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Friend Im going to tell you what to do. It may be a worn pump or air in the system.Be sure the belt is tight and not slipping. Then drain the pump or suction it out and then add one large can of Lucus power steering additive.The entire can.This is the good stuff. If you dont see a big difference right away the next step will involve using tools and take some time. TRy the lucus first ,It cost about 10 bucks and well worth it and may solve the problem.
sent you the following PM: "...when you say "drain the pump" do you mean siphon all of the fluid out of the reservoir or is there an actuall drain plug on the pump. I've never worked on one of these until now."
sent you the following PM: "...when you say "drain the pump" do you mean siphon all of the fluid out of the reservoir or is there an actuall drain plug on the pump. I've never worked on one of these until now."
You can remove the bottom hose going into the fluid reservoir and let it drain being sure to collect it in a container so it wont drip all over floor/engine or the cleanest way would be to just suck out as much of the fluid as possible using a garden hose but only suck up a few ounces at at a time so you wont get any in your mouth or use a cheap plastic suction device . The main thing is to have room to add the entire can of the Lucus.
Check the fluid first. Then check the belt, give it a quick pull. It should be a bit snug. Actually you should just replace it anyways.
Belts... when they get old they start to dry and crack. Also, when they slip from getting stretched, they start to glaze and that makes the belt slippery on the pulleys. I bet this is your problem.
Last resort is the seals at the end of the steering rack are shot. A good way to check this is by looking at the tie rods in the wheel well. If the rubber boot on the inside of the tie rod is torn, that means there is a possibility of the seals being no good.... When the boot tears, it exposes sensitive parts to the elements. The grease dries, attracts dirt and you get the idea.
If the seals are NO GOOD, There will be fluid draining from one or both ends of the steering rack in the tie rod boot.
I think PS pumps are pretty failsafe so the chances of the pump being bad I think are pretty slim.
You can try the Lucas stuff as Crestliner said..... Me personally though, I was never a fan of any type of "additive" for auto use......except for Seafoam but that only goes in the top end of my engine once a year or so.
To clarify… is it total loss of power assist? Many vehicles utilize a solenoid valve in the power steering system that modulates the amount of steering force required from the driver to turn the wheels. Typically it is set up to give most assistance at stop and low speeds and then gradually decreases the amount of assist as the vehicle’s speed increases. Sometimes these valves can malfunction or some other variable confuses the system which could cause erratic power assist behavior.
Regardless, you should probably change the fluid if you have no record of it being done. However, before you go draining and refilling with additives (especially lucas products), go the safe route. I use a siphon pump or turkey baster to remove as much fluid from the reservoir that I can. I then replace the same amount with new fluid. Start car and turn steering wheel to full lock (both sides) several times. Shut off engine and repeat the procedure. Do this 3 or 4 times until the fluid you are removing is essentially clear or “new”. This method will typically set you back about 2 quarts of fluid… not much considering you wont have to turn a wrench or get dirty.
Thanks for the tips,, guys. I bought the Lucas, have a manual siphon pump and I'm gonna give it a whirl. If that fails, I've got the Ford Shop manual on disc.
Thanks for the tips,, guys. I bought the Lucas, have a manual siphon pump and I'm gonna give it a whirl. If that fails, I've got the Ford Shop manual on disc.
Can't stress enough, don't dump that additive in until you are out of options. Conditioners are usually OK however there is no such thing as mechanic-in-a-can, all they tend to do is mask the root cause and delay/worsen the inevitable.
Check the fluid first. Then check the belt, give it a quick pull. It should be a bit snug. Actually you should just replace it anyways.
Belts... when they get old they start to dry and crack. Also, when they slip from getting stretched, they start to glaze and that makes the belt slippery on the pulleys. I bet this is your problem.
Last resort is the seals at the end of the steering rack are shot. A good way to check this is by looking at the tie rods in the wheel well. If the rubber boot on the inside of the tie rod is torn, that means there is a possibility of the seals being no good.... When the boot tears, it exposes sensitive parts to the elements. The grease dries, attracts dirt and you get the idea.
If the seals are NO GOOD, There will be fluid draining from one or both ends of the steering rack in the tie rod boot.
I think PS pumps are pretty failsafe so the chances of the pump being bad I think are pretty slim.
You can try the Lucas stuff as Crestliner said..... Me personally though, I was never a fan of any type of "additive" for auto use......except for Seafoam but that only goes in the top end of my engine once a year or so.
Whaaaaaaaat?
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