Recently had my rack and pinion replaced and I began to get really hard braking almost like I lost 90% of my brakes I have to begin to stop super far In advance to stop the car at the desired location and I also have pretty much no power steering as well is this temporary beings the rack and pinion was just replaced or should I take it back to the person who did the job
Question About Rack And Pinion
- Thread starter Mf1234
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wmburns
SN Certified Technician
If you paid a professional to do a job then it seems to me that you paid for a full complete job. Go back.
I just had it done yesterday at the firestone here close to where I live is it normal for there to be tight steering first couple of days and for the brakes to be as bad as they are I usually give the mechanic the benefit of the doubt at first because they are professionals which I strive to become a technician after I finish my military service first I usually do my own work on my car but I am with out the necessary tools for the rack and pinion I also heard something about the hydraulic boost system possibly going bad as well causing the steering and brake issues but I did not have these problems before the rack and pinion was put on
Rack shouldn't require a "break-in" should work as intended right from the start.
On the 96-98 GT's, the power brake booster is hydroboost which gets it's assist from the power steering pump. If there's an issue with the power steering system, then you will loose braking assist and the pedal will be hard to press and take longer to stop.
There's really nothing to wait on here. Shop messed something up. Go back
On the 96-98 GT's, the power brake booster is hydroboost which gets it's assist from the power steering pump. If there's an issue with the power steering system, then you will loose braking assist and the pedal will be hard to press and take longer to stop.
There's really nothing to wait on here. Shop messed something up. Go back
wmburns
SN Certified Technician
If the shop did not bleed the power steering system this would result in very poor system performance. However the pump usually makes noise when there's a lot of air in the fluid. Further there will be bubbles in the reservoir. Do you see any bubbles?
I'm assuming the pump isn't making a ton of noise or you would have mentioned that. The other possibility that comes to mind is a kinked or blocked line. Or perhaps the screen in the bottom of the reservoir is clogged with debris.
Or perhaps the shop used the wrong fluid. Fords use automatic transmission fluid. Dexron III or V.
I'm trying to figure out if it's possible to hook the lines up backwards. Don't think so.
I'm assuming the pump isn't making a ton of noise or you would have mentioned that. The other possibility that comes to mind is a kinked or blocked line. Or perhaps the screen in the bottom of the reservoir is clogged with debris.
Or perhaps the shop used the wrong fluid. Fords use automatic transmission fluid. Dexron III or V.
I'm trying to figure out if it's possible to hook the lines up backwards. Don't think so.
squeak93
15 Year Member
There is a good chance that there is debris in the lines. Take it back to the shop. If they did not properly purge the lines of old fluid/debris then that stuff will just circulate and destroy everything over and over again.
If your car doesn't work "perfect" as soon as it leaves their shop then it's not right. You should be able to move the wheel sitting still with your pinky finger.
If your car doesn't work "perfect" as soon as it leaves their shop then it's not right. You should be able to move the wheel sitting still with your pinky finger.
wmburns
SN Certified Technician
I really suspect this ^^ is the problem.
Normally it's not possible to bleed the system without getting the majority of the air out before running the pump at full speed. The thing is that once the air is whipped into the fluid then continued operation only makes it worse.
When ever I do power steering work it generally takes several attempts to get all of the air out. Start by raising the front wheels off of the ground. With the motor off turn the wheel lock to lock several times.
Next try starting the motor. IF bubbles are seen in the reservoir immediately turn it off. Wait for the bubbles to settle out. Wash, rinse, repeat.
That is total BS of Firestone, they should never let your car out like that, they should know better. What if you would have got into an accident due to it, you could have sued them. Here in California we have the Bureau of Automotive Repair we can go to and they do not mess around, you mention BAR here and they take notice real quickly. You should not have to be doing this, I would start at the Service Manager and work my way up, bet this wasn't cheap!
I am in California and did not know of the BAR. I talked with the district manager Willie and he made them look back over the car free of charge I took it back and they looked at it and the pump went bad it is pushing fluid through but not enough pressure to keep up with new part they offered me a discount on the work of putting the pump on I told them no thanks I’d rather do the work myself now I replaced a power steering pump on my focus awhile back and that was in a lot tighter spot than this one is at so it should be fairly easy to do
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