What about the pump used in the Mini Cooper? KS01000120 (Bosch), available from China for under $500 (new).

 

Yes the rack/column will need modifying. Once the Prius motor is in there is no more hoses or fluid which is a major plus. This got me thinking yesterday a bit and my hesitation is I wasn't finding anything with a few quick searches on what size tires it will turn. Will dig in further in the next few days and see if I can come up with some numbers there. Ditching the PS if for no reason other than to avoid more places to leak (they all do in all 3 rovers somewhere along the PS system just a tad) sounds worth investigating.

 

That will also depend on the gear ratio of your steering box, so if you find someone who posts tire sizes you may want to see if you can also figure out what kind of rig they have and compare steering box ratios.

 

I wonder if Extinct meant to refer to the Volve electric pump rather than the Prius electric steering motor? The Volvo pump can be mounted anywhere, and would only need hoses and mounting bracket modifications (from what I understand, a simple hose adapter works easily and enables the use of the OE Disco hoses, and is easily mountable next to the radiator where the air box is located when you install a cold air intake). The Prius electric power steering is not a hydraulic pump, but an actual electric motor that mounts directly to the steering shaft, and would need modifications to the steering shaft and column to use. They are very different systems, and the Prius system would be difficult to mount in the Disco due to things like the brake master cylinder and ABS systems being in the way. You also run into more issues with using the Prius system due to needing speed and braking inputs to operate properly, from what I understand presently anyway. The Volvo pump has a baseline pressure output that enables it to be used without ABS and speed inputs, you only need to supply it with power and ground to operate. There also was the Toyota MR2 power steering pump that could be mounted anywhere and is similar to the Volvo style, but a lil more pricey and harder to source.

 

Yeah, I did mean the Volvo pump, thanks for clarifying that. Much easier than the full electric conversion.

 

Thank you, This is great, I'm looking into the Volvo pump and it looks fairly simple to setup. The Prius setup looked doable but a bit over my head...
I don't see any posts on the web about doing this to a D2 though, assuming it has been done but anyone seen some info out there I cant find?

 

One guy on the D2 LS swap Facebook group had installed one near the radiator where the airbox would go. It was running in limp mode and he said that it was a bit less assisted than stock.

There are controllers for these Volvo pumps out there now, versus when I bought one a year ago, there wasn't much around. So now you can get full / controlled power out of one of these setups.

https://www.brunosteering.com/produc...0-c70-s40-v50/

https://www.nmstec.ca/product/psc/

 

Thank you again. I watched this video earlier; which shows that brunosteering kit being used.
Seemed legit but now I'm looking into why nmstec says gps is no good and how to work with that system.

Thanks Aaron

 

I would use VSS over GPS for speed. I agree that I don't think GPS is ideal, would much rather have that hardwired. The brunosteering option I linked to above is just a dial for manually setting the amount of assist (no GPS, no speed input). Pretty simple. The Nmstec option lets you program the amount of assist for a given speed etc., which is why it is more expensive.

 

I would add one thing for anyone watching this particular video, and that is to NOT run the pump in your trunk, lol. I doubt this will be an issue for any of us doing this in our Disco's, but I have heard that these electrical pumps need to be run as close to the steering rack as possible so as not to lose pressure in the lines. Every inch of length, and every bend in the line causes pressure loss, which is why when you see them in the vehicles they were designed for, they will be located very close to the steering rack with very short lines connecting them. Again, I'm betting this won't be an issue for us Disco guys, but just in case someone was unaware, like the guy in the video, it is something to consider when designing your setup.