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Power steering pump issue on 2002 :(

13K views 6 replies 3 participants last post by  honus 
#1 ·
So the other day I notice a small leak under the Oddy. I mentally note it and move on. Two days later my wife calls whilst on her way home and says the vans power steering is getting harder and harder to turn. By the time she gets home the steering is completely manual. I pop the hood and see fluid all over the place near the tank, and the tank is empty. I refill the tank and start the van. The pump is making a crazy whining noise and the fluid is churning inside the tank like a milkshake machine!! The fluid is now a dark milky color.

Have you guys ever heard of P/S pump issues on our year?? I know I searched and found a ton on the newer models but not much on ours. Also, do you think it's worth tearing it apart and taking a look? All the parts are replaceable and it would be cheaper than buying a new one.

Please let me know what you think.

Thanks!!
 
#2 ·
First thing is to id where the fluid is leaking from. Look here for a component listing (http://www.slhondaparts.com/browse....ssions=KA&PartCatalogId=14S0X0&ViewParts=true)

If it's from the tank or the lines to/from the tank, you ran the system dry. Hopefully you didn't damage the pump or worse the rack.

Here is what I would do:
1. I would put the front end up on jackstands to take the load of the PS system for the next steps.
2. Refill the PS reserviour tank. (BTW - Use only Honda approved PS fluid, not compatible with standard stuff.)
3. Start the van, and slowly turn the wheel back and forth to work the air out of the system.
4. Hopefully it works the air out and stops making the whining noise. Determine where the leak is and replace that component.
6. If the whine continues after working the air out, assuming it's comming form the PS pump, you probably need a new one. I don't think they are a servible component.
7. If the whine is from the Steering rack, you are beyond what I probably would try to tackle and are looking at a Honda service bill.
 
#3 ·
All the fluid barfed out of the tank up through the cap (it's not an air tight cap). I know it sounds nuts but 80% came out from there. It was all over the place right under the tank on the frame rail. The hoses are dry and under the rack and pump is dry as well.. It makes no sense, I've been working on cars for years and I have never seen anything like this. I re-filled the system and the fluid that is now in the tank looks milky and seems to be under a tremendous amount of pressure, it's spiraling around in the tank like a whirl pool. I'm wondering if the system is clogged somewhere and the pump "pumped" all the fluid into the tank and the suction line wasn't drawing it out fast enough hence it all was pushed out of the tank.

very strange
 
#4 ·
Very strange, looking at the hose layout the PS fluid goes:
1. directly from the reservoir tank to the PS Pump
2. Pump to the PS Rack
3. PS Rack to PS cooler
4. Through PS cooler
5. Back to the tank.

Does not appear to be external bypass lines, so the fact that fluid is flowing means no complete hose blackage.

The milky color is probably air getting churned up in the fluid through cavitation. This may cause the volume of the fluid to increase and overflow the tank like a shaken up soda bottle, but I wouldn't guess it would run dry.

There are really only 3 components of this system (pump, rack, and hoses). Here are my guesses on what's going on from easiest to hardest to fix:
1. Low pressure line from tank to PS Pump has a leak allowing air to get sucked into the pump.
Fix - new hose and clamps

2. Something wrong with the PS Pump causing the fluid to cavitate and foam up. Doubt this is it since most pumps usually either work or don't.
Fix - replace pump

3. The PS Rack is allowing all the fluid through its internal bypass thus the high pressure side of the pump is never coming up to pressure and too much fluid is getting flowed through the system. This unfortunately is my best guess on what's happening to your Oddy.
Fix - replace steering rack
 
#5 ·
thanks for the replies!! I'm working on my CRX beast (just put the new engine in today). Tomorrow I'm going to tackle the Ody. This is such a strange problem that I'm thinking of taking a video of the fluid in the tank / blender :) It's pretty amazing to see it in action. If I get a video I'll post up a link.
 
#6 ·
Well I found the issue.

There was a leak in a hose.....well not really the hose. The P/S pressure switch on the high side line. The O-ring was blown and the switch was hand tight (very odd). Replaced the O-Ring with one from my AC O-Ring kit :) and it's all good to go now!!
 
#7 ·
On the topic of PS Pumps....

I flushed both my '02 Odyssey and '03 Accord PS systems last night according to the service manual instructions. It's just plain ugly.

With the engine running and turning the wheel lock-to-lock, you're catching the fluid in a container while the pump starts to shriek.

When the car is started again with the reservoir reinstalled and it filled to the top with new fluid, the system sucks down the new PS fluid (as you continue to add) with ease. However, the noise coming from the PS pump is just plain wrong. I was convinced something had gone wrong. Even after filling the reservoir with the pump running, it squeals like a pig for minutes. I took it for a quick spin and it was better but still noisy. This morning it was fine, very minimal noise. Maybe it takes time for any air to be purged out of the system. But until that time, it's outright painful to listen to.
 
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