Power steering pump replacement

meltmanbob

Member
Dec 18, 2002
392
0
17
san diego CA
Hey guys I've spent the past day or so researching but just want to get some last minute opinions. Mine seized and I have a remanufactured one from Autozone; just need to get it up and running. Obviously I'd like to get rid of the whining noise but that's a secondary.

I've had no luck finding 3/8 hose by the foot and don't know if I should be changing the specialty hoses as well. Also read about teflon o rings but I think thats for the specialty hoses. Either way I need to get this back up and running tomorrow which I'm sure I can do without replacing hoses. It'll probably still whine and it might still leak. I know it leaked but not sure where; I at least think it was leaking from the pump to reservoir initially and after it sat for about 3 months it started to leak really bad losing so much fluid in 2-3 days that it was basically manual steering. I'm not sure if it was the same leak that got worse or if new leaks developed.

Autozone, Oreilly's, PepBoys don't have hose by the foot and NAPA has to special order it and it's $20 for 3 feet.
 
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If you put a new pump on why would it still Whine?
Just for entertainment I took a Turkey Injector and kept sucking out all of the fluid from my Power Steering Reservoir
until it was empty and kept putting in fresh fluid about 3 times and it quit Whining>>>
My hoses still leak but that's good >>> fresh clean fluid>>> HAHAHA
 
Replaced the pump, car runs but no power steering. The whine is less which is nice but it's more constant that the other pump which would make noise really only when turning.

Used ATF type F. With car up I first tried lock to lock on the steering wheel about 20-30 times, barely any fluid came out of the return hose; kinda like only what was in the hose drained. I would hear a fluid squish noise at wheel lock and had small puddles under the ends of the rack like it was leaking from those rubber boots.

Since I couldn't get anything out really I decided to try it while cranking the engine. Took the distributor wire off so it wouldn't start. That got fresh fluid to come out but didn't drain the fluid fast at all like I've read and didn't use but a single quart to fill the whole thing. It was basically empty after the previous one died and leaked.

Then I put the hose back, this time with a filter with flow pointing towards the reservoir, topped off the fluid and put the distributor wire back. Started it up, rotated the wheel lock to lock keeping an eye on the fluid level. Saw some bubbles, topped it off then did it for another couple minutes after the last bubbles and let it run for about 10 minutes. The pump didn't whine at all unless I turned the wheel and there was about a 2-3 second delay for the noise.

Go to drive it today and feels like no power steering. Fluid level looks fine, checked for leak puddles on the ground after I got to my destination and let it sit and checked the fluid level again; all still good.

From what I've read it could be the pump, it could be a line blockage somewhere or I managed to not do a good job flushing/bleeding. Any advice would be appreciated before I start throwing time and money at it. I did read someone having similar issues and they put the car back up on stands to do the air bleeding again but this time revved the engine to 3k while turning the wheel which worked for them.
 
To add, at idle and not moving the pump whines for 6-10 seconds then off for 4. Counted and the off time is consistent, whine time is variable.

When I was bleeding it the whine decreased in duration and loudness as I went through the procedure but eventually stopped improving.
 
Likely not bled correctly.

To bleed a pump/lines, raise the front wheels off of the ground. Remove reservoir cap. Fill the pump. Then crank the engine (coil wire removed, or somehow disasble the the engine from starting) while turning the steering wheel back & forth. It'll take a few times, each time let the starter cool off. If you just fill it, then fire the engine up, it won't bleed out properly. With an air pocket in the pump, the pump doesn't have much lubricant, sometimes resulting in pump failure.

Motorcraft pumps are "usually" quieter than parts store garbage. I say usually loosely because I've had one of them that was no good/damaged--but in the defense of the seller, it was an online sale and could have been remanufactured impoperly--seller was only a third party who had no knowledge of pumps and what they even do.

I have had to go so far as to actually pull a vacuum on the pump to get them bled--which is outlined by some of the documentation directly from Ford, way back in the day.