Power steering pump

[DavidT]

I am in the middle of a front end 60k. I have been dealing with a lot of smoke from fluid leaking onto the catalytic converters, when I come to a stop. I know it was oil, but now it’s power steering fluid too. Do I go ahead and change out the power steering pump because I have everything removed pretty much? I really can’t see fresh fluid dripping anywhere. Where should I look specifically?

 

[DavidT]

I have been having to add about 6 oz or so type F, after a 40 mile drive each day.

 

[luigisho]

If the surroundings are already broken down and exposed I would replace it at this age.

 

[DavidT]

You’re right. Regarding the paper gasket between the two halves of the water pump, is it vital to add some gasket sealant to it?

 

[luigisho]

It's been a long time since I had to dig into a V8 SHO so my memory is a little fuzzy.

Anyway, generally I would say no. If there is sealer required usually it gets sent inside the package or sometimes (my old GTP) they come pre-coated on the paper gasket at the mating surface. Paper is actually a really good sealing surface as it can conform to surface sealing areas. They definitely have other drawbacks but yours has lasted a long time.
Do other people do it with paper? I can't remember hearing about many, but it's certainly not as prevalent as with rubber and metal gaskets.

 

[DavidT]

Thank you for always being so helpful to me! Btw, I am working on my 92.

 

[luigisho]

Aha! I was looking at the GenIII avatar and forgot the section. Good luck!

 

[KlondikeKat]

I just replaced a pump on a Gen 1... I thought it was faulty but turned out that it wasn't. That said, I can't see any where the pump itself would leak. If you are see PS steering fluid in that area I would think it was the large fitting feeding fluid from the reservoir, that fitting is a real pain to get on nice and tight.

Replacing the pump is easy (once all the crap is out of the way) if you want to go ahead and do it but I would think the leak is elsewhere.

 

[BaySHO Performance]

The most common problems with power steering leaks are the pressure hose from the pump to the rack, and a leaking end seal on the rack itself, passenger end. So peel back the heat shield to look at the hose, and peel back the dust boot from the end of the rack to look inside. Can be reinstalled with a zip tie if no problems.

Far less common is a leak where the feed hose enters the pump. The fitting on the pump is held in by a bolt off to the side, and is sealed with a rubber ring which can fail. Solution is to remove the fitting and reinstall it with gasket sealer.

Also run your finger along the bottom of the camshaft sensor. If oily, seal has failed.

Yes, no gasket sealer needed on the WP gasket.

 

[zak]

The pressure hose to pump connection can also leak. Used to be that the bearings, seal etc. was avalable to rebuild one of these, but make sure its not at the connection.

 

[DavidT]

The connection at the pump didn’t seem to have any fresh fluid there. All great suggestions and a big thank you to you all.

 

[ssenter]

I'll bet its the cam seal on that side of the block... Seems that every Gen 1 or 2 cam seal I have leaks there (and front and rear crank seals too) after 25+ years. It will drip down the front of the engine and right on the the catalytic converter shield. It will only get worse... and I need to do one on mine too!

 

[BaySHO Performance]

Could very well be that the cam seal is leaking, but David said 'I have been having to add about 6 oz or so type F, after a 40 mile drive each day'. That's s very large power steering leak.

 

[DavidT]

I did that cam seal a few monthsWhen I had the valve covers off. I removed the cap that accesses that seal with ease. But I didn’t rtv the cap. So I thought that might be it. Best I could tell, that cap is not leaking. And the cam sensor housing is bone dry. Yeah! It worked lol. I put it all back together and so far , the only leak I see now is on the center cat, from the power steering rack / pump area. I will follow baysho’s advice and look closer at the racks hoses. Again, thank you all! This forum is beyond awesome for helping out!

 

[DavidT]

So I get home yesterday after a 20 mile trip, and leave the Sho idling for a few minutes. Next thing I know, the amount of smoke from the PS leak has greatly increased while it was idling. It even filled the cabin with the smoke. Windows were up. I do believe I was running the heater through the vents. Is that how it would enter the cabin? Also would blue devil be a good product to possibly attempt to fix this with?

 

[luigisho]

The interior air intake is on the other side of the windshield so yeah, if there's alot of smoke in that area it will come inside. I'm not a big liquid sealer guy but that doesn't mean it's not a solution. I just usually see it not work as advertised. Other people have different experiences I'm sure.

 

[BaySHO Performance]

Waste of time trying to fix the leak with some stop leak product. There's a lot of pressure in the pressure hose. Best to replace the part that's leaking: either the pressure hose or the rack itself which usually leaks because the end seal passenger side fails.

 

[sperold]

All my power steering problems have been the metal tubes on the rack itself that transfer fluid, side to side, to the rack chambers.

The rack sits on top of the sub frame where it will accumulate salt, and mud, and grime, and it eventually rots out the lines. It has happened to me 4 times, yet I have never heard anyone mention it on this forum.

So depending on where you live, have a look at that possibility, as I believe the rack is high enough to drip on the exhaust.

 

[BaySHO Performance]

You are not talking about the metal tube that goes between the dust boots, of course. That's for air transfer. We don't have problems with the others here in our dry CA climate. Just worn inner tie rod ends and leaking end seals.

 

[DavidT]

Well I have been mulling over the idea of having the rack replaced. I drove through some windy roads with some throttle, thanks to Chad getting all the suspension components back to par a while back. Then a lot of squealing. I thought it was the acc belt I loosened. I drove 1/2 mile with non stop squealing. I pulled off to find the ps reservoir empty. I filled it back up. It seems fine now, as far as noise. Could I have damaged the ps pump from that 1/2 mile of squeal?