Hi
I have an 89 Accord LX. It has a power steering leak somewhere behind the right front wheel. This is probably going to be a PIA to fix, right? (I don't have a lift). Has anyone here any experience with PS system leaks so close to the wheels?

Probley the rack...

Dont make the mistake of using trannie fluid as this will make it worse. If it really is a dry or leaking seal in the rack there are several chemicals you can buy that will extend the life or your rack and slow your leak.. even if sooner or later you will need a rack.

Best of Luck

Robert

I was afraid of that. I refilled the fluid less than 48 hours ago and it's near empty again. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif) I should mention that the fluid is clear, it isn't black which (according to what I've read) would then indicate the rack itself doesn't to be replaced, right?

Is changing out a rack a big job?

This post has been edited by bostonian: Aug 31 2007, 02:16 AM

Its a bit of a pita but better if you can raise the front of the car.

Does the fluid seem to be dripping from the rubber sleeve on the tie rod end? This would definitely be the rack. As for the color... hmmm I never really noticed before.... but try some of the commercial power steering leak fixers and maybe it will slow down enough to not need to change the rack. Try it once it if doesnt work then its another problem.

A few things to check....

All of the hoses from the power steering pump to the rack and to the fill tank... even a slight crack can cause a major leak. Have someone else turn the wheel back and forth while you use a flash light and look for leaks. If you don't find any leaks and the fluid is dripping out end of the tie rod end then its likely the rack.

IL give you the general outlines for changing a rack.

Raise the car.... at least the front , if you can take off the wheels safely do so , it will give you more room. There is a clamp just below the steering wheel where the steering goes into the rack.. loosen this first. It will save a lot of trouble later.

Get your pan ready and remove both power steering lines from the rack.... drain as much as you can from the rack and the lines and watch your eyes , this stuff will burn.

You will find that in most cases that the rack is help to the firewall with 4 or maybe 6 bolts... Remove these and the rack should float free only help up by the tie rod ends by the wheels. You can remove the cotter pins and replace these with new ones later on (they might even come with the new rack. Work the nut up most of the way on the outer tie rod end and a short tap with a hammer should free it.. but if not then get a ball joint tool and use that. It might be a core or a toss out but why make things harder then we have to.

At this point I hope its laying on the ground.. but you may have some sub chassis there to play around with. Pull it out and slide the new one in the same way and do the steps backward... if you have the tools and are mechanically inclined it might take 3 hours... give or take. Don't forget to fill it up after.

Best of luck

Robert

Just an add on here.

There are 2 kinds of bad racks.

Most common is one that leaks... like your maybe.
The other has rough spots or jams when you try to turn... this might result in black fluid.

Robert

Thanks for all the advice Robert!

Do you think I can put off the repair by just replacing fluid for a month or so, cost of fluid not being a major issue? We're suffering from a terrible heatwave/quasi-Indian Summer here in California and being outside for 3 minutes is hell, nevermind 3 hours.

I haven't gone looking for the leak yet (again, being outside is brutal) but what I've read says the bellows are often the culprit, given the location... of course I'll make sure before I drop $150 on a new rack assembly.

I think Lucas makes a great power steering sealer.... try that , if it dosent work I suppose you can fill it every day (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

Robert

If the leak is a slow leak you should try the Stop Leak power steering fluid. I had the same problem a couple of years ago on my 95 camry V6LE and used a couple of bottles of Stop Leak. That seemed to solve the problem and never happened again. Might wanna try that first. milfman

My dad was the first to notice that the steering seemed to be acting up. Atfirst it seemed to just be really noisy, but then a garage attendant suggested adding more power steering fluid. I went to pepboys and baught some Volvo line Durablend ATF fluid.. it says that it is Dexron III compatible.. and i think the manual called for Dexron II .. either the bottle or a sales guy said that they were backward compatible.. so I baught it and put some into the car.. I can't remember, but either there was very little or no fluid in the resovoir at that point.. I filled it up to capacity.. and the steering began to sound normal again. I thought it was problem fixed.. but a few weeks later, my dad told me to fill it up again b/c it seemed to be acting up. I put some more in there.. and lo and behold it was gone after another 2 weeks. (I dont drive it daily, so I'm not exactly sure how 'fast' this leak is.. ) so my questions: 1) is the Valvoline Durablend ATF compatible with our power steering? If not, any sugguestions as to what to get next time? (hopefully my problem is as simple as this.. but i doubt it) 2) I've got a leak somewhere.. the area near the rear most pully/belt (on the passenger side) of the engine seems to be the most coated with oil.. when I went to the pepboys, they didnt have a 94 camry Haynes (this car is a 94 V6 by the way..).. so I looked at the 96-2001 (next generation i suppose).. it seems that it is this pully that drives the power steering system.. so I think possibly one of the hoses that feed into our out of this mechanism is loose.. or maybe some gasket gave out.. 3) is it bad to drive around with no power steering fluid in there?? will anything break?? I'll probably go to autozone tomorrow to see if they have a haynes that i can look at. Just looking around with my car on ramps.. it seems like that mechanism might be a real pain to get at.. but I've never worked on this car before.. so maybe i'm mistaken.. Any other ideas?? Thanks. norm

Thats sounds exactly like what happened to me. You should try the Stop Leak transmission fluid. It seemed to work for me. With my car it was a slow leak and once the resevoir gets low everytime you turn it would be a loud winding noise. But if its too low steering becomes stiffer. So try a bottle of the Stop Leak or two. It worked for me and its cheap. milfman22

hey... this one is a pain...2 pressure lines, 2 return lines, not much room to work.... snug down the pressure lines, replace the return lines....usually the leaks are the return lines loose/cracked/leaking.... like i said, this 1 is a pain...... boopdad

If the leak is a slow leak you should try the Stop Leak power steering fluid. I had the same problem a couple of years ago on my 95 camry V6LE and used a couple of bottles of Stop Leak. That seemed to solve the problem and never happened again. Might wanna try that first. milfman

My dad was the first to notice that the steering seemed to be acting up. Atfirst it seemed to just be really noisy, but then a garage attendant suggested adding more power steering fluid. I went to pepboys and baught some Volvo line Durablend ATF fluid.. it says that it is Dexron III compatible.. and i think the manual called for Dexron II .. either the bottle or a sales guy said that they were backward compatible.. so I baught it and put some into the car.. I can't remember, but either there was very little or no fluid in the resovoir at that point.. I filled it up to capacity.. and the steering began to sound normal again. I thought it was problem fixed.. but a few weeks later, my dad told me to fill it up again b/c it seemed to be acting up. I put some more in there.. and lo and behold it was gone after another 2 weeks. (I dont drive it daily, so I'm not exactly sure how 'fast' this leak is.. ) so my questions: 1) is the Valvoline Durablend ATF compatible with our power steering? If not, any sugguestions as to what to get next time? (hopefully my problem is as simple as this.. but i doubt it) 2) I've got a leak somewhere.. the area near the rear most pully/belt (on the passenger side) of the engine seems to be the most coated with oil.. when I went to the pepboys, they didnt have a 94 camry Haynes (this car is a 94 V6 by the way..).. so I looked at the 96-2001 (next generation i suppose).. it seems that it is this pully that drives the power steering system.. so I think possibly one of the hoses that feed into our out of this mechanism is loose.. or maybe some gasket gave out.. 3) is it bad to drive around with no power steering fluid in there?? will anything break?? I'll probably go to autozone tomorrow to see if they have a haynes that i can look at. Just looking around with my car on ramps.. it seems like that mechanism might be a real pain to get at.. but I've never worked on this car before.. so maybe i'm mistaken.. Any other ideas?? Thanks. norm

Thats sounds exactly like what happened to me. You should try the Stop Leak transmission fluid. It seemed to work for me. With my car it was a slow leak and once the resevoir gets low everytime you turn it would be a loud winding noise. But if its too low steering becomes stiffer. So try a bottle of the Stop Leak or two. It worked for me and its cheap. milfman22

hey... this one is a pain...2 pressure lines, 2 return lines, not much room to work.... snug down the pressure lines, replace the return lines....usually the leaks are the return lines loose/cracked/leaking.... like i said, this 1 is a pain...... boopdad