1990 Cherokee Power Steering Pump

[KirkLipscomb]

Now my power steering pump is getting noisy. It "whines" all the time and chatters when you turn the wheel. You can sometimes feel the power steering failing when you turn.

I'll probably replace it next weekend, but when I looked up the parts I found the pump both with and without the reservoir attached. My reservoir is not leaking, but I was wondering if someone who has tackled this job could give me some guidance on how hard it is to swap the reservoir - basically is it worth the $20 premium to buy a pump with an new one already installed?

[AlohaBra]

Humm...get it in one piece...or tear it down and rebuild it...

It really is a simple piece of machinery....

[KirkLipscomb]

Sheesh. I got the old pump off, but could not pull the pulley - plastic, brittle, breaks into a million pieces. No problem... I buy a new pully. Now I can't get it to press onto the shaft. I'm putting a bolt in the shaft hole, with a washer. It pushed the pulley about 2/3 way on, but won't go any further - mainly because I can't stop the stupid pulley from turning when I tighten the bolt. Of course, it's plastic and has no holes or anything else to facilitate grabbing it.

Any ideas on this one?

[AlohaBra]

I believe they have a special tool for installing and removal.

Maybe you can add a nut to the equation...over the washer and turn that while holding the screw with another wrench.

[KirkLipscomb]

I did find the special tool and got the pulley pressed on.

This has quickly turned into the project from hell. On the rebuilt pump, one of the rear bolt holes was crossthreaded, so I had to go with one rear bolt (the hardest to get to of course). The low pressure line was old and stiff so I had to replace it to get it to slide onto the pump - that took forever with the stupid factory clamps that were on there. I finally got it all back together, started the engine and the serpentine belt shredded. I didn't think I tightened it too much but it was late and I was tired, so maybe. I sure hope that's it because otherwise my new pump pulley must not be lining up with the rest of the system and it's start-over time. I'll replace the belt tomorrow and see.

Thanks!
Kirk

[AlohaBra]

Tip: **Buy two, keep one on hand for when you go off-road. You or someone else might need it.