V70 heavy steering

[Kev0607]

Originally Posted by Daim

Reving the engine won't change the steering force as it is SPEED sensitive and not REV sensitive It gets a signal Al via the ABS sensors or better said a speed output and then will alter the pressure.

My parents 500 has an issue like that... The steering is all well and good at very slow speeds but the moment it exceeds the city steering limit, it turns super heavy, absolutely no assistance. So I would expect here that the assistance isn't there.

Question is:
- pure hydraulic power steering
OR
- electro hydraulic?

Electronic hydraulic would need a signal to turn it on, which you would be able to hear when you turn the steering wheel. Pure hydraulic would be on the belts and will be on all the time. Volvo switched somewhere around 2011/2012 to full electro hydraulic.

That would be correct on a car that has speed sensitive steering, but this car hasn’t… so the speed theory doesn’t apply (as far as I’m aware). It doesn’t get firm the faster you go or lighter around town like some cars do.

There was an error code for a speed sensor in VIDA. Car drives fine, no warning lights on the dash. I don’t think this error has any relation to the heavy steering personally, as the car doesn’t have speed sensitive steering. Likely it just threw a few codes because of a previously low battery… modern cars have a habit of doing that… Its a historic code. The battery has since been replaced.

I think the system is pure hydraulic. I don’t think its new enough to have electro hydraulic.

The steering is heavy all the time. There’s definitely “some” assistance, but its definitely heavier than it should be.