MGF EPAS on Astra mk3

[DavidB]

Looking at using EPAS on my (normally PAS pump driven) Astra mk3.
I was originally using an shorter belt as I have removed the air con pump from the Saab engine, but it's a pain in the using the PAS pump as it's in the way and actually sits against the radiator/slam panel.
I've also retro fitted an MGF EPAS system to a non-PAS MGF and found it to be pleasant enough with the speed adjusting ECU - I would probably avoid using the ECU and just have a switch for when I have to park it.

The Astra and MGF both have similar steering column mounting setups - early on the top, late on the bottom (I'll be using the late one as I have it spare):







Mounted in MGF - this was a 60 minute job with wiring splicing v.easy:



(Wiring diagram just FYI and people searching google and get this thread)







Fuse and straight to 12v on the battery:



Here's the Astra steering set up (this was taken in about 2001 of the same car I'm working on):



And my other Astra:



There are two bolt holes that bolt onto the frame (that is attached to the bulk head). The MGF has a flexible UV joint at the bottom, whereas the Astra has a solid rubber joint.
Has anyone done anything similar? I want to retain the original Astra steering wheel - I'm guessing I'd just weld the UV joint to the rubber joint at the bottom on that side?

[Iain]

Would you not find things are more interchangeable if you use bits from the Vauxhall parts bin? Corsa B and C setups are easy to come by.

Did similar on my Nova with Corsa B setup, but used the double lower UJ in order to move the column to a better position. I know people fit the columns in Novas on the original mounts to keep the same position, so their length must match up roughly there.

[froggy]

If I read correctly and your using a Saab engine ? The speed signal if you have one can be fed into the corsa b Ecu so you have speed sensitive assistance , I do quite a few epas conversions on campers but have to use the signal generator boxes to get them working as they are all old buses . The agila is the most compact and has a clutched drive so no drag like the corsa b/c columns

[DavidB]

I hadn't thought about Corsa EPAS's - I was hoping to use this as it's going spare.

The Saab does have speed generation from the ABS - I'm not sure on the signal as the Saab reads pulses while the MGF is just voltage. If I can get it working with the speed signal/clutch thing it would be a bonus, but just hoping to use it for parking (as it's quite heavy tbh).

[Clamity]

Jul 17, 2014 12:51:37 GMT froggy said:

If I read correctly and your using a Saab engine ? The speed signal if you have one can be fed into the corsa b Ecu so you have speed sensitive assistance , I do quite a few epas conversions on campers but have to use the signal generator boxes to get them working as they are all old buses . The agila is the most compact and has a clutched drive so no drag like the corsa b/c columns

How do the old steering boxes hold up over time? Any problems with rapid wear due to the heavy torque when parking?

[froggy]

I've mainly done conversions on Talbot campers and a couple of early vw buses , can't see any issues long term as the steering ratio is still very low on non pas vehicles .
The corsa system on my kitten is speed sensitive and works really well , the only thing I notice is the steering doesn't weight up much when your hard on the brakes into a corner but can still feel what's going on .
With t5 suite you can alter the pulse per mile reading if the speedo is miles out on the Saab set up