Automotive Steering System Market

The automotive steering system market was valued at USD 35.3 billion in 2022 and is expected to reach USD 39.5 billion by 2027, at a CAGR of 2.3% over the forecast period 2022-2027. With emissions standards becoming more stringent automotive electrification is imminent. The rapid adoption of Electric Vehicles (EVs) worldwide creates a huge demand for Electrical Power Steering (EPS) and steer-by-wire steering systems. OEMs in the passenger car segment have almost entirely moved to EPS systems, with EPS systems for commercial vehicles at a very nascent stage. As more commercial EVs are introduced in the market, the demand for EPS in these vehicles will witness significant growth.

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Automotive Steering System Market Dynamics

Driver: Increasing demand for Electrically assisted Hydraulic Power Steering (E-HPS) in commercial vehicles

Light and heavy commercial vehicles have been using hydraulic power steering for a long time. Commercial vehicles usually carry large volumes of goods for long distances in trailers and trucks. The long-distance hauling of goods often causes fatigue to drivers. Power steering helps to reduce driver fatigue by reducing the effort required to turn the heavy vehicle. This reduction in fatigue provides more comfort to drivers, enabling them to drive on long-haul freight routes. Lately, the hydraulic power steering systems have been upgraded by adding electronic components, thus leading to Electrically assisted Hydraulic Power Steering (E-HPS). The linking of the steering system with other electric components, such as sensors, brakes, batteries, and the vehicle control unit, enables innovative driver assistance systems to be implemented for increased safety and more comfort. In E-HPS, an oil circuit and a power cylinder provide hydraulic steering assistance for the steering wheel motions of the driver. The electric motor and worm gear give an additional turning moment to the input shaft parallel to the steering wheel's moment. Hence, the manual force needed for steering varies depending on the driving situation. The electric control unit receives the steering wheel signal, is applied by a sensor, and precisely provides the corresponding steering assist. The electronic system can learn from the driver’s driving pattern and add or subtract steering assist as required, thus increasing safety for heavy commercial vehicles. An indirect advantage of having improved safety in commercial vehicles is lower vehicle insurance costs, which can reduce the total overall ownership cost of the vehicle. Adding electric components and motors minimizes the load on the vehicle engine for the steering system operation, thus reducing fuel requirements and CO2 emissions. According to Infineon Technologies AG (Germany), E-HPS can reduce CO2 emissions ranging from 6 gm CO2/km to 11 gm CO2/km while increasing fuel efficiency by 0.9 to 1.2%. Thus, the combined advantage of reduced CO2 emissions, increased fuel efficiency, better driver comfort, and improved safety will likely drive the demand for E-HPS in commercial vehicles globally.

Restraint: Lack of electrically assisted power steering for the construction and mining equipment market

Most construction and mining equipment use articulated steering mechanisms, such as articulated dump trucks, motor graders, and wheeled loaders. In an articulated steering mechanism, the vehicle is divided into two parts and connected by a hydraulic mechanism that allows either car’s parts to turn while steering. Depending on the size, such as wheeled loaders, some equipment uses traditional steering mechanisms involving rack and pinions for steering functionality. Power steering in this equipment is normally provided via a hydraulic system where double-acting cylinders are used to move the vehicle's body. They usually come with an active self-compensating design. Electrically assisted hydraulic systems help reduce the engine load, thus reducing fuel requirements for the car and improving fuel efficiency. No electrically assisted steering mechanisms are available for construction and mining equipment. The forces required to turn construction or mining equipment range from 50kN to 100kN. These forces are challenging to achieve with an electric motor. This is restraining the automotive steering market, as any advancement in electrifying the steering mechanisms of construction and mining equipment will unlock a huge demand for automotive steering system OEMs.

Opportunities: Retreading of tires

Electric Power Steering (EPS) has become one of the key enablers of the Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) that are now being rapidly adopted across vehicle segments globally. With the proliferation of ADAS, new and improved features related to steering assistance and steering safety can now be integrated into the EPS to enhance its reliability and functionality. Features such as parallel parking can help drivers to efficiently park their vehicles eliminating the hassle of parking through judgment. This feature will save fuel and time for the vehicle owner. Lane-keeping assist and Highway assist features can help the driver experience better driving on highways and make them feel more secure. Lane Keep Assist (LKA) feature takes data of the surroundings from sensors placed in the vehicle. It inputs them into the steering central computing chip, where the information is translated to the mechanical movement of the steering mechanism, which responds and corrects the lane position of the driver. ADAS systems can be developed to adapt to the driver’s driving pattern by taking inputs from the driver’s behavior of turning the steering wheel. They can potentially optimize steering designs on frequent routes to improve fuel efficiency and reduce time traveled from point A to point B. ADAS, coupled with EPS, will play a critical role in applications in autonomous mobility and connected cars.

Challenges: Low customer confidence in the adoption of steer-by-wire technology for autonomous mobility

Steer-by-Wire (SbW) technology is the next step in steering system innovation. In SbW, there are no mechanical linkages like the steering column, steering gear, and tie rods; instead, sensors and electric motors replace them to turn the vehicle's wheels during steering. When the driver turns the steering, the sensors and actuators assess the signal and turn the wheel accordingly. This elimination of mechanical linkage has raised a few concerns among customers regarding having control over the vehicle. In case of an emergency turn or swerving, the mechanical linkage is advantageous as the driver can maneuver the vehicle to safety. Any failure in electrical components or software assessment of the situation will put the driver at risk. When such incidents are looked at from an autonomous mobility lens, it becomes even more critical that there should not be room for error in the steering system components. Steer-by-wire steering systems are especially prone to cyber-attacks as they don’t have any physical linkages between the steering wheel and the turning mechanism, allowing hackers to take control of the vehicle and leave the driver stranded. Thus, including fail-safe mechanisms and high-reliability measures in the SbW becomes critical and challenging for steering system OEMs to instill confidence in customers willing to adopt autonomous vehicles.

Electronic components observe the fastest growth rate due to wide EPS adoption.

The steering wheel speed sensors are projected to register the highest CAGR. All the requirements of a modern car, like driving dynamics, driving safety, driving comfort, lower fuel consumption, and lower emissions, are based on the speed sensors data. The growth of this segment can be attributed to the increasing adoption of electronics in vehicles. The torque sensor is integrated with the steering angle sensor for better data accuracy fed to the ECU. The higher the quality of the data, the better the steering control. Since this sensor is sophisticated, it is mostly adopted in higher-end premium vehicle segments. Asia Pacific is expected to be the largest and fastest-growing region due to increased demand for SUVs and luxury cars in the emerging economies in the region. The demand for EPS and EHPS (electrically assisted hydraulic power steering) systems is influenced by the demand for electric motors since both these steering systems use electric motors. Thus, the demand for related electronics components will rise as more EPS is adopted.

Dual pinion segment to hold a majority share in the automotive steering system

The dual-pinion segment is estimated to lead the market by providing better fuel economy and steering feel. Dual pinion provides additional design flexibility to locate the motor and controller and assists the mechanism opposite the driver's side, reducing risks of leg injury in case of a collision. In addition, the increasing penetration of C and D vehicle segments is expected to drive the growth of the dual-pinion segment. Asia Pacific is estimated to be the largest market for dual-pinion steering systems. Dual pinion provides about 4 percent more fuel savings than conventional hydraulic steering systems. The growth of the dual-pinion segment can be attributed to the shift in customers' preference from compact cars to compact SUVs in countries such as China, Japan, and India. The strong presence of dual pinion manufacturers, such as JTEKT Corporation, NSK Ltd, and Showa Corporation, is also further expected to drive the market growth for dual pinion in this region.

Asia Pacific region to dominate the global Automotive Steering Systems market amongst other regions

The rapid adoption of EPS technology, especially in passenger cars and light commercial vehicles, owing to enhanced driving comfort and better fuel efficiency, is expected to drive automotive steering sensor market growth in China. China, an electronics manufacturing hub, has the advantage of faster adoption of EPS. In recent years, the Indian government has been focusing on emission norms and safety regulations, for example, the BS-VI emissions standards. This has pushed OEMs to opt for EPS technology over traditional Hydraulic Power Steering (HPS) technology. India is also witnessing high demand for EVs, boosting EPS systems' demand. The agricultural tractors segment will witness higher adoption of HPS over traditional manual steering, driving the demand for HPS in this sector. Japan has a high rate of automobile electrification owing to the innovative automotive companies moving towards lower-emission vehicles. The adoption of EPS in passenger cars and EHPS in commercial vehicles has witnessed high growth in recent years.

Asia Pacific is expected to be less affected by the recession when compared to their western counterparts. Due to the diminishing global production of vehicles due to the economic turndown, the growth rate in this region is expected to fall for the automotive steering system market.

Asia pacific: Automotive Steering System Market

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Key Market Players

The Automotive Steering System Market is consolidated, with the presence of five major players JTEKT Corporation (Japan), Nexteer (US), Robert Bosch (Germany), Hyundai Mobis (South Korea), and NSK Ltd. (Japan).

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Scope of the Report

Recent Developments

• In October 2022, Nexteer introduced a new EPS product with a platform design and an expandable electronic control system; mCEPS meets customers’ needs for an advanced, customizable, and cost-effective steering system that is flexible to customer packaging and other requirements.
• In September 2022, Hyundai Mobis launched the Dual Actuator Rear Wheel Steering System. The system can reduce the turning radius by up to 25% and improve stability and comfort when the vehicle turns at high speed. It is expected to be useful, particularly on narrow roads and without parking spaces. Furthermore, the demand for rear-wheel steering systems is increasing in electric vehicles with an enlarged wheelbase.
• In May 2022, NSK Ltd. and ThyssenKrupp AG signed a memorandum of understanding to explore a joint venture between NSK Steering and ThyssenKrupp Automotive. The steering businesses of both companies are highly complementary and synergetic in terms of product competencies, geographic footprints, and customer groups. It is expected the combined technological capabilities will enable the joint venture to meet the broad and highly technological needs better

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