Quote:
Originally Posted by Dylan86
Steering in this car is great, not too sure what some complain about.. My guess is you don't drive hard enough to get the feedback desired  |
You may be trolling, but I'll bite anyway. Here's my understanding. Corrections would be appreciated.
Hydraulic steering, such as on the E46, merely gives you a power assist so what happens at the tire contact patches gets transmitted to the steering wheel, and vice versa. It's direct feedback and control using hydraulic fluid as a nearly incompressible medium. The overall steering design affects the feel, of course. Some hydraulic steering sucks.
Electrical steering, sometimes called "steer by wire", uses wires to electrically transmit steering input to the wheels and vice versa. Software adjusts the steering feel based on what is happening at the wheels, what driving mode you are in, etc. It's more adjustable than hydraulic, and can be lighter and more reliable.
IMO, the steering on the my 228i M Sport is excellent when in Sport mode, although not as good as on my old E46. Maybe I'm just getting used to it. After lots of experimenting I now spend most of my driving time in Sport mode with Traction Control On and the drive train set for Comfort (linear shift points across all 8 gears). It handles very well.
I don't track my car, so my needs are less demanding than those who do, but I do drive it as hard as I can get away with.
