Easier For Parking, New ZF 'EasyTurn' Steering Is Able To Turn The Wheel Up To 80 Degrees

ZF's EasyTurn technology allows cars to park easily (photo: ZF)

JAKARTA - A German auto parts manufacturer, ZF Friedrichshafen AG, also known as ZF, recently showcased its EasyTurn technology. In this technology the front suspension design of the car is able to rotate the front wheels up to 80 degrees, from the usual 35 degrees.

Invented by MotorTrend, in standard suspension usually the steering rack is connected directly to the steering knuckle. But, in the EasyTurn ZF suspension, they added two additional links between the tie-rod and the knuckle. From the steering rack, the tie-rods are connected to links perpendicular to the tie-rods. That secondary link then connects to another, much smaller tie-rod, which runs parallel to the other and connects to the knuckle of the wheel.

So instead of a direct, solid connection between the steering rack and the wheels, this system creates a Z-shaped connection with two joints, which allows for much greater wheel articulation.

This technology is considered capable of reducing the amount of parallel parking space required for easy insertion or extraction and to significantly tighten the diameter of the U-turn.

In a demonstration video uploaded to the ZF website, you'll see how easy it is for a car using EasyTurn technology to parallel park and even make one-way U-turns.

EasyTurn is not easy to apply to all types of cars, because turning the tire wheel 80 degrees in any direction will require a lot of packing space than usual. Additionally, according to TheDrive, the extra wheel articulation and additional steering components create packaging problems for most front-engined vehicles.

For the ZF demonstration, they paired the EasyTurn to a BMW i3, which uses a rear-mounted electric motor to power the rear. They provide plenty of room at the front, leaving enough space to fit additional components and larger wheel articulation.

Of this technology, electric cars are likely to benefit the most, as all-wheel-drive EVs have a better front packaging than front-engined cars.

Regarding when and how much of this technology will be applied, ZF has not announced anything of the sort. ZF also hasn't talked about the specifics of the cost either.