Power Steering pump-How hard is it to replace it?

SuperDad

Registered User
The front end of my power steering pump (where the serp. belt wraps around) broke away recently. Do I have to replace the whole unit, or is the round front part removable from the shaft (spline)?
Thanks, Jim
 
the pulley will come off.... you need a special puller (30 bucks tops) and it will slide right off.... if your going to replace the whole pump you will need to take the pulley off anyways to get at the 3 mounting bolts behind it.... ive never actuially taken my pump of but i have taken the motor out of mine numerous times and that is one of th parts i leave in the car... i beleve thiers 2 hoses on the pump (high pressure, low pressure) i dont think it really matters when the car is off..... just take the hoses off and put a new pump on.... shouldnt be too hard if you can remember how to reinstall it!
 
Thanks,
It is just the pulley that is damaged at this point. I have always had a little whine on the power steering pump, even with full fluid. If I can get the pulley off without removing the whole pump, I might just do that. Do you know if I can get the pulley off without removing to many things?
 
well to take the pulley off you need to take the belt off.... thats about it.... but all in all you will n eed to get that special pulley puller
 
You will need to remove the intercooler in order to get the bolt in there for the puller/pusher bolt or you wont be able to put it in or remove it.
 
Does it make sense to replace the whole unit instead of just the pulley? If I have to start removing different components to get to the pulley, why not remove a few more things & put in a fresh power steering pump, or is it really that simple to change the pulley? Any thoughts.:rolleyes:
 
I guess it depends on how badly your pulley is damaged. Can you still use the puller as it is designed? Any idea why the pulley failed? I would say if your power steering was working fine and quiet I'd just fix the pulley and leave the pump. It's hard to say without seeing the car.

I have removed the p/s pulley using a puller without removing the intercooler, but I had to cut the bolt down to reinstall it (e.g. you might want to buy your own puller -cheap enough). It's tight, but it save the hassle of removing the IC.
 
I just rent the puller tool from Auto Zone and I don't need to remove the IC to use it with a short well socket to turn the bolt and a wrench to hold the tool in place. Install it easier.
 
I use the AutoZone loaner also.
I bought a bolt for the reassembly of the pulley, that gets as much thread into the pump shaft as possible, while still clearing the intercooler.

I bought the cheapie puller from harbor freight, and the slop in the part that clamps around the lip on the pump hub--boogered up the lip on the pump pulley. some times junk works --sometimes not

It helps to pull the fan and shroud off and cover the back of your radiator with a piece of cardboard to keep run away wrenches from punching a hole in your radiator.
 
It helps to pull the fan and shroud off and cover the back of your radiator with a piece of cardboard to keep run away wrenches from punching a hole in your radiator.

Good advice right there. It's a good idea to do the same to the I/C if you leave it on as well to prevent nicking the fins.
 
Thanks for all the good advice, guys. What happened was, the groove part of the pulley seperated from the front of the pulley, creating a loose ring. Now if anyone understands that, I'd be impressed:p . If anyone cares, I'm going to try and attach a picture of it.
 
Last edited:
Thanks for all the good advice, guys. What happened was, the groove part of the pulley seperated from the front of the pulley, creating a loose ring. Now if anyone understands that, I'd be impressed:p . If anyone cares, I'm going to try and attach a picture of it.

never seen that happen before but it looks like you could just replace the pulley
 
Make sure - double sure - that you get the puller / installer set. If not, you will become first bewildered, then angry, when you try to put the new pulley on. Don't try to pound it on - that is likely to wreck the pump.
 
That's insane! Honestly for the little bit of work it takes to remove the up IC tube and the intercooler, it truely frees up enough space to save the knuckles. Plus if you strip the threads on the pump when trying to put the pulley back on it also gives you clearance to bang it on with a hammer.

-Tim
 
Thanks again, alot of good points, but I bring up the question again, is it really difficult to change the whole pump. The P/S pump did have a slight whine to it & although it doesn't seem too difficult to put a new pulley on, should I go the extra mile & get myself a fresh P/S pump? (assuming money is not the issue). :rolleyes:
Thanks in advance for all comments.
Jim
 
Thanks again, alot of good points, but I bring up the question again, is it really difficult to change the whole pump. The P/S pump did have a slight whine to it & although it doesn't seem too difficult to put a new pulley on, should I go the extra mile & get myself a fresh P/S pump? (assuming money is not the issue). :rolleyes:
Thanks in advance for all comments.
Jim

Entire removal is cake once the pulley is off - here is bacially the step by step to remove the power steering pump. To take apart and put back together you're looking at about an hour each way, depending how quick you are with the wrench.

1.) Remove upper IC Tube
2.) Remove intercooler
3.) Remove Alternator, Coil Pack, and Upper Tensioner
4.) Remove Power Steering Pulley
5.) Unbolt Power Steering Pump
6.) Unbolt Accessory Bracket (that holds all the above to the motor.)
7.) Remove 2 Lines that go into the Pump.

-Tim
 
Thanks for all the good advice, guys. What happened was, the groove part of the pulley seperated from the front of the pulley, creating a loose ring. Now if anyone understands that, I'd be impressed:p . If anyone cares, I'm going to try and attach a picture of it.
Now thats talent right there. ;) Oh.. and if you plan on keeping the supercoupe, buy the pulley puller. You'll be glad you did.
 
Last edited:
To take apart and put back together you're looking at about an hour each way
Thats rather optimistic. If you've practiced it about 4-5 times. For a 1st timer, probably more like 3 each way. ;) The biggest time killer problem will be taking the lines off and having to remove the IC again to reseal the tubes that you THOUGHT you could get away with just bolting back on. Then there's the fuse you'll need to replace when you short out the live connection on the back of the alternator, and of course the threads that get stripped that will need to be retapped from the coil pack. Not to mention the bolt that gets dropped that can't be found that you spend 15 minutes looking for.
 
Last edited:
Back
Top