Steering Dampers - progress so far

[MattNoVAT]

So, now that the availability of replacement/alternate parts for the two Beta Engine dampers has been resolved I turned my attentions back to the problems with sourcing the Beta steering dampers.

It is a very rare thing to see an intact damper on a car, I would bet good money that most dampers have long since blown their seals and leaked their fluid all over the steering rack and control arms and hence providing no actual damping to the steering at all.

I have spent hours and hours spaced over a six week period searching out a direct replacement of the original unit, but in true Lancia style they choose a damper with a unique length of travel that I have not found on any other make of car. Good luck to you if you wish to go try looking for yourself, but I got fed up with dead ends and polite apologies from various damper manufacturers.

The bottom line is that I don't think there is a direct replacement, so something has to be modified to suit.  Ultimately there are only two things that can be modified, one being a damper itself that is a close fit or two the bracket that the damper fixes onto at the near side of the steering. (See attached picture)  I opted to leave modification of the damper well alone and go for something with a damper with a bushed eye at each end, I had thought about cutting the eye off and welding a stud in its place, but welding something to a sealed container of oil/fluid is not a wise idea.  So the bracket was the way to go.

I have considered modifying the existing bracket, but it would mean cutting and inserting a section of steel then welding it all up.  I did not think this would look good and I suspected that the two welds would always be a weakness which I did not want to worry about when you consider long term use.  So a new bracket and boss has been made to accept an off the shelf steering damper that has slightly more travel than is actually needed.

The new bracket has been made from 3mm stainless steel, rather than the 2.5mm used by Lancia in the original bracket, plus I have included the folds for additional strength as this new bracket is longer than the original, so I wanted to beef it up a bit to be on the safe side.

Next stage is to fit to my S2/FL and do some testing. While I know that the damping will be "as it should be" I'd appreciate peoples input on how long I should test this for. 

I will probably make up a batch of these after the road testing phase if people are interested and sell it as a kit.   All you will have to do is just remove old bracket and damper and replace with these components.  It wont cos't the earth, currently I think it will be around the £65 mark and will include the new damper & boss, washers plus a nice solid, zinc plated bracket.

[peteracs]

Hi Matt

You are obviously a man on a mission.... for which I have to thank you.

One question, are all the early cars with this design of rack?

Just looked at mine and does look like the damper is attached using a similar bracket.

Assuming it is the same one, then put me down for one as looks like the original one is probably fitted to mine.

Peter

[MattNoVAT]

Yes, I'm kind of on a mission.....      Personally, I'd like my Betas to deliver the driving characteristics as they were when the car was new or at least fairly young!

There is a vast difference in a cars handling when you have everything working as it should do and for me it increases the enjoyment I get from driving it.  I'm just trying to make it as enjoyable as possible, I don't want to take it for a spin and drive it thinking "shame about the vibration in the steering" or "shame the handling is poor because the bushes are shot".

It would be an interesting experiment to take a Beta with old wishbone, front & rear ARB bushes, old suspension, engine and steering dampers and drive it for 50 miles - then swap all those components for new parts and drive another 50 miles to feel the difference in handling and feedback from the car.


To my knowledge the damper bracket is the same on all manual steering racks, my S2 and S2/FL look identical but I've not taken them off and compared.  The prototype No.1 may well go on my S1 as thats still in the body shop and the refined prototype No. 2 will go on my S2/FL, I do not think compatibility will be an issue.  But I will check my S1 and S2 parts manuals.

[rossocorsa]

i was under the impression that some early cars didnt have a damper fitted?

[rossocorsa]

with regard to new vs worn out about 15 years ago i had a beta berlina that had 18k on the clock and had been given a very easy life from new, the taut and rigid feel of the way it drove was something of a revelation l really wish that i never sold it and i doubt that any rebuild could totally replicate the feel of that vehicle

[droptop]

Ya know what, Matt? It'd be wonderful not to have numb hands after a drive.
My hands feel like I've been using a chainsaw for hours after a long journey in my spyder and there is no sign of a damper ever haing been fitted.
I'm sure my wood rim Momo wheel doesn't help but the padded leather one wasn't much better and was too small on a car without power steering anyway.
My car is a very original example with only 36k miles and I'm the second owner so it's unlikely it was removed so maybe this answers the question as to whether all cars even had them.
I'll certainly be wanting to purchase a kit when they become available and thank you for your hard work sorting this issue.

[MattNoVAT]

Frank,  I'll pop a couple of photos up tomorrow so you can have a look at your steering rack, I'd bet your damper was removed altogether at some point.

As you said your car had a small leather steering wheel fitted and now a Momo neither of those are standard so someone's tinkered with the steering at some point. 

If you find a VX (leather) steering wheel that's about the best thing (IMHO) for manual steering, it's large enough and a bit thicker than a standard wheel so easier to grip!

Driving one of my Betas used to be like operating a Kango so I know what you mean about sore hands

[droptop]

Actually, the car had a standard wheel when I bought it and the "go kart" spec Mountney was my addition followed by the Momo which was an Xmas present, so no one to blame in that department but myself.
I have a power rack, pump and reservoir lying idle in my pile, but I'm not really on for fitting it as I think the whole driving experience would be altered for the worse.

[MattNoVAT]

And converting from manual to power steering is not an easy conversion!

[rossocorsa]

must say  that i do find the  ps set up preferable overall less turns lock to lock still quite precise and easy at parking speeds perhaps a little bit light at speed though

[MattNoVAT]

First picture is where the bushed eye of the original damper is bolted and the second picture shows the original Lancia damper bracket loosely fitted.  The steering control arms are not fitted in this picture as I am trying to locate the new poly bushes in one of the 30 large boxes of Beta parts I have in my garage.

Boy, do I miss all my tools & car stuff  

[mangocrazy]

Hi Matt,

Once again I am hugely impressed with your determination to hunt something down and bring it to a successful conclusion. Please put me down for a kit when it comes to fruition. How's the move to France going, by the way? I'm currently up on a roof in the South of France installing a solar hot water array with a builder friend of mine. Great fun - depending on how you define fun of course...

[Neil-yaj396]

Matt

Is this a steering rack out job in order to replace the damper/bracket?

[MattNoVAT]

Neil,

No, the bracket and the damper can be replaced with the rack in situ. 

I would say that it will be easier if the car was up on a ramp, but it would be possible albeit more difficult if the car was just jacked up.

[fulviafiend]

Matt,

Very interested in your kit (superb work for finding a solution) been looking for something to tame the steering a little on the Alitalia Beta for a while. With no weight on the front powersteering is not needed but at speed bump steer etc can be vicious at present.

Mark.