Assisted Steering (PAS) is generally known as power steering. Its designed to help drivers steer by reducing the amount of effort required to turn the steering wheel. This is achieved by the use of hydraulic or electric actuators that control the steering mechanism. The driver needs only to provide a small amount of effort regardless of conditions.

Disadvantage:

Although it is not advisable to do so power steering helps considerably when a vehicle is stopped or moving slowly. As a result this tends to wear out the edges of tyres quicker. Similarly under inflation will shorten the life of a tyre considerably.

Common Faults:

Quite often power steering is run with the help of a pump driven by the auxiliary drive belt. This belt is driven by the engine. Should the steering become noisy or screeches it could be the belt slipping. This may be because it has worn or simply needs adjusting. In contrast it may be low on oil caused by a leak from the pump, pipes or even the oil reservoir.

An oil leak from the reservoir can quite often cause the belt to slip. A slipping belt will cause the steering to become stiff or screech. When a belt slips or completely fails it will need to be replaced but the vehicle is still able to be steered. The steering wheel will feel extremely hard to turn.

Electric Steering:

Electric Power Assisted Steering is abbreviated to EPS or EPAS. It uses an electric motor to assist the driver of a vehicle. Sensors detect the position and torque of the steering column. A computer module assistive torque to the motor. The motor connects to either the steering gear or steering column.

This allows varying amounts of assistance to be applied depending on driving conditions. Engineers can therefore tailor steering response to vary the damping of the suspension systems. Consequently this will improve the overall ride, handling, and steering for each vehicle.

Some vehicle manufacturers have designed a system that can alter the amount of assistance by the press of a button. This system allows the vehicle to switch between two different steering modes. Most other EPS systems have variable assist which automatically adjusts as the vehicle slows down, and less at faster speeds.

Why Choose Autoexperts Medway?

We at Autoexperts Medway in Gillingham have established a superb reputation for high quality services. Refer to our testimonials from our customers from Chatham, Gillingham and Rochester on our testimonial page.
On many occasions when carrying out a diagnosis a partial strip down is necessary. Should you agree to have any necessary work completed at this time, this initial diagnosis becomes free due to the fact that your vehicle has been partially stripped down already.
So when your cars power steering has become stiff, is screeching or the pump or column is noisy. It could be that the reservoir or pipes are leaking fluid. Come to Autoexperts Medway for all your vehicles steering repairs. We are close to both Chatham and Rochester in Medway making us the idea garage to use.