Power Steering suddenly gone

[Adam OJ]

2001 LT Tahoe

I was backing my trailer into the garage last night, and, with the steering at full lock, heard a loud pop. Got out, made sure I didn't hit anything, and tried again. I was greeted with a very stubborn steering wheel.

Ultimately, I was able to turn around in the cul-de-sac, just required a lot of muscle to do it.

I plan to fix this myself, but I don't want to just throw parts at it. What is the best way to diagnose? My thinking is that can still steer, just without any assist. So I would assume the box is OK, and the pump is bad?

Any other troubleshooting techniques?

Thanks!

 

[Adam OJ]

I'll reply to my own post...

I went in with the assumption that it is the pump. removed the intake, fan and fan shroud to expose the front of the engine. Removed the serp belt and gave a tug on the power steering pump pulley. Came right out of the housing. Pulley shaft broke up inside the pump. I have the new pump ready to go, just need the wife to get home with the other car so I can run out and rent a pulley puller

Hope someone else can benefit from this.

-Adam-

 

[Matt06Yukon]

Not saying you did but alot of people do this, never hold the wheel at full lock. You'll hear the pump groan when you you do; back off a smidge. The psi increases alot when you do that and your straining the pump when you do that. Just a heads up.
Glad you found your problem.

 

[Adam OJ]

Not saying you did but alot of people do this, never hold the wheel at full lock. You'll hear the pump groan when you you do; back off a smidge. The psi increases alot when you do that and your straining the pump when you do that. Just a heads up.
Glad you found your problem.

Thanks for the heads up. I have heard that before. That being said, I was backing my trailer into the garage (curved driveway, pushing into a tight single width garage opening. So I DID have it at full lock, and that is when it popped. Lesson learned...