Power Steering Fluid Leak

[rkvons]

So my daughter was driving around last winter in her 2005 Aveo four door with an automatic transmission (Don't know the model) and hit a snow bank. This kinda mangled up the front passenger side down low. She saw that the car was running and basically continued on. But there are power steering lines that run down there and what happened was, a metal line was deflected enough to put a rubber power steering hose in contact with the serpentine belt. Well I don't know how long she drove around with the car in this condition, but on Christmas night, after leaving my house to go home, she called and said she had no power steering. She was stuck at a gas station quick mart. I jumped in my car and went there and looked under the hood. I immediately saw that the power steering hose was cut and all the fluid was gone. She was with her husband, and I told them that they were going to have to drive it home that way. Okay, the next day I fixed it. But I noticed a couple of weird things. I added fluid into the reservoir and started it. The power steering was making a terrible noise that fluctuated as it sucked the fluid down in the reservoir. It was empty again. Okay, I added more and repeated until it did not take any more. But it seemed like the fluid got all foamy and wanted to overflow. I said it would probably get better as time went on. Fast forward to now. She reported to me that it had been leaking all along and was really getting bad. So I had her bring it over. I noticed that the leak was not in the area of the repair, but rather, was at the reservior. So I cleaned up the engine compartment and topped off the power steering fluid. Then I started it. I noticed that the fluid seems to flow through the reserviour at a rate that is too high. It forms a whirlpool in there which introduces air into the system and causes the power steering pump to make a bunch of noise. When you give it gas, the swirling slows. But when idling, it is flowing like crazy. Eventually the fluid seems to foam up and come out of the resorvior and she runs out again. My question is: is the power steering fluid supposed to be flowing through the resorvior like that? Also, if it is not supposed to be flowing thorugh like that, what would be causing it? Thanks

[rhandwor]

I think it has some kind of blockage in the high pressure hose or the metal line got bent and crimped in the accident.

[Davescort97]

If a high pressure line isn't crimped (rhandwor) you have air in the system.

Air should have been purged after replacing the hose. It could have damaged the pump. However, you can purge the air by the following procedures:

1. Raise the front of the car off the floor.
2. Disconnect the ignition coil electrical connector.
3. Crank engine for 30 seconds while cycling the steering wheel fully to the L and R.
4. Don't hold the steering wheel against the stops for more than 3 seconds.
5. Check the fluid level.



If this doesn't work you might want to use the vacuum method.

1. Raise the car off the floor.
2. Remove the reservoir cap.
3. Put a rubber stopper into the top of the reservoir and attatch a hand operated vacuum pump.
4. Start the car.
5. Apply 20-25 inches of vacuum for minimum of 3 minutes at idle.
6. Release the vacuum and remove the tester.
7. Fill the reservoir to the full mark.
8. Reinstall the vacuum pump and apply 20-25 inches vacuum.
9. Cycle the steering wheel fully to the L and R. Don't hold on stops.
10. Turn the engine off.
11. Release vacuum and take the pump off.
12. Check the fluid level.
13. Start the engine.
14. Cycle the steering wheel fully to the left and right every 30 seconds for approx.
5 minutes. Don't hold it on the stops.

Final fill after purge.

Start the engine and let it run for several minutes.
Turn the wheel from stop to stop.
Fill the reservoir to the full mark.

Many chain stores have vacuum pumps and stoppers to fit into your PS reservoir. They just charge for the value of the item then refund it when you return it.

All of the purge procedures are done with the front wheels off the ground. This takes the load off of the PS pump and keeps the pump vanes from foaming the fluid with air.