Steering damper
Steering dampers are used on motorcycles in order to avoid the dangerous knocking of the handlebars when the front wheel is unloaded or lifted. In addition, unwanted vibrations in the steering such. B. Reduced high-speed commuting. In principle, the dampers work in the same way as shock absorbers . The attenuation in tension and compression is the same. For some time now there have also been electromechanical steering dampers that work on the same principle, except that they are controlled by a sensor that registers blows and vibrations. See dampers from HONDA with the specially developed HESD system.
In the case of bicycles , a construction for centering the handlebar is also called a steering damper, even if it is not damping in the physical sense.
Steering damper in cars
Steering dampers were also used in passenger cars earlier (with different steering designs) : The VW Beetle from August 1964 (model year '65) is a prominent example of this: it has a steering damper installed (in a hidden place, across the tank). The models with the so-called long front end and rack and pinion steering (1303 Lim. And Cabrio from August '74), however, did not need it. The old chassis construction with the smooth worm steering, however, benefited a lot from the steering damper. Since the rack and pinion steering of modern cars has sufficient inherent friction, a steering damper is usually not necessary with this construction principle that is common today. Exceptions to this are sporty vehicles with smooth steering that tends to flutter without damping: the Mercedes-Benz SLK up to 2004, for example, has a hydraulically damped recirculating ball steering system .