My friend's 87 pontiac bonneville makes a big whining noise when he turns the steering wheel left or right. We were pretty sure it was the power steering pump so we replaced that yesterday, but the problem is still there. The whining noise gets worse the more you turn. After we put the new pump in, added new fluid, let the car run for a while and then checked the fluid it was all foamy. He has no fluid leak and the steering is not any harder to turn then it was when there was no problem. Any idea what it might be?? Could it be the steering gearbox? thanks for any help

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Pat Hirsz
www.iit.edu/~hirspat/MyPage2.htm
88 305TBI
Mods:Hooker Aerochamber 3" exhaust, gutted kitty, March pullies, no smog, 180 thermo,
14x4 K&N, 3.42 gears,
Eibach springs with KYB's all around,
Harwood cowl hood, Z-28 wing, fresh paint(black)
120,000 miles, 5spd, T-tops
Run a best of 16.7 @85mph before gears, slp headers on its way

92 RS, 305TBI, auto, 3.08 gears, 180 thermo, glasspack (no muffler)

 

The noise is usually caused by either a bad pump or air in the system.

The same goes for foamy fluid.

Let it sit for a little while (to burp the air out of the system) and make sure its full, check for the noise again.

Have you driven it around yet??

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ASE Mechanic/Machinist/Smog Tech

1999 NBM Trans Am
1986 Chevy 3/4 ton pick up
1981 corvette
1995 Kawi ZX6R

R.I.P. #3
My favorite quote about D.E. "He can see air"

 

Yeah, it still does the same thing. He got it taken to a shop and they said its the pulley that's making that noise. They're gonna get a new pulley and put it on and see. The car is still in the shop. How can a pulley be making all that noise?? i'm curious to find out. Thanks,

 

I have seen a pulley make a wierd noise before, the pulley was plastic and it had a split in it.

Made a real weird sound.

That was only once, and I've never seen it again.

Let us know what the result is.

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ASE Mechanic/Machinist/Smog Tech

1999 NBM Trans Am
1986 Chevy 3/4 ton pick up
1981 corvette
1995 Kawi ZX6R

R.I.P. #3
My favorite quote about D.E. "He can see air"

 

Keep checking back on the fluid. Often, when you first fill the system up, the bleeding process will foam up the fluid. Turn the car off, let the foam all settle back down to fluid, and refill the reservoir and re-bleed it. Keep doing that until it stays full with no foam.

If all seems to be OK until you lock the wheel against the stop and then when you let it back off the stop you get a huge belch of foamy fluid coming out the top of the pump, then you have a leak in the return side of the system, allowing air in. That will keep the fluid foamed up and low all the time even with a good pump, and may not leak enough fluid out to really be noticeable as a problem.

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