Anyone done a power steering swap to the GX? - Needed for Comma Ai (2 Viewers)

[Fractal]

I have a 23 Luxury w/ Offoad + every option available. Knew it was the final V8, and wanted to make sure I own this piece as a forever truck, drive it till it does thing..

For those who don't know, Comma Ai is a plug & play level 2 self driving system. I have it on my 22 Ram 3500, and and it works great! I do frequent trips to west coast from Virginia, and it's a life saver. I'm trying to do the same for my 23 GX. I'm not asking this to solicit 'Just trade it in for GX 550' comments. I want to keep the V8 and find a way to make this work.

In order for Commai Ai to work, it requires 2 basic things. 1. adaptive cruise ontrol. 2. Electric Power Steering. With these 2 things in place, Comma Ai provides one of the best level 2 systems out there.

I have the adaptive cruise, but obviosly all GX 460s have hydraulic steering. I have been waiting until the GX 550 comes out to research it's new electric power steering specs to see if they can be swapped into the GX460 with minor mods.

I know that some people prefer the electric steering on the GX as many want to have a easier steering. I've searched the forums but could not find anything definitive. Has anyone done this, and if so, what did it involve & how does it drive?

 

[Hiluxforever]

My 2015's hydraulic power steering is really good. I would hate to loose that feel, as it's clutch when offroading.

You would probably have to kit bash parts from a J250, when they become available, if it's even possible. Unless there is another rsck off a hybrid that might be able to work with custom rod ends. Plug in hybrid toyotas, maybe?

 

[re_guderian]

I know jack-all about this, other than similar model year Lexus/Toyota hybrids use electric power steering, and it seems like you'd have the best shot at success swapping those systems. But they aren't made for pushing 33" tires through the rocks, either...

 

[Hiluxforever]

Maybe wait for some totalled GX550s to start hitting yards and buy the power steering system and rack from one of those

 

[Hiluxforever]

I know jack-all about this, other than similar model year Lexus/Toyota hybrids use electric power steering, and it seems like you'd have the best shot at success swapping those systems. But they aren't made for pushing 33" tires through the rocks, either...

That last part is critical if you plan on fully using the GXs capabilities. If you do milder stuff like I do, it honestly would probably be OK, as long as mechanical sympathy was ALWAYS top of mind.

 

[Rednexus]

I'm not sure electric steering from a 24+ model will be backwards-swappable. It looks like the TNGA-F uses a totally different front steering rack mounting system than the old 150 platform (at least for a Tundra). Presumably the LC250/GX550 will be somewhat similar. Also the electronics would be a nightmare to figure out and the warranty would be voided.

It really seems like few parts will swap back onto our older rigs in general - even if the suspension is similar, it's totally different. Even the exhaust has moved to the other side of the rig. It seems the TNGA-F is a true "clean sheet", unlike the 120 -> 150 which was an evolution.

 

[Fractal]

I'm not sure electric steering from a 24+ model will be backwards-swappable. It looks like the TNGA-F uses a totally different front steering rack mounting system than the old 150 platform (at least for a Tundra). Presumably the LC250/GX550 will be somewhat similar. Also the electronics would be a nightmare to figure out and the warranty would be voided.

It really seems like few parts will swap back onto our older rigs in general - even if the suspension is similar, it's totally different. Even the exhaust has moved to the other side of the rig. It seems the TNGA-F is a true "clean sheet", unlike the 120 -> 150 which was an evolution.

Don't care about the warranty. For those who have done these swaps in the past, it seems they are doing it to have a beefier steering rack for thier larger tires & severe offroading duties. There is a guy out in the west who modifies the used Land Cruiser parts to GX / 4runner use. I even spoke with the guy. He told me that he would look into this based on the newer LX electric steering components and see what mods are needed to make this work. And as you mentioned, installing the new Tundra part would be the way to go. But he has never done this. Since many do their own DIY swaps to electric (on other cars), I thought I'd ask here if anyone has successfully installed an electric power steering module & rack.

I hope GX 550 parts become more clear very soon.

 

[Rednexus]

I can all but guarantee you that no one on this forum has done an electric steering swap .

The new LX, LC250, Tacoma, and GX550 are all the TNGA-F architecture, which the new Tundra/Sequoia and 300 also share. They significantly changed the steering rack and front differential mounting along with many other parts from all of the older Toyota models, as shown in the video I posted. Pretty much the entire front suspension is different, I would presume that few parts will interchange with a 150.

Folks do upgrade racks on other older Toyotas and GX's with LC200 parts, but those rigs are all hydraulic racks that are based on a similar, older chassis architecture, and don't include any electronics (as they are far downstream of the steering angle sensor).

Not saying it can't be done but you'd have lots of mechanical hurdles before even getting to the electronic side of things.

 

[Fractal]

an't be done but you'd have lots of mechanical hurdles before even get

I can all but guarantee you that no one on this forum has done an electric steering swap .

The new LX, LC250, Tacoma, and GX550 are all the TNGA-F architecture, which the new Tundra/Sequoia and 300 also share. They significantly changed the steering rack and front differential mounting along with many other parts from all of the older Toyota models, as shown in the video I posted. Pretty much the entire front suspension is different, I would presume that few parts will interchange with a 150.

Folks do upgrade racks on other older Toyotas and GX's with LC200 parts, but those rigs are all hydraulic racks that are based on a similar, older chassis architecture, and don't include any electronics (as they are far downstream of the steering angle sensor).

Not saying it can't be done but you'd have lots of mechanical hurdles before even getting to the electronic side of things.

I hear you. But if someone likeminded with mechanical know-how gets this done, I'd be all over it. I'd even procure new parts and machine parts if necessary. This would make my GX the 'PERFECT' forever SUV for me.

 

[Acrad]

I'm familiar with your product but don't have it installed on any of my current vehicles.

I will just say... we will be looking forward to seeing your writeup on this.

In all the years watching 460 posts everywhere... only ever saw confusion about type of steering system vehicle had. No one ever brought up this mod.

The adaptive cruise you have in 460 is only slightly better than one first introduced (optionally) starting with 2010 models and is essentially a Gen 1 version. That may be bigger hurdle than the rack swap.

 

[re_guderian]

I'm familiar with your product but don't have it installed on any of my current vehicles.

I will just say... we will be looking forward to seeing your writeup on this.

In all the years watching 460 posts everywhere... only ever saw confusion about type of steering system vehicle had. No one ever brought up this mod.

The adaptive cruise you have in 460 is only slightly better than one first introduced (optionally) starting with 2010 models and is essentially a Gen 1 version. That may be bigger hurdle than the rack swap.

Did they upgrade to Safety Sense 2.0? My 2013 RX radar cruise suuuuuuuucks. It cuts off below 25 MPH. Most other Toyota/Lexus models got the improved version 2018-2020-ish. So yeah, like a full decade after other manufacturers...

 

[Fractal]

I don't know about it sucking. Mine is 23 (final model). Adaptive cruise work awesome! No complaints there, except for what you've mentiond. Only available at above 25MPH (I think a bit higher, slightly lower than 30MPH). Although it would have been amazing if this truck had adaptive cruise w/ full stop & go. But, I can live without that. At this point, steering rack + controls upgraded to electric would be the bigger challenge / first problem to solve.

 

[Jstawgn]

People been installing EPS on hot rod and suzuki samurai. They use old prius or some other EPS some are 100% brand new for hot rod applications. Look for one that replace steering column instead of replacing the hydraulic steering rack.

 

[Fractal]

Thank you for the suggestion. If this accomplishes what I'm trying to do (enable auto-pilot via Commai Ai device), then I'll definiely look into this. I don't know about how racks work with columns. One thing that's important is the strength of the EPS' motor. If it motors don't have enough torque, then it will not work very well. Sofware on Comma Ai learns this, and if the torque isn't enough to steer quickly relative to the truck weight, then it may not work. hence, I was attempting a setup combo which is proven to work such as the newer vehicles (Highlanders, Tundras, Tacomas / GX 550)

 

[ericm979]

I put an EPS kit on a side by side. If your EPS steering rack is too short or long it can be modified (to avoid bump steer). I think the hard part wlll be getting it on the CAN bus.

 

[re_guderian]

I don't know about it sucking. Mine is 23 (final model). Adaptive cruise work awesome! No complaints there, except for what you've mentiond. Only available at above 25MPH (I think a bit higher, slightly lower than 30MPH). Although it would have been amazing if this truck had adaptive cruise w/ full stop & go. But, I can live without that. At this point, steering rack + controls upgraded to electric would be the bigger challenge / first problem to solve.

How do you do self driving, when it switches off when you're decelerating, and hit 25 and start coasting instead of braking? My 2021 Hyundai Genesis didn't do that. I'd bring me all the way to a stop if the car in front of me stopped. I guess if you're only using it on the "open road", but man, even the "open road" gets slow sometimes...

 

[Fractal]

I did a lot of research on this. Comma Ai talks to the can bus and determines the car's minimum speed for adaptive cruise control. As matter of fact, once you install it, the system is activated by adaptive cruise. This is how it works now, but I believe they will be releasing a new feature where adaptive cruise is no longer required. It'll steer while the braking and accelerating is done by the driver.

As for the system, it interfaces the can bus and somehow downloads the specifications of your EPS system. It determines the max torque + other vehicle attributes. If the EPS system's torque is strong enough, it will allow stop & resume. Not sure exactly what the parameters are, but this is how it works. Comma Ai is just a system you buy. The official software is open source called "Open Pilot" There are other branches of this main tree such as the one I use called "Sunny Pilot" . This is the one I use as it offers much more features, and they go it to work on my 22 Ram 3500 HD (Cummins Diesel), which has been converted to a Prospector XL (AEV). On the Ram, the software calculates what the safest settngs are based on weight class and the EPS torque, it has set a minimum self-driving speed to 26mph. Only way to change it is to do a costly EPS system upgrade to unit with much higher torque.

See this pic. I drive this thing from Key West to Dead Horse, AK. It's a dream machine, but without Comma Ai, it would have been very difficult. This monster drives itself on interstate and perform better than Toyota's LTA system. And I am so eager to get this to work on the GX. The creator of the 'Sunny Pilot' has recently moved to the DC area. He initially worked with me very closely to make the Comma Ai work on a Heavy Duty Truck. I believe I was the first to get this to work on the 3500 Cummins in the world. He has agreed to work on the GX, once the GX receives the EPS, and he can successfully'talk' to it via the can bus. Anyhoo, here is the truck. Imagine this monstrosity driving itself better the Tesla on a freeway across the country For a frequent cross-country (continent) drivers like myself, AutoPilot is a god-send.

 

[Fractal]

Here are couple of shots of my fully loaded GX (now fully PPFd and ceramic coated). Sitting at home looking pretty
Gave the dealers 'do not wash' do not touch anything order when I took delivery. Took it straight to the wrapper and had it fully protected. This will be my forever mid-sized off-roader forever. I have a Type S MDX as a grocery - getter, but this GX is very very special to me.

 

[Fractal]

I have too many cars & motocyles. Just ordered my second parking lift for the detachd garage. It's a disease....

 

[r2m]

First time I've ever heard of being able to add AI to a non-AI vehicle.
Amazing! Curious where this thread goes.