james1

My PS pump (OEM) was performing fine but was leaking – not badly, just enough to keep the driver side spring pack constantly greasy. I replaced the PS pump anyway and fixed the seals in the vacuum pump while the mess was apart. All went well – I used an AC-Delco rebuilt pump and two new hoses. Completely bled out the old PS fluid and replaced with Royal Purple synthetic.

The new PS pump works but about half the mornings when I first start the truck I have really tight manual steering I have to fight for about 10 yards before the power steering kicks in. I originally assumed there were a couple of air bubbles still in the system that would work their way out, but after 800 miles it is still no better. Sometimes the truck can sit for four days and be just fine and other times it happens after one day. Have had it occur when truck is warm and was shut down for less than 20 minutes. PS fluid dipsticks full and there are no discernable leaks in the system.

Any ideas? Did I get a defective rebuilt pump?

TIA.

deerslayer1979

Maybe your gear is bad? If the pumps rebuilt and NOT making noise when your P/S is MIA. I would have to assume the gear is the problem. But that is just my guess.
DS79

james1

I'm not sure to which “gear” are you referring? The gear driving the vacuum pump is fine. Is there a gear inside the PS pump?

The PS pump doesn’t seem to be MIA, but rather the truck takes several seconds of running and fighting with the steering to build sufficient pressure for the steering to work – just as though there is air trapped somewhere. But wouldn’t 800 miles of driving have bled any air bubbles completely out of the system? And the problem is intermittent.

ofcmarc

You can try putting the front end up on stands so the wheels are free to turn side to side. While it's up there and running slowly cycle the wheels back and forth several times to ensure all the air is out of the system. It gets trapped sometimes and can be a PITA to get out.

sixguns

I had problems with mine kinda like that too. Turned out the steering gear box was sucking air in somewhere, but it wasn't leaking fluid. Mine would do the same thing and then be fine till I shut it off. After a few days I would have to bleed the system out again, until I put a new gear box on.

deerslayer1979

I am talking about the steering gear box thats mounted to the frame. It sounds like that is where the air is coming from. Not sure if its leaking air into the system, or just leaking internally, but that is where I would start.
DS79

james1

Thanks for the suggestions.

The problem seems to occur only duing a cold startup. I'm guessing if the valving in the steering gearbox is faulty, the problem might happen anytime the engine is running?

When the truck hasn't been run for a week and I pull apart a vacuum hose, I can hear the rush of air indicating that the system holds a vacuum for days of not running. Can someone tell me if a power steering system is supposed to hold pressure even after the engine is shut down?

Thanks again.

deerslayer1979

I would assume that the system would hold pressure, or at least build pressure before the truck was running. On a cold startup one of the internal valves or seals may be stuck open or damaged allowing the fluid to just flow through and not build pressure. I really dont know much about the internals of the steering gear, but I know they can do some odd stuff.
DS79

97catintenn

I have the same thing happening in my truck. I have to go about 10yds before I have power steering. I think it's always been like that, so I didn't know it was problem. Even after I replaced the PS pump and vacuum pump.

So, it must be in the gear box.

james1

Mr. Harvey Foster of Red-Head Steering in Seattle (www.redheadsteeringgears.com) calls what you are experiencing "the morning sickness" and says it is caused by some worn Teflon seals in the Saginaw steering gear box. A third-genner on our forum recommends Red-Head as a great quality steering gear remanufacturer.

My problem was intermittent from the start and now seems to have disappeared altogether.

tspurlin

I just bought a reman gear box from redhead steering and gear. Hvnt installed it yet but it looks nice. I think it was two hundred something after the core.

mrbanks

Here are some answers to your steering questions:

I think the problem may well be with your fluid. Really, you wouldn't believe how much work goes into validating a system for function in all climates, and even at high mileage. Fluid is a big part of this system since it transfers the power through the system. If the owner's manual states Dodge ATF or Saginaw power steering fluid, then use it. Oil is a tricky thing and low temp viscosity of Royal Purple is surely fine to pass whatever certification tests and wear tests it goes through, but did they test it for function of a P/S gear at cold temps?

If you do have air in the system, it will make noise as the pump "chops up" the air pockets and the air becomes well mixed in the fluid. This creates quite a whine. Look at the fluid too. If it looks milky (amber Saginaw P/S fluid) or like strawberry quik (Red atf) then air is entrained in the fluid and it will work its way out but it takes time. When you stop the truck and let it sit this will rise to the top.

When the pump is running with NO steering going on, there is about 30-50 psig in the pressure hose down to the gear. The pressure in the reservoir is likely 6-10 psig because the cap holds a small amount of positive pressure in the system (at least in cars with Saginaw steering). This helps to push the fluid from reservoir into the pump which helps with efficiency and noise. If the truck is off, the pressure quickly subsides and you should have about 6-10 psig throughout the system, a bit more on the pressure side. As the system cools the pressure will drop a bit as the air trapped above the fluid in the reservoir shrinks.

I don't know for sure about 93 truck steering gears, but "morning sickness" with Saginaw steering typically meant wear of the metal housing not the rings. GM cars with saginaw rack and pinion steering had a "morning sickness" problem in the 1980-ish model year. These had rack and pinion steering. The part of the system that wore was the aluminum housing that the rotary valve rotated within. The sealing rings contained a modifier (not sure which, like nylon + 30% graphite, though this wasn't graphite). This "modified" plastic wore into the housing bore and created grooves where the valve rings should have sealed. On a cold morning (and eventually any morning) the rings don't seal because they have not yet expanded due to temperature.

Steer on!

james1

Thank you mrbanks. I replaced the Royal Purple synthetic with clear PS fluid (Mopar brand). Problem cured!

A little more detail; I began by thoroughly flushing the system as follows:
1. Put the front of the truck on jackstands and evacuate the fluid in the pump reservoir using a syphon.
2. Disconnected the return hose from the pump and use the little yellow plastic cap that comes with the new PS pump to cap off the return pipe on the pump itself.
3. Put the pump-end of the return hose into a white plastic container (for color contrast); leave the other end of hose connected to the steering gear box.
4. Crank the truck and, using a funnel, slowly pour new fluid (clear) into the PS pump while your helper rotates the steering wheel from lock to lock.
5. After dumping in about 3 quarts of new fluid, the fluid squirting from the return hose into the white plastic pail will go from brown to clear.
6. Put the return hose back on the PS pump and take a few more turns on the steering wheel to purge any air from the system. Take the truck off the jackstands and you're done.

There appeared to be some very fine sediment that came out in the old fluid, so it is possible that the problem was grit and not the Royal Purple. But Valvoline used to make a synthetic PS fluid which was recently discontinued -- I suspect they discontinued it for good reason. I'm not going to chance it again; it's clear non-synthetic fluid for me from now on.

Another disadvantage of the Royal Purple is the color -- I had tried to flush the system when I originally replaced the pump, but the purple color is so close to the brown color of spent fluid it is impossible to tell when the old fluid has been completely evacuated from the system.

Thanks again for all the help.

BearKiller

Red-Head is well known on the older FORD forums as THE guy to go to with steering problems.

They specialize in custom "re-balling" the steering-gear used on Fords for many years, taking out the slop that Fords are notorious for.




It has been my experience that a Dodge system that has air in it will fluid out the cap, even when the fluid level is very low.


When we first got the son's truck, it came with it's third brand-new pump in about as many days, along with the NAPA receipt, should I wish to switch out the "bad" one that was on it.

That "bad" pump is still on there and working fine.

We put it on stands and, with the cap removed, he slowly steered it back and forth, lock to lock, over and over, while I monitored the progress under the hood and tooped off the fluid when it would start to get low.

As best I can remember, we did this with the engine NOT running.

That was over three years ago and all has been well with it since.



For many years, I have been using plain old universal hydraulic-fluid from the same five-gallon bucket that the tractors use, in lieu of specifically labeled power-steering fluid.

This may be a , but I have been doing it for years without any negative issues that I have noticed.