Power Steering Whine - Air in the system or misalignment?
09-21-2017, 02:38 PM
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Power Steering Whine - Air in the system or misalignment?
My power steering pump is making that classic PS whine, I'm not sure if there is air in the system or if the pulley is misaligned. I took the pump off so that I could cut away the unused A/A portion of the bracket and weld it back together. When I put the pump back, the fluid level was high, about up to the base of the fill not (well above the "hot" line) which makes me think there is air trapped in the box or the lines from letting the pump sit below the level of the box while working on the bracket. I tried bleeding it by lifting the front end up and turning the wheels back and forth several times with the engine off and the cap off, but the fluid level did not drop at all.
Is there a better way to bleed the power steering box? This link says to remove fittings and hoses 1 by 1 while turning the pump, has anyone used that method?
My other concern is that the bracket warped from the welding heat, but I checked it with a straight edge against the other pulleys and it appears to be aligned.
Is there a better way to check alignment and could alignment even cause this noise in the first place??
(I'm confident the belt isn't too loose or too tight)
Is there a better way to bleed the power steering box? This link says to remove fittings and hoses 1 by 1 while turning the pump, has anyone used that method?
My other concern is that the bracket warped from the welding heat, but I checked it with a straight edge against the other pulleys and it appears to be aligned.
Is there a better way to check alignment and could alignment even cause this noise in the first place??
(I'm confident the belt isn't too loose or too tight)
09-21-2017, 06:06 PM
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Re: Power Steering Whine - Air in the system or misalignment?
Make, model, year?
Misalignment is fairly eeeeeeeeeezy to diagnose: LOOK AT IT. is it aligned? Yes/no.
A leak on the low-pressure side (return hose, front seal, pump/reservoir O-ring) may well allow only small amounts of fluid to leak out, but will allow potentially very large amounts of air in.
Most likely culprits are the hose (troubleshoot by replacement, with trans fluid cooler hose or actual PS hose, NOT fuel hose), and the O-ring leaking because the reservoir is deformed by improper prying on it to tighten the belt.
The system is self-bleeding, once all the leaks are fixed. You don't really have to do anything special except add fluid as the air is expelled.
Misalignment is fairly eeeeeeeeeezy to diagnose: LOOK AT IT. is it aligned? Yes/no.
A leak on the low-pressure side (return hose, front seal, pump/reservoir O-ring) may well allow only small amounts of fluid to leak out, but will allow potentially very large amounts of air in.
Most likely culprits are the hose (troubleshoot by replacement, with trans fluid cooler hose or actual PS hose, NOT fuel hose), and the O-ring leaking because the reservoir is deformed by improper prying on it to tighten the belt.
The system is self-bleeding, once all the leaks are fixed. You don't really have to do anything special except add fluid as the air is expelled.
09-22-2017, 01:15 PM
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Re: Power Steering Whine - Air in the system or misalignment?
Make, model, year?
Misalignment is fairly eeeeeeeeeezy to diagnose: LOOK AT IT. is it aligned? Yes/no.
A leak on the low-pressure side (return hose, front seal, pump/reservoir O-ring) may well allow only small amounts of fluid to leak out, but will allow potentially very large amounts of air in.
Most likely culprits are the hose (troubleshoot by replacement, with trans fluid cooler hose or actual PS hose, NOT fuel hose), and the O-ring leaking because the reservoir is deformed by improper prying on it to tighten the belt.
The system is self-bleeding, once all the leaks are fixed. You don't really have to do anything special except add fluid as the air is expelled.
Misalignment is fairly eeeeeeeeeezy to diagnose: LOOK AT IT. is it aligned? Yes/no.
A leak on the low-pressure side (return hose, front seal, pump/reservoir O-ring) may well allow only small amounts of fluid to leak out, but will allow potentially very large amounts of air in.
Most likely culprits are the hose (troubleshoot by replacement, with trans fluid cooler hose or actual PS hose, NOT fuel hose), and the O-ring leaking because the reservoir is deformed by improper prying on it to tighten the belt.
The system is self-bleeding, once all the leaks are fixed. You don't really have to do anything special except add fluid as the air is expelled.
It looks aligned with naked eye, but how far can it be misaligned before it creates a problem?
I don't see any visible leaks, there is a little bit of residue when the return hose joins the pump, but not much. I assume it's all original, I haven't replaced anything in the ten years that I owned it, and I can't speak for the previous owners, but I've always tightened it the right way.
How long/how much driving should the system take to self bleed?
09-22-2017, 05:25 PM
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Re: Power Steering Whine - Air in the system or misalignment?
My 92 started doing this after many years of not changing the fluid. A PS fluid change and all is well now. Just one more possibility.