Full Hydro & 4 Link

[Mentos Man]

I am not the biggest fan of my Panhard bar. Already had to replace the bushing twice in less than 50,000 miles.
In the interest of preventing the future possibility of Death Wobble as well as eliminating mechanical links in the suspension (and thus eliminating bump steer), is it at all practical to run full hydraulic steering and a triangulated 4 link on a daily driven F350?

[PGreenSVT]

No. It is illegal to run full hydraulic steering on the street. You can do a hydraulic assist but not a full hydraulic.

[Mentos Man]

Originally Posted by PGreenSVT

No. It is illegal to run full hydraulic steering on the street. You can do a hydraulic assist but not a full hydraulic.

So you can show me a law on the books that requires a mechanical link in all stages of my steering system?

There is no reason, safety or otherwise, that I cannot do this. I'd just like to get my head around everything involved, and if anyone can provide some insight I would appreciate it.

[Ironmover]

Do your own effin research! We don't know where you live but check it out, it's a federal safety law anyways so you won't find it in most state levels.

You want to build a hardcore offroad crawler then go for it. Sanctioning race bodies DO NOT ALLOW spherical rod ends so why would it be a good idea on the street???

Start with Therockgods.com or pirates4x4.com and see how ridiculous your argument is. We're brutal to ideas like that over there.

[emperorjordan]

I am sure the guys on pirate4x4 would love to beat this one to death.

Full hydro steering is not safe or practical for street use period. I have been involved in building full hydro steering systems a couple times on my buddys crazy rock crawler and it just does not have proper feedback for street driving. I am involved on SteelSoldiers.com and many have considered full hydro for the deuce, but after a year of discussion and several tests, it is just not usable for street even if it were legal. It is illegal for good and sound reasons, unlike some other laws!

[emperorjordan]

I take that back, it is legal in some states according to the DOT. But still a bad idea IMO. Mainly because of return to center problems, making it fail proof and drive-ability problems.

[jetjock15]

im with these guys on advice offered so far. Additionally brother, if youve gone through panrod bushings twice in 50k you have other issues. ive had 4 lifted superduties, all done right, never had a death wobble or worn out a bushing in the panrod bar in nearly 500k miles of lifted superduties. Icon and others make a good aftermarket replacement with metal bushings that are superior to the stock rubber... good luck... many companies sell hydro assist, those are sweet, and would be a great add on...