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Would love to know what others have done on the power-steering & alternator side, whom they have used and rough costings?
If you are paying a reputable dealer then I think in the region of ?3-5K to retrofit electronic PAS – someone else may need to confirm. You can fit exactly the same PAS system yourself if you do the right research and know what you are doing for next to nothing, I’m sure AM specialists file the GM logo off their hardware… 😉
Not sure about the alternator conversion – shouldn’t be more than ?150 as it’s a very simple job and the alterator is a cheap part – probably cost ?1000 if done by an AM specialist.
You may need to reverse the polarity of the car for both of the above jobs (if not done already) – no problem apart from some of your instruments might suffer.
Guy, I had the polarity changed and an alernator fitted in one car but the labour costs are lumped in with other work so I can’t break them out; the work was done by Wren Classics at Shaftesbury. About the only thing that does not work is the clock. My Rapide is still positive earth and I have investigated fitting an alernator (+ve earth) that looks like a dynamo, but the makers have not (yet) introduced one with the capacity the Rapide needs. I’ve not been minded so far to change to negative earth
hello guy
my dad fitted an electric power steering to his car.
the work was carried out by fourways-engineering.co.uk based in borough green kent.
the conversion is really good , you can park the car with one with one finger.amazing!!!
it is adjustable manualy as to the amount of assistance needed,ie none required on the motorway and up to 6 for tesco parking and it can be adusted while driving to suit your needs.
hope this helps
an as for the the alternator he is still running a dyno with a positive earth
i will call you regarding other things mon / tuesthanks
jay
Hi Jay, any idea roughly how much the PAS conversion was? It’s certainly worth doing on a Rapide…though I havn’t driven it yet, but I have lifted the engine out!
Christian, try the GTC Engineering web site http://www.gtc-engineering.com/
For a DB4 set of parts it’s ?2750 + VAT, says “please call” re Rapide, guess it’ll be a broadly similar amount
Thanks David, do you think it’s a bit wimpish to add PAS?
I’ve never really felt the need as I try to avoid for example parking in a confined area which needs slow speed manoeuvre. I’m also slightly reluctant to fit more kit around the right hand side of the engine when I might need that space to enable fitting of a full-flow oil cooler take-off and pipes etc and which is tighter than in a DB4 say because of the Rapide’s different steering column geometry
hi cristian
im sorry i cant comment on the price of the conversion as all the restoration costs are a guarded secret so my mum dosent know how much my dad has spent,but contact fairways and they will help you,there a good local firmChristian, spoke to John at GTC Engineering. Very interesting chap. Factory is near Silverstone & have done over 300 conversions, of which a handful are Rapide. The original column is modified & interestingly enough the steering reverts if power is lost so it still works. ?2,750 + ?400 (Fitting) + VAT. I’m off there in the new year to have my car done! Regards, Guy.
Hi Guy, thanks for the info, I will be very interested to hear how your conversion goes and how it feels and performs afterwards. I am suprised that the DB4/5 and Rapide did not have it fitted considering it has power brakes, windows and fuel cap, even the Rover P5b had PAS in 1958. I think I would be tempted to have the same upgrade added, especially as it is quite close…we’ll see…
Dear All,
Re: Alternator.
I converted my car to neg earth some while ago & have now decided to fit an alternator to support some of the other items I have fitted. There are a few companies that offer a converted original Lucas Dynamo that looks the part but the failure rates are quite high! So a modern one is going to be fitted that should outlive me along with a large electric fan! Regards, GuyHi Guy, did you reverse the polarity yourself? I’ve done it to another car by touching the live wire against the body of the dynamo – very easy! My reservation with the Rapide is the rev counter and other electronic gauges – did you have a problem with these?
You could always refit the original dynamo at a later stage if you wanted. Fitting an alternator should be easy as the Rapide already has a thin belt compatible with most modern alternators – not sure if the control box needs to be adapted as well?
Interesting Guy about the alternators that look like dynamos, I could not find one with capacity large enough for the Rapide, however the key point appears to be their unreliability. If I change my car to negative earth I’ll therefore opt for a standard alternator; strict originality is not my goal anyway
Hi Christian,
The reverse polarity was done by a friend, no real problems other than the clock, which we took from a later DB car, but looks similar. Removed the regulator etc & literally swapped over neg/pos wires etc. Regards, Guy
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