Thanks to Tom Y, I now have a tilt/telescope steering column. My old steering wheel will not fit and is damaged anyway. I was looking at getting a VIP 10. The old wheel is 22". I would like a smaller wheel. I am sure that a 20" will be fine, but wonder if I could even go with an 18". Although I may change to integral power steering in the future, I still have hydraulic power assist. Is there a safety issue with going from a 22" to a 20" or 18" wheel? What size have you been comfortable with? Everyone, except for me, should please avoid the obvious size jokes.
A little update. I contacted VIP and they were very helpful. Although they could not really say what would be best, they felt if the assist was working well, an 18 inch wheel would be okay. Also, they said it I did not like the 18 inch, I could exchange it for the 20" with only a $5.00 restocking fee. The wheel itself with the plastic covering is only $50.00 including the horn button. The leather or wood wheel would be more.
$50 that is not too bad now days for a steering wheel.
That is I don't think it is too bad anyway.
Bob
Dunno if there is a safety issue besides the need to safely steer the Bus Conversion if the power steering should fail. Obviously a smaller wheel may not let a small/weak person safely steer and stop.
My old Crown had a big wheel. Forgot what size, but big. The Crown also had hydralic ASSIST steering and was designed to be safely driven/steered without power assit. A school bus thing? Dunno again.
The point is that there was some redundancy built into the steering mechanism. Having a smaller steering wheel may create a situation that may make it difficult (impossible?) to safely turn. :) :) :)
The OEM steering wheel on our MC-8 is 21". We still have the hydraulic asssit steering. When I blew a power steering hose, driving was no problem on the highway. But, when I had to stop and turn the bus sharply while backing into our driveway, it was extrememly difficult. If I was replacing our wheel, I would go no smaller than 20". This is just my opinion, YMMV. Jack
If you like leather, you might ask VIP if they have any seconds. They have had them at a good price.
Ed Roelle
Flint, MI
Ed,
Thanks for the info. I don't really care about it being leather though. The wood one would be cool, but I assume that even a second in that would be more pricey.
Jack,
I could see that steering would be harder with the smaller wheel should the power assist fail. My last bus had manual steering at first and turning the wheels at standstill was very difficult. However, if I would just roll a little bit, I could turn it reasonably well. I do not remember the size wheel I had, but it was a big one. When we put power steering in the bus, we replaced the column and wheel with one I got from a Cadillac. It steered quite beautifully, but I often wondered how bad it would be if the power steering failed.
One thought I had though is that since the new column is tilt/telescope, I would be able to position the wheel to my advantage and thereby make up for some extra resistance. That is a totally untested theory though. If the 18 inch wheel provides about a 20% shorter lever, will it take 20 % more power to pull it, or is there some sort of larger effect?
I dont know how it is on these big boxes but on the cars the manual box is a different ration to allow it to turn easier. a power box with no power is harder to steer moving or not than one built as a manual box. I tend to agree with everyone that if you lost power you may not be able to steer. If they will swap it out for a few bucks one test would be to install it and see how it drives and then find a big parking lot and roll across and shut off the engine and see how it is to steer. if it is too tough then change it to the 20 inch.
just my thoughts
steve
Steve,
I like the idea of testing it with the engine off. Do you think the Grapevine would be a good place to do it?
My mechanic just called and suggested that I get the wheel from a nearby Peterbilt dealer rather than waiting for VIP to send it UPS. I called Peterbilt and found out that they charge $127. for the exact same VIP wheel that VIP sells for $50. I guess the logo costs $77.
No, mark up there is it Lin as many as they buy proabley cost 35 bucks
Hey Lin....the grapevine would be just fine either way (used to drive it daily) but it is kinda straight through. How about the Sis's grade (sp) North bound Eye-5 just over the top going into Southern Oregon? Lots of tight, tight turns, 7% downgrade and idiot passenger car drivers who would always just get into your way. Sounds like a good test fur sures. He he he. AUGHHHHHH!! (again) :) :) :)
HB,
I guess I will have to get my horn fixed first then. I was told that you either need good brakes or a good horn. There is no need for both.