I could imagine several reasons. The transmission of the steering for four-wheel vehicles requires a movement of the steering wheel >90°. Therefore, handle bars are less controllable. If the transmission is reduced to smaller angles, the force required for steering is increased. Nowadays this is not an issue, but for old cars, steering was mechanical and unsupported.
I would certainly agree with Ingo on the need, originally, for some mechanical advantage when turning the wheels of a car, for steering purposes. A 1:1 connection from control to the wheels would have required much muscle power. Unassisted mechanical steering used ratios of more than 4:1 often.
The other point is that the handle bars are also needed to help support the rider, and to help counter the force he is applying to the pedals of the bicycle. In other words, the purpose of the handle bar is more than just steering.
But lastly, in this day of power assisted steering, you can almost think of the steering wheel as a more vertical arrangement of a handle bar, right? The ratio is not quite as fast as 1:1, in part because that would make the car awfully twitchy, but you could conceivably design a power steering system with 1:1 ratio. Then it would be a fairly vertical handle bar, whose only purpose would be steering, not any support-the-rider role as bicycle handle bars have.
You will find this string interesting.
https://www.quora.com/Why-do-cars-have-steering-wheels-and-not-handlebars-like-in-bikes-and-cycles
- Badges
- Science topic