Life of PS units

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Sep 20, 2003
Messages
1,708
Location
Austin, TX
This thread is to get feedback on PS units and how to get the most out of them

I had a Nissan and its PS units failed at 120K and my brother has a Lexus and it failed at 140K (both pump and racks). We rarely do steering locks on our vehicles though my brother does steering locks quite often. I maintain and flush my units every 60-80K and he never.

What can anyone get from this data but generally speaking what is the best one can get from their PS units and what can be done to prolong them. PS seems to be the most neglected PM pieces in vehicles and their capacity (1Q) makes them more prone to failure.

Pl. chime in
 
Just a guess, but design and mfg are probably the weak links in this.

We had a Ford Granada that went thru 5 PS pumps. No amount of fluid changes would change that
 
Last edited:
Most neglected, and most apt to get away with it? I do not know of anyone who took a failure. I know the pumps run pretty high pressure, but I am more worried about rust causing a line to pop.
 
Originally Posted By: supton
I do not know of anyone who took a failure.


I would assume it include your vehicles now and past. What do you recommend to help the units last longer?
 
It's hard to put an overall yrs/mileage stamp on them because some units are more weak/failure prone than others. My old Elantra's pump went out at only 65K and the rack was leaking when I sold the car at 80K. Never had PS issues on any other cars I've owned besides a leaky hose on my Accord.

To prolong the PS system's life, I drain/fill the reservoir about every year so the fluid stays fresh. It's also important to take care of any hose leaks early to avoid unnecessary strain on the pump and rack.
 
That's far too early for PS pumps to be going out; probably a design issue. Most other Mfg's pumps last a lot longer than that...

Usually changing fluid every 30-60k miles with a quality synthetic is about the best a regular guy can do.
 
1993 Buick Regal with the 3.8 lasted 230,000 miles, then another 3,000 miles with a blown rack seal.... it barely had any fluid in it for 3k miles.
 
Last edited:
Hydraulic PS seems to fail more often than electric one. Probably because most owners don't change PSF regularly around 30-50k miles.
 
Originally Posted By: HTSS_TR
Hydraulic PS seems to fail more often than electric one. Probably because most owners don't change PSF regularly around 30-50k miles.


No. Really, because the seals have a limited lifespan. Changing the fluid MAY extend that - MAY. but, eventually, the seals will leak. I had an 89 Accord. The high pressure hose was good for about 150K miles and the rack seals were good for about 230K miles.
 
All you can do is take it easy on the steering, and change the fluid. I don't often lock the steering and I do regular P/S fluid reservoir drain and fills. Hopefully this will lead to a long life of the entire steering system.
 
200k on a couple Ford units. Well over 100k on multiple GM units. Mostly 90's era vehicles with little to no PS maintenance.
 
Both the vehicles in my signature have the original PS pumps. Never did any PM or fluid changes and don't plan to.
 
Originally Posted By: HTSS_TR
Hydraulic PS seems to fail more often than electric one. Probably because most owners don't change PSF regularly around 30-50k miles.


Depends on the manufacturer/platform. Stuff like Cobalts, Malibus, HHRs, etc. can have very problematic EPS.

On the other hand, I have had four Fords from the era of noisy Ford hydraulic PS pumps. Three with rack & pinion, one with recirculating ball. I have never replaced a single PS component on any of these trucks. Not so much as a hose. The 2002 has had the fluid in the reservoir changed a few times, but that's it. Ironically, despite sporadic at best maintenance, they have all been pretty quiet too.
 
The best way to get long life out of a power steering pump is to stop buying the "lifetime warranty" pumps that are sold on a price point, especially the Ford pumps that tend to be noisy.
I saw a neat little brochure that Motorcraft put inside the box of a power steering pump that described why their pumps tend to be quiet while most of the aftermarket is noisy. I wish I had kept it.
 
I've never had a pump failure, a couple rack leaks. What has happened to me on a Mazda 3 and a Ford Escort has having a high pressure line burst - both around 90k. On a '97 Maxima I had a high pressure hose leak that started around 200k.

I currently have a 9 year old G35 and 9 year old FX45, neither of which have had any PS issues. Or any other real issues worth mentioning.
 
Originally Posted By: MaximaGuy
Originally Posted By: supton
I do not know of anyone who took a failure.


I would assume it include your vehicles now and past. What do you recommend to help the units last longer?


We've done nothing. Don't even check fluid level. Includes the vehicles my parents ran. My VW went over 300k before I even bother to crack open the PS--and it was fine.

If anything, I'm concerned now that I changed a bit of PS fluid in my Toyotas, that is a first for me.
 
PS systems typically last the life of the car with no maintenance at all in my experience.
I'd never heard of anyone changing PS fluid before I came here.
A certain percentage of steering racks and PS pumps will fail, but I think that the failure rate must be very low.
 
Get a car with with a steering box, not a rack. Unloaded, the pump on the Borman 6 knocked like the engine was about to throw a rod. If you touched the wheel , it would quiet.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top