Strange steering part on McLaren front hub

[hardingfv32]

So the slot corrects for the castor angle during steering??? Damm, that is serious attention to detail. These engineers must be fighting for any form a praise they can generate.

Brian

[hardingfv32]

I've had it confirmed by two sources, that the gold slotted device is to manage the aero angle-of-attack of the track rod arm.
I'm told this isn't new on the Mac and other teams do something similar at the rack end of the trackrod.
The clevis on the upright that the trackrod bolts to is slightly oversized (vertically), the trackrod mounts to the clevis\bolt with a spherical joint. this bearing housing features the pins that ride in the slots in the clevis. As the steering turns, the pins rotate the trackrod to maintain the +\-5 degree angle allowed for suspension elements.

Scarbs

[PlatinumZealot]

From the McLaren thread....

What is the gold part on the top of the hub for?

This looks like a way to change the height of vertical location of the steering arm. As the hub rotates/steers the pin is guided up & down changing the height of the steering arm.

They are are modifying the bump or roll steer for some reason.

Brian

My guess would be the pins on the end of the track rod make the arm pivot rather than go up and down. Thus the slot in the far side of the clevis goes the opposite direction.

So the gold part (TiN coated) is possibly moving in and out using a thread system. Possibly changing the toe adjustment as the car steers?

Brian

That piece is too small to take any real loads. All the pin is doing is stabilizing the head of the rose joint so it does not interfere with the anchoring point. IMO.

Sometimes the head of the joint can jam.

At the same time if somebody else has not said it. It can alter the angle of attack of the tie rod blade while steering.

[Caito]

Oh.. now I get it. I though the whole steering arm was there. There's just a protruding piece on the steering arm that fits in the golden piece.

As you steer the relative positions change and the "protruded piece" moves along the slot, mainting desired AoA of the tie rod.

The tie rod itself might be connected via a ball joint secured by the hex bolt seen in the golden part aswell?

[marcush.]

I like the attention to detail ..Ron has left a faible for perfection in this company ...almost manic attention to detail...jesus christ what an effort.

[hardingfv32]

The tie rod itself might be connected via a ball joint secured by the hex bolt seen in the golden part aswell?

I would say the ball joint itself has the shafts or ears machined as part of the exterior of the ball joint.

Brian

[xpensive]

I like the attention to detail ..Ron has left a faible for perfection in this company ...almost manic attention to detail...jesus christ what an effort.

Precisely why I'm certain that Ron for aesthetic reasons decided early on that the low nose was a condition for the MP4-27?

Surprised to see that simple hex-head fixing the ball-joint to the golden piece though, when socket-heads are so much nicer?