getcha 01

iTrader: (4)

I took my car cover off my 2001 ws6 today and still couldnt get out of my shoveled driveway since we had 3'' sleet,2'' snow 4 days ago, well theres only about 1/4'' ice layer left from the melting on our driveway and while I was going forward/reverse to get momentum to get on the reverse downslope I was also turning my wheels side to side to keep straight and my steering wheel bottomed out when I thought I had the wheel pointing straight. Well...I put the parking break on and got out and seen my wheels were straight so I had no pwr steering at all and soon after that I got onto the road and popped the hood and checked pwr steering fluid and cooler lines without finding anything wrong. I drove it 10 miles thinking water maybe got on the belt and I still have no PWR steering. I maintain my car religiously and have changed the PWR steering fluid 10k miles ago, I did like always and siphoned out old fluid till it got to the bottom of reservior then topped it off with new fluid. There are no leaks,squeeks,or low fluid levels???..The only related thing I recently did was repack my idler pulley bearings because it was squeeking bad, it fixed the problem just like ive done in the past. Could the pump have been squeeking also before I packed the idler pulley bearings and just happened to go out? Wouldnt the fluid be milky or have bubbles? I am clueless...

getcha 01

iTrader: (4)

I took the PWR steering cap off and turned my wheels side to side and air bubbles kept coming and coming and my steering worked like always until I put the cap back on and left the driveway then it went back to NO PWR steering! Wut is it?..If air was getting in the lines wouldnt fluid be leaking somewhere????

NBM-LS1

iTrader: (7)

Sounds to me like "morning sickness" The spool vlave in the rack sticks when its cold or morning start ups. Does the p/s come back after the car warms up?

LS6427

iTrader: (2)

What the hell............

Do you have a factory power steering fluid cooler?

An air pocket would cause it not to work, you shouldn't have air bubbles.

.

wssix99

iTrader: (5)

When was the last time you changed your P/S fluid? If you try driving on a day where the temperature has been above freezing for a while, what happens? Maybe water in the lines? If that was the case, water would sink to the bottom of the system, freeze, and clog things up past the pump.

getcha 01

iTrader: (4)

No when it warms up nothing changes at all. I also just changed the fluid when I changed my brake and clutch fluid about 5k miles ago or so. Also it hasnt been over 30 degrees in a month here in IL, The water in the lines sounds possible but wouldnt it melt and free up after driving a short time?...I never had anything happen like this and ive worked on cars for my whole adult life from 16-26 yrs old, I've built this car from the ground up pretty much. I have only had/heard of them going out when they are squeeling loud or belts slipping, cut lines, but never when theres no evidence of anything wrong. It sat under my car cover 1 week this month when we got 8in snow, then I drove it 1 week, sat covered again 1 week and I had just took the cover off 3 days ago and warmed it up for 5min, then went to back out the driveway and it just spun on the 2in of sleet that was packed on the driveway, so I did a little shoveling and started the good ole 1st, back to reverse trying to get momentum to get on the downslope(I was backing up if that means anything) and I was going straight side to side mostly so I was turning the wheel quite a bit but I never bottom my steering out ever and when I went to turn the wheel again it just was stiff so I got out to see if I had just had the front tires against ice or what and they were straight like I thought. I looked at the lines, rack, fluid level and its all fine. Only thing I noticed was my fluid was dead still and had tiny air bubbles or maybe moisture pockets in it and when I turn the wheel with the cap off it lets 1 big air bubble out everytime I turn the wheel back the other direction after it bottomed out on both sides. I do have the OEM cooler also which does nothing I think. Should my fluid be circulating or anything?.I did put really thick pwr steering leak fix **** in a few months ago because I always had fluid on the reservior and around the coolant lines.

getcha 01

iTrader: (4)

I just went out and pulled my belt off to spin the pulley and c what happens and the pulley on the PWR STRG pump isnt held on at all, it pulls out off the pump until it hits my cooler and it feels like the only thing holding it in the pump still is the vaccuum because it goes back in when I let go of the pulley. What type of bolt holds it in? I though it would have a keyway or dog atleast, and how was it not making noise or wobbling?...WOW WTF

wssix99

iTrader: (5)

Ugh. The pulley is held in with a friction fit. No keyway. (Its not bolted on.)

When you turn the pulley, does the pump shaft turn? If not, that would explain the problem. I wonder if the pump has seized up on you and caused the pulley to break from the shaft?