GMC Denali - 4 wheel steering?

[AreaCode707]

Just saw a commercial for this. Anyone know how it works? I've never heard of it before.

 

[d33pt]

i'm not sure what the numbers are, but i think at slow speeds, less than 15mph or so, it turns a couple of degrees in the opposite direction of your front wheels to make the turning circle smaller and to make turning with a trailer easier.. faster than that it turns with the front wheels for things like lane changes

 

[N8Magic]

I think GM's name for it is Quadrasteer.

In a nutshell, at low speeds (parking maneuvers) it turns the back wheels in the opposite direction of the front wheels, allowing the back end of the truck to swing around quicker, thus making a big vehicle easier to park.

At highway speeds however, the back wheels turn in unison with the front, effectively allowing the truck to "glide" sideways into the next lane.

 

[Ryan]

The rear wheels turn slightly with the turn of the front wheels. Honda used this technology on some of their 1992-1994 Preludes, but they didn't sell well, and the 4WS model was axed. It gives the vehicle a tighter turning radius.

 

[AreaCode707]

Hm, interesting. It just caught my attention.

 

[DougK62]

Originally posted by: rbloedow
The rear wheels turn slightly with the turn of the front wheels. Honda used this technology on some of their 1992-1994 Preludes, but they didn't sell well, and the 4WS model was axed. It gives the vehicle a tighter turning radius.

Yup - IIRC, Toyota and Mitsubishi played around with 4 wheel steer in the early 90s too. Any of the early 90s cars with 4WS is a hoot to drive

 

[Viper GTS]

Trucks equipped with it are amazingly maneuverable, it chops the turning radius drastically.

Viper GTS

 

[Viper GTS]

Originally posted by: DougK62

Originally posted by: rbloedow
The rear wheels turn slightly with the turn of the front wheels. Honda used this technology on some of their 1992-1994 Preludes, but they didn't sell well, and the 4WS model was axed. It gives the vehicle a tighter turning radius.

Yup - IIRC, Toyota and Mitsubishi played around with 4 wheel steer in the early 90s too. Any of the early 90s cars with 4WS is a hoot to drive

Toyota did too?

I knew the 3000 GT VR-4 & Stealth R/T had it, but I didn't know Toyota had one as well...

Viper GTS

 

[JC]

Honda offered an AWS Prelude in the late 80's too. What Toyota had it?

 

[StattlichPassat]

That's the GMC Sierra Denali- saw one in person at the Dallas Auto Show way back in February. Very slick truck! I'm not exactly how it works, but it's slick.

 

[RU482]

here you go

looks like it's for more than just low speed (see chart in pdf) "improved handling at high speeds"

 

[DougK62]

Originally posted by: JC
Honda offered an AWS Prelude in the late 80's too. What Toyota had it?

Oops - I may be mistaken. I was thinking of the Celica All-Trac, but now I seem to remember that it was just AWD.

And in addition to the 3000GT/Stealth you can't forget the Galant VR-4

 

[Vehementi]

You'll probably flip if you tried to make a tight turn at high speeds with it, however

 

[RU482]

Originally posted by: Vehementi
You'll probably flip if you tried to make a tight turn at high speeds with it, however

Actually, I remember seeing a promotional video for this about a year ago. They showed the truck cruising pretty fast, switching lanes. Looked like it worked pretty well

 

[rh71]

Someone down the block from me has one. Complete with aftermarket rims. Nice looking truck like the SVT Lightning I outdrove coming home this afternoon. Anyway, I had no clue the Denali's had quadrasteer... you learn something everyday (like that strange fact thread).

 

[PaNsyBoy8]

someone told me that the nissan skyline also had this feature, well in japan anyways.

 

[bizmark]

nissan 300ZX had it as well.

link

 

[Rallispec]

i wonder if it will ever catch on with all cars.

 

[BL0RT]

Originally posted by: N8Magic

At highway speeds however, the back wheels turn in unison with the front, effectively allowing the truck to "glide" sideways into the next lane.

dude it strafes!

 

[ElFenix]

Originally posted by: Rallispec
i wonder if it will ever catch on with all cars.

its pretty darn expensive, i would think. and the ability to do figure 8s, in reverse, pushing a trailer, isn't something a civic really needs to do.

 

[Rallispec]

Originally posted by: ElFenix

Originally posted by: Rallispec
i wonder if it will ever catch on with all cars.

its pretty darn expensive, i would think. and the ability to do figure 8s, in reverse, pushing a trailer, isn't something a civic really needs to do.

and i imagine that when it brakes, its probably a bitch to repair

 

[Evadman]

and i imagine that when it brakes, its probably a bitch to repair

A bunch of purpose built 4 x 4's have 4 wheel steer. They are not bad at all. it is probably powered by a small hydralic cyl that works off the power stearing pump. Built just like an independant rear, but with an extra swivvel point like the front end. Hell, you could probably make the parts from all 4 corners matching to cut down on parts production costs.

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: Rallispec

Originally posted by: ElFenix

Originally posted by: Rallispec
i wonder if it will ever catch on with all cars.

its pretty darn expensive, i would think. and the ability to do figure 8s, in reverse, pushing a trailer, isn't something a civic really needs to do.

and i imagine that when it brakes, its probably a bitch to repair

Are you saying that you can only use the brakes once?!?!?

 

[Rallispec]

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: Rallispec

Originally posted by: ElFenix

Originally posted by: Rallispec
i wonder if it will ever catch on with all cars.

its pretty darn expensive, i would think. and the ability to do figure 8s, in reverse, pushing a trailer, isn't something a civic really needs to do.

and i imagine that when it brakes, its probably a bitch to repair

Are you saying that you can only use the brakes once?!?!?

d'oh.

 

[manly]

This was in an L.A. Times Business section article last week, which I only skimmed. You could probably read the article if you registered at the latimes.com web site (like nytimes.com you have to register to read articles now).

Delphi, the large auto parts maker, developed the technology and is licensing it to GM. Other manufacturers will get it from Delphi before long.

IIRC, with QuadriSteer, the GMC Denali's turn radius is vary close to that of the Nissan Altima mid-size sedan, something like 37 feet (I hope I'm not grossly off). Without it, the turn radius is something like 54 feet. Huge difference!

I think the Denali is the only 2002 model to get this feature. About 8 other vehicles will offer in 2003 models.