S15 power steering rack conversion to manual, worth it for drift?
thinking about converting my s15 to manual steering for drifting. ive heard it gives better feel and you dont cook the power steering pump sideways. but ive also heard the effort is ridiculous cos the rack ratio is designed for power assist. anyone done this? is it worth the hassle or should i just get a cooler for the power steering?
manual rack swap is common on s-chassis drift cars but youre right the effort is huge at parking speeds. on track its fine cos youve got speed helping you. but for a street car its a pain. most guys i know run an S14 power rack with a cooler and a 1 litre reservoir. gives you the durability for extended drift sessions without the arm workout. the s14 rack bolts straight in.
Keep power steering and add a cooler. The feel improvement from manual conversion is marginal and the effort penalty is real. A Setrab oil cooler with braided lines and a bigger reservoir is about $400 fitted and it solves the overheating problem permanently. I run a similar setup on the FD's power steering for track days.