Toyota steer by wire...

[dobbslc]

I reckon the average numpty in a mass produced eurobox these days won't even notice the steering has become disconnected from the wheels until they actually hit something...

 

[hotponyshoes]

I reckon the average numpty in a mass produced eurobox these days won't even notice the steering has become disconnected from the wheels until they actually hit something...

Might be safer when they do if the wheel is not connected as it can retract/collapse with less force?

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

I have 2 cars with lane keep "assist"...I often have to correct it to prevent it driving itself off the road!

I'll be sticking to the physical connection...I'm sure steer by wire would be 99.99999% reliable....but when it does go wrong it could be catastrophic...can you imagine the insurance claim if it causes a crash....how do you even prove it's not your fault!

...and my next car won't have a touch screen for major controls either!

 

[julianthegypsy]

There is progress and there is cost saving. The two are not necessarily the same.

I would guess this is going to be a lot cheaper and easier for production to use a fly-by-wire system allowing them more flexibility over design and mounting the controls, and also easy to make LHD and RHD models.
I can't see much benefit to the punter, just more expensive repairs.

On an aircraft fly-by-wire systems are heavily redundant, multiple flight controllers, multiple busses because they can, and they do go wrong.
Maintenance schedules are also very strict on an aircraft and pilots are alert and trained to follow procedures in case of faults.
Mrs miggens in ten year old toyota popping down to the shop, I suspect not so much.

Like the rest of these systems, it will work fine for a few years, and probably end up being a complete nightmare to diagnose once it gets old and flaky.

It won't get diagnosed, it'll get scrapped, because everything else will fail around the same time and the car will be uneconomic to repair, so you'll have to buy a new one.

 

[Nomad]

Vauxhall Corsa were fitted with electric steering racks for many years, around 2019-2023 and maybe others.
Not sure if they are 100% electric or if it's the same idea as a brake servo where the steering wheel is just an input that gets multiplied by the electrics. Many modified cars have been fitted with the rack.

 

[redlig]

Electric throttles are fairly universal, how many people know or care that there is no cable?
No-one bats an eyelid flying at 35,000 feet with all control done by electronics.
10 years from now it will be a non-event.

10 years from now it will be done with thought control . Having said that it already is as in " I thought the road was clear so I pulled across the road " etc.

 

[Bornfree]

Vauxhall Corsa were fitted with electric steering racks for many years, around 2019-2023 and maybe others.
Not sure if they are 100% electric or if it's the same idea as a brake servo where the steering wheel is just an input that gets multiplied by the electrics. Many modified cars have been fitted with the rack.
View attachment 423526

Electric assisted rack. I never think they give you the same feel as hydraulic assisted ones.

 

[lazybones51]

I have 2 cars with lane keep "assist"...I often have to correct it to prevent it driving itself off the road!

I'll be sticking to the physical connection...I'm sure steer by wire would be 99.99999% reliable....but when it does go wrong it could be catastrophic...can you imagine the insurance claim if it causes a crash....how do you even prove it's not your fault!

...and my next car won't have a touch screen for major controls either!

On the flip side of this my car has a steering assist feature (along with lane assist), and paired with adaptive cruise control it's an utter joy on a long dull motorway journey and works flawlessly. It keeps you in the centre of your lane, steering perfectly around corners and the adaptive cruise control keeps a safe distance from the car in front. Looking at the state of driving, especially on motorways, I think it's a great idea.

 

[Cobbler]

Electric assisted rack. I never think they give you the same feel as hydraulic assisted ones.

We had an Astra with electric power steering at work & it was horrible to drive, the steering sort of “clicked“ to the centre & felt dead. Don’t know if that’s normal, or just this one. This would be probably 15 years ago so hopefully better now.

 

[MetalMonkey]

It won't get diagnosed, it'll get scrapped, because everything else will fail around the same time and the car will be uneconomic to repair, so you'll have to buy a new one.

Sadly, I have to agree. Unfortunately that is pretty much the way it is going for a lot of stuff now - price for a replacement module makes it uneconomical, second hand ones are difficult to get or need special coding.
To my mind it is a chronic waste of materials to make a vehicle that is really only designed to last 5 - 10 years, especially when so much emphasis is being placed on being green.

Vauxhall Corsa were fitted with electric steering racks for many years, around 2019-2023 and maybe others.
Not sure if they are 100% electric or if it's the same idea as a brake servo where the steering wheel is just an input that gets multiplied by the electrics. Many modified cars have been fitted with the rack.

Just an electrically assisted manual rack, they often have common issues with intermittent assistance or biasing one way.
I have a 2003 as a runabout which has been pretty reliable, the steering clonks, but this is also a common issue with these racks, but still drivable so I don't worry.
Compared to a hydraulic assisted rack, they do feel very light and not a lot of feedback, fine for a town car which is I suppose what they were designed for - gets pretty hairy if you are toe down or in icy conditions though.

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

On the flip side of this my car has a steering assist feature (along with lane assist), and paired with adaptive cruise control it's an utter joy on a long dull motorway journey and works flawlessly.

Both mine have the same system but I only feel it's safe to use on quiet motorways!

Issues I've had have been random steering and harsh braking for no reason....often the braking happens if I'm in the middle lane passing something that is just joining the motorway...seems to happen more if theres a curve to the road...it doesn't seem to understand what's happening and thinks we're about to collide with something!

There was one occasion on a roundabout where it did nearly cause a crash....when it decided to do an emergency stop!

 

[Kayos]

On the flip side of this my car has a steering assist feature (along with lane assist), and paired with adaptive cruise control it's an utter joy on a long dull motorway journey and works flawlessly. It keeps you in the centre of your lane, steering perfectly around corners and the adaptive cruise control keeps a safe distance from the car in front. Looking at the state of driving, especially on motorways, I think it's a great idea.

Mine is the same, slows down if someone comes in too close as well

 

[Kayos]

Just been in my shed, spotted the old reliable petrol lawnmower that needs fuel, oil, maintenance. It's also noisy smelly and heavy.
It has sat unused because I also have a newer, reliable, quiet and relatively light battery powered one. Just as powerful but much more civilized to use

I really don't get the anti progress sentiment of a certain number of members on here. Progress it seems is a dirty word

 

[colnerov]

Unless I'm mistaken or they've changed the rules there has to be a mechanical link in the steering for road use.

 

[Shox Dr]

Just been in my shed, spotted the old reliable petrol lawnmower that needs fuel, oil, maintenance. It's also noisy smelly and heavy.
It has sat unused because I also have a newer, reliable, quiet and relatively light battery powered one. Just as powerful but much more civilized to use

I really don't get the anti progress sentiment of a certain number of members on here. Progress it seems is a dirty word

Mmm. Just round (nexrdoor) my mums, who has an all singing all dancing battery mower. Cuts grass sure, so long as its dry and no more than an inch high.

At this time of year its a doorstop. So out with a "smelly, noisy petrol mower. 25yrs old and still going strong, just petrol and a tickle on the blades once in a while.
Never had a drop of oil in its life. And still worth 200quid

 

[Kayos]

Mmm. Just round (nexrdoor) my mums, who has an all singing all dancing battery mower. Cuts grass sure, so long as its dry and no more than an inch high.

At this time of year its a doorstop. So out with a "smelly, noisy petrol mower. 25yrs old and still going strong, just petrol and a tickle on the blades once in a while.
Never had a drop of oil in its life. And still worth 200quid

Just done the final cut of the year, long wet grass. I'm lazy so I cut until the box is full then empty

There are different levels of battery tool. Mines a 36v Makita, not all singing and dancing but strong and reliable

 

[MetalMonkey]

Progress means things are just moving forward. It doesn't always mean they are getting better.

 

[julianthegypsy]

Mmm. Just round (nexrdoor) my mums, who has an all singing all dancing battery mower. Cuts grass sure, so long as its dry and no more than an inch high.

At this time of year its a doorstop. So out with a "smelly, noisy petrol mower. 25yrs old and still going strong, just petrol and a tickle on the blades once in a while.
Never had a drop of oil in its life. And still worth 200quid

Not to mention the battery on ours that decided to die suddenly and cost £300 to replace. I bought a second hand Honda powered petrol job for £40 instead.

 

[Wildefalcon]

No problem with progress. Big problem with more expensive, less reliable, unrepairable, resource intensive, less privacy, disposable.

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Just been in my shed, spotted the old reliable petrol lawnmower that needs fuel, oil, maintenance. It's also noisy smelly and heavy.

It's interesting that you kept the petrol mower though right

My brother gave away his (ultra reliable) Honda petrol mower to me....then the new fancy electric mower decided to break ....was fixed under warranty...but took them months!

My 2 week old EV is back at the dealer....I had too drive it home 100 miles with the windows open as the computer decided I wasn't allowed to change any of the heater/demist functions via the fancy touch screen .