belt tension? belt noise, or sheaves?

[BerniniCaCO3]

Alright! Did the job yesterday. As usual, took far longer than I'd anticipated. The guys at autozone were a great help with that pulley, too!

Took a while just to thread the steel nuts back on, they just kept on spinning in place rather than beginning to thread into place!

What I did was to remove the pump and the two hoses that came off of it. One hose I replaced anew, the other hose I could only find the rubber length so I left the steel portion original. I put teflon tape on all the threaded portions, tightened the hose clamps completely, replaced the pump itself.

Where again do they usually leak from?
Do you think that ought to take care of it? You see, the mechanic wanted $100 just to tell me where it was leaking... hence the logic in just spending $60 to replace the pump and hoses myself rather than play that game only to find I need a new pump anyway a couple years down the road.

Part of the problem is that, as you guys told me, there's very little fluid there! I'm used to oil and coolant, where you have quarts and quarts. I think there's only 3/4 of a quart there, and it's leaking very slowly. I'd need to refill it once a week with just a fraction of a cup. So it's not as if it's obviously dripping from one place.

Just in case I notice it still leaking, is there *anywhere* else it might leak from, besides the pump and the two hoses that lead directly off of the pump?
I'll know for sure in a week I'd say, if it's still leaking.

[1987cp]

Excellent!

Logically, the only other place a power steering system could leak is from the steering box itself, or if the connections are somehow inadequate. Or possibly if the replacement pump has a cracked or poorly attached reservoir, though thankfully with the one pump I've bought new (or maybe rebuilt, I don't remember now), I didn't have that problem.

Sounds like your system should be working great now, especially if you manage to get it bled adequately (I don't think I managed that the first time I did a p/s hose).

Sad that someone wanted $100 just to diagnose things ... probably worth it to people with less than no spare time or who harbor a fear of wrenches, or who have a personal money tree in the backyard, but for the rest of us, it's way worth it to dig in, time permitting, and learn something in the process.

[BerniniCaCO3]

I know a lot of people who are just scared of wrenches, and prefer simply never to open the hood. There, there be dragons! (just poking fun).

If it still leaks, and it's the steering box; do I need an expensive new box, or is there a gasket to replace and bolts to retighten? I have no reason to believe that the gears themselves are worn, and that, aside from leaking, there could be anything wrong with it.

[gadget73]

If the steering box isn't sloppy, the lower seal is only a couple bucks and its not that hard to replace once you pull the pitman arm off. Pulling the arm is the hard part of the job, once its out you can use a screw to yank the old seal, and a piece of PVC pipe or something as a seal driver. There are no gaskets in the box, just seals at the input shaft and output shaft.

[1987cp]

Dang, I don't think I replaced the seal when I had my Pitman arm off .... no, I definitely didn't.

[gadget73]

if it wasn't leaking, then no worries.

[sly]

the replacement pump I got hasn't leaked a bit (also replace the high pressure line and the hose part of the low pressure line). I did overfill the tank a bit and it leaked out the top for a few days though. that dip stick is hard as hell to read properly and the angled reservoir is a real pain to get that thing in straight on. It's not leaking now and it's still the easiest car I have to steer (which I like).

[1987cp]

Say, who else has trouble with steering effort spiking suddenly when you nail the gas?

[BerniniCaCO3]

I never had trouble with steering effort, but I certainly heard the poor pump groan louder when I stepped on the gas!

When I changed the oil yesterday, I saw more fluid hanging right where the power steering gearbox connects to the arm, that connects to the wheels (it probably has a proper name). I'm hoping that that's just leftover from when I did have a leak, and not a continued leak... if I have to replace the gearbox that will be much more expensive than the pump.
Or related to the fact that I overfilled the new pump, and that is just excess fluid overspilling until it falls to the proper level. I'll keep an eye on it!