LaFerrari’s Efficient Steering System

TRW has announced that it is supplying an electrically powered hydraulic steering (EPHS) system to Ferrari for its LaFerrari hybrid vehicle.

This is the EPHS system:

This is the LaFerrari:

This is notable because compared with a conventional hydraulic power steering system, the EPHS provides fuel savings of up to 0.3 liters/100 km, and a reduction of carbon dioxide emissions of 7 g/km.

The system has a motor pump unit that’s connected with a conventional rack and pinion power gear. While not fully electric, it operates independently of the engine.

The system is tunable, such that it can adapt to driving conditions, such as pulling up to the valet and blasting down the autobahn.

One interesting aspect of the EPHS and the LaFerrari: TRW has more than 20-million EPHS systems on the road; Ferrari plans to limit production of the 1-million euro to 499.

And while on the subject of the LaFerrari, know that it has a V12 engine that produces 788 hp, supplemented by a 120-kW electric motor, so the total output is on the order of 949 hp.  It, yes, is a hybrid.

One of the reasons behind the limited production (this is a study in carbon fiber, with four different types of the material being used; the components are hand-laminated and autoclave cured in the same department responsible for the Ferrari Formula 1 cars) is because the driver’s seat is fixed in place, which means that it is tailored to the particular driver. (The pedals and steering wheel are adjustable, so presumably it would have some life on the used car market.)

OK. I’ll admit it. I just wanted to run more pictures of the car, which has a top speed of in excess of 217 mph because. . .well, just look at it.