Suggestion for Saturn Aura and all Epsilons equipped with rack & pinion steering...
Dear Mr. Bob Lutz and other GM Product Planners,
I am the owner of a 2007 Saturn Aura XE which is equipped with the conventional hydraulic rack & pinion steering rack that is also used on the current Malibu LTZ V6 and Pontiac G6 3.6 GTP models as well. Overall I am pretty satisfied with my Aura as a whole, however one thing that noticeably bothers me about the conventional rack & pinion steering unit used in this vehicle is the fact that the steering feel is excessively heavy and doesn't have enough hydraulic power assist at any speed. :yup:
Although I am in no way advocating the use of overboosted feather-light steering systems, I feel that the steering system in my Aura is excessively heavy to the point where at times it almost makes the car feel more like a burden than a pleasure to drive which is very unfortunate, especially at lower speeds. At speed and on the highway it is less noticeable, but it's still hard to overlook at times because their is a lack of power assist at virtually any speed that makes the car a burden and an effort to drive at times.
I feel that the obvious reason this was done is due to the fact that many auto reviewers had criticized GM in the past for having hydraulic rack & pinion steering systems which lacked road feel and were sometimes overly light in steering feel, and I think the important point should be made that heavy steering feel does not necessarily equal better steering feel. And although the Aura is a European influenced car due to its Opel Vectra roots and many European vehicles have heavier steering feel I think that this was done to the point of overkill in the Saturn Aura. :yup:
I've read more than one review on the Aura/G6/Malibu that uses this hydraulic steering unit that also complained of the overly heavy steering and lack of power assist. Therefore ultimately I feel that revising this steering unit for some more power assist at all speeds would significantly improve the driveability, refinement, and overall steering performance of all Epsilon-platform vehicles that use this hydraulic rack & pinion system.
As a GM fan and GM vehicle owner I highly recommend that you revise this steering unit as soon as possible for more hydraulic power assist at all speeds to lighten up the steering feel which would ultimately improve the driveability and refinement of all the Epsilon vehicles. Of course I don't suggest that you add a high amount of power assist to this steering system which would make it excessively light and numb, but I think that this steering unit does need a bit more assist to make the vehicles feel like less of a burden and a chore to drive and more of a pleasure and a joy. If a relatively small amount of hydraulic power assist is added at all speeds for this steering unit I feel that a great balance of driveability and steering feel can be acheived here. :yup:
Thank you for listening GM and I hope that you implement this recommendation to your vehicles as soon as conveniently possible.
Sincerely,
Patrick Cairo
Dear Mr. Bob Lutz and other GM Product Planners,
I am the owner of a 2007 Saturn Aura XE which is equipped with the conventional hydraulic rack & pinion steering rack that is also used on the current Malibu LTZ V6 and Pontiac G6 3.6 GTP models as well. Overall I am pretty satisfied with my Aura as a whole, however one thing that noticeably bothers me about the conventional rack & pinion steering unit used in this vehicle is the fact that the steering feel is excessively heavy and doesn't have enough hydraulic power assist at any speed. :yup:
Although I am in no way advocating the use of overboosted feather-light steering systems, I feel that the steering system in my Aura is excessively heavy to the point where at times it almost makes the car feel more like a burden than a pleasure to drive which is very unfortunate, especially at lower speeds. At speed and on the highway it is less noticeable, but it's still hard to overlook at times because their is a lack of power assist at virtually any speed that makes the car a burden and an effort to drive at times.
I feel that the obvious reason this was done is due to the fact that many auto reviewers had criticized GM in the past for having hydraulic rack & pinion steering systems which lacked road feel and were sometimes overly light in steering feel, and I think the important point should be made that heavy steering feel does not necessarily equal better steering feel. And although the Aura is a European influenced car due to its Opel Vectra roots and many European vehicles have heavier steering feel I think that this was done to the point of overkill in the Saturn Aura. :yup:
I've read more than one review on the Aura/G6/Malibu that uses this hydraulic steering unit that also complained of the overly heavy steering and lack of power assist. Therefore ultimately I feel that revising this steering unit for some more power assist at all speeds would significantly improve the driveability, refinement, and overall steering performance of all Epsilon-platform vehicles that use this hydraulic rack & pinion system.
As a GM fan and GM vehicle owner I highly recommend that you revise this steering unit as soon as possible for more hydraulic power assist at all speeds to lighten up the steering feel which would ultimately improve the driveability and refinement of all the Epsilon vehicles. Of course I don't suggest that you add a high amount of power assist to this steering system which would make it excessively light and numb, but I think that this steering unit does need a bit more assist to make the vehicles feel like less of a burden and a chore to drive and more of a pleasure and a joy. If a relatively small amount of hydraulic power assist is added at all speeds for this steering unit I feel that a great balance of driveability and steering feel can be acheived here. :yup:
Thank you for listening GM and I hope that you implement this recommendation to your vehicles as soon as conveniently possible.
Sincerely,
Patrick Cairo
(old coots on the two lane near my home drive that speed a lot, even though it's a 55 zone. There's only a 1/4 mile stretch of passing zone, to make things worse)
