Does a depowered rack snap back?
 

Hi guys,

I am considering to depower the rack at my 92 Miata. One concern which came up is if it would still snap back. You know, when you take off your hands of your steering wheel when exiting a (tight) corner it pulls itself into straight position. Or do you have to use the same strength as entering a corner?

Thanks for sharing your experience!

It will do that if you have a heap of caster, but it comes in handy for when the car is sliding around.

The snap back is all in the alignment.

The car will center itself easier with increased caster. However, the more caster you run, the harder it is to turn from center. What size of tires are you running and what are your alignment specs now?

Actually I run on 195/50-15 but I am planning to move to 215/50-50.

I know that it centers better the more caster you add. But the question I have is does it behave differently when de-powering the rack on the same car, same alignment? I have never driven a depowered miata, but a friend did and he came up with that issue when I told him my plan.

You'll want to back the caster down to to 3.5-4 degrees. That's about it.

It self-centers just like any other car would. Power steering does not magically turn the wheel back to center for you - caster does that.

Why the strange tire sizes? 205/50 or 225/45 is the norm and easy to find sizes.

Didn't do any detailed research yet. At first I need to get 8x15 rims. Unfortunately we don't get street legal 9x15 in Germany...

Thanks for your answer. I learned that a depowered rack doesnt behave differently to a power steering one. Its all about caster :idea:

Pretty sure 15x9 6ULs are TUV approved.

Thats the first thing I hear. Which vendor dealt with all the hassle and money to get a certificate?

Not with those tires.

Run as much caster as you can while still achieving the other settings you desire.