Meathead16
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- Nov 26, 2022
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I searched around and found many threads that are similar to my issue but wasn't able to find the answer I need.
I bought a 2003 Escalade EXT, ~210k miles, history unknown, but from what I've seen thus far, it's been through some stuff..
TLDR:
-Steering box leaking at pitman shaft
-Attempted fix made it much worse. Complete power steering fluid loss in < 3 miles. System ran dry for several miles
-Second attempt fixed leaks. Debris may have fallen into passageways on shaft that teflon seals are on. New issue: Only when turning left: No assist, rather there is pushback from system, sounds like steering wheel has hit the stop throughout left turns. Wheel can be muscled through to complete travel if moving. 15% of left turns exhibit no issue. Pump exhibits no issues or noise when driving straight or turning right
-Is my problem the steering box or could a pump issue be causing/contributing to these symptoms as well? Will a box teardown and clean fix issue? Can any/all of the seals in the box be reused?
I've got a minute; what ails you?..
The steering box (3 bolt housing if that makes any difference, the one that Delphi made) was leaking fluid at the pitman shaft seal. The dust boot had disappeared and it was pretty steady, marking it's territory everywhere we went. Power steering worked as it should. The suspension and steering components in general were worn and I decided to change it all. New idler arm, pitman arm, tie rods, everything. I also rebuilt the steering box. This was several months ago so I can't remember exactly what went wrong.. either the rebuild kit I purchased wasn't complete, or I tore a seal putting it back together, or didn't replace a seal, or simply ran out of time and had to go to work, finished or not and rushed everything back together.
Point being, the steady drip was now an instant drain. I'd lose all fluid within a few miles of driving. It was painful to drive, but I could only fix it if I had a job to pay for it so my options were nil. Power steering pump ran dry for many miles, no power steering obviously, with me stopping to fill it up which would last a mile or two before it was empty for several miles.
(Can I just say... F&$% hydroboost brakes. WTF WERE THEY THINKING!? but I digress..)
I pull the steering box making sure I have the full kit and rebuild it again. I fully disassembled it except for the balls / worm gear. I stopped at the shaft that the teflon seals go onto. There was a bunch of varnish on the shaft so I cleaned it up with steel wool? and flushed it out with parts cleaner. I noticed small holes around on the shaft and tried to avoid those but crap may have fallen inside. I'm assuming these passages lead to the inner worm gear and balls? Besides this part the rebuild went fine. No more leaks, all is good. Power steering pump is surprisingly quiet and steering is buttery smooth... to the right anyway.
Turning left sucks. I've driven vehicles without power steering before and it can be a workout, but it's manageable. This is that and then some. The pump sounds as if I've hit the steering stop as soon as I turn the wheel left more than 20 degrees or so. I can muscle through it if I'm going at least a few miles per hour but if I'm stopped, there's no way. Obviously the faster I'm going the easier it is but if I stop turning mid turn, or if I'm going around a long slight bend the wheel will keep jerking to the right and I have to oversteer to the left to compensate, let it jerk back to the right, back and forth just to stay in my lane through the bend. I'm thinking the valving got screwed up, possibly from crap getting in those passageways where all assist is to the right, even though I'm turning left. Strange this is that about 15% of the time, turning left is as buttery smooth as turning right. No pump noise, no push back, nothing.
My main question is, is my assumption that debris in the passageways on the shaft that houses the worm gear (I hope I'm remembering that correctly, I do know 100% that it was what the teflon seals go onto) would cause these symptoms and that to fix this issue, I'll have to take the gear completely apart and clean the worm gear, balls, and all? The pump simply supplies the pressure and fluid to the gear and valving is done within the gear, right? After running the pump dry for so long I was expecting to have to replace it and am having a hard time believing no damage was done but unless I'm turning left it works perfectly fine and makes no noise. Are there any seals on the steering box that need to be replaced everytime the box comes apart? I'll probably buy a kit to have as a backup in case any of them are damaged but if they are all intact I'd like to reuse them all if possible. More than anything though I don't want any issues so I'll replace what I need to if any are considered a one time use.
Any help is much appreciated!
I bought a 2003 Escalade EXT, ~210k miles, history unknown, but from what I've seen thus far, it's been through some stuff..
TLDR:
-Steering box leaking at pitman shaft
-Attempted fix made it much worse. Complete power steering fluid loss in < 3 miles. System ran dry for several miles
-Second attempt fixed leaks. Debris may have fallen into passageways on shaft that teflon seals are on. New issue: Only when turning left: No assist, rather there is pushback from system, sounds like steering wheel has hit the stop throughout left turns. Wheel can be muscled through to complete travel if moving. 15% of left turns exhibit no issue. Pump exhibits no issues or noise when driving straight or turning right
-Is my problem the steering box or could a pump issue be causing/contributing to these symptoms as well? Will a box teardown and clean fix issue? Can any/all of the seals in the box be reused?
I've got a minute; what ails you?..
The steering box (3 bolt housing if that makes any difference, the one that Delphi made) was leaking fluid at the pitman shaft seal. The dust boot had disappeared and it was pretty steady, marking it's territory everywhere we went. Power steering worked as it should. The suspension and steering components in general were worn and I decided to change it all. New idler arm, pitman arm, tie rods, everything. I also rebuilt the steering box. This was several months ago so I can't remember exactly what went wrong.. either the rebuild kit I purchased wasn't complete, or I tore a seal putting it back together, or didn't replace a seal, or simply ran out of time and had to go to work, finished or not and rushed everything back together.
Point being, the steady drip was now an instant drain. I'd lose all fluid within a few miles of driving. It was painful to drive, but I could only fix it if I had a job to pay for it so my options were nil. Power steering pump ran dry for many miles, no power steering obviously, with me stopping to fill it up which would last a mile or two before it was empty for several miles.
(Can I just say... F&$% hydroboost brakes. WTF WERE THEY THINKING!? but I digress..)
I pull the steering box making sure I have the full kit and rebuild it again. I fully disassembled it except for the balls / worm gear. I stopped at the shaft that the teflon seals go onto. There was a bunch of varnish on the shaft so I cleaned it up with steel wool? and flushed it out with parts cleaner. I noticed small holes around on the shaft and tried to avoid those but crap may have fallen inside. I'm assuming these passages lead to the inner worm gear and balls? Besides this part the rebuild went fine. No more leaks, all is good. Power steering pump is surprisingly quiet and steering is buttery smooth... to the right anyway.
Turning left sucks. I've driven vehicles without power steering before and it can be a workout, but it's manageable. This is that and then some. The pump sounds as if I've hit the steering stop as soon as I turn the wheel left more than 20 degrees or so. I can muscle through it if I'm going at least a few miles per hour but if I'm stopped, there's no way. Obviously the faster I'm going the easier it is but if I stop turning mid turn, or if I'm going around a long slight bend the wheel will keep jerking to the right and I have to oversteer to the left to compensate, let it jerk back to the right, back and forth just to stay in my lane through the bend. I'm thinking the valving got screwed up, possibly from crap getting in those passageways where all assist is to the right, even though I'm turning left. Strange this is that about 15% of the time, turning left is as buttery smooth as turning right. No pump noise, no push back, nothing.
My main question is, is my assumption that debris in the passageways on the shaft that houses the worm gear (I hope I'm remembering that correctly, I do know 100% that it was what the teflon seals go onto) would cause these symptoms and that to fix this issue, I'll have to take the gear completely apart and clean the worm gear, balls, and all? The pump simply supplies the pressure and fluid to the gear and valving is done within the gear, right? After running the pump dry for so long I was expecting to have to replace it and am having a hard time believing no damage was done but unless I'm turning left it works perfectly fine and makes no noise. Are there any seals on the steering box that need to be replaced everytime the box comes apart? I'll probably buy a kit to have as a backup in case any of them are damaged but if they are all intact I'd like to reuse them all if possible. More than anything though I don't want any issues so I'll replace what I need to if any are considered a one time use.
Any help is much appreciated!
