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How To Replace The Power Steering Line?


bluesmuso

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  • Member For: 16y 7m 7d
  • Gender: Male
  • Location: South Australia

I have noticed that people are fixing the connection into the power steering pump when it leaks by using a dremel/angle grinder to remove the circlip and offending o-ring for substantially less expense than buying a complete line from Ford spare parts at a ridiculous price.

But the instructions and details I've seen so far are too brief for me to attack my pride and joy with an angle grinder.

Does anyone have pictures with instructions on how to do this so I can replace the part without buying the entire line from ford? Until then I will keep the fluid topped up and degrease the areas affected by the leak so I don't kill the alternator etc. thanks in advance Bluesmuso

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  • Member For: 16y 6m 17d
  • Location: Richmond, Melbourne

Hi mate

I just did this to my car. I had a whole workshop + hoist and it took me 2 hours.

Basically, you need to remove the high pressure line from the rack and the pump, then remove it from the car. There's an annoying rubber block that it gets mounted to half way down that was a pain in the arse to unclip..

Once you have the line removed, you have to carefully hacksaw the pump side fitting off, by slowly cutting around the hose until you can see/feel the hose on the inside of the fitting. I kept turning the hose slowly as I cut so to cut through the fitting the whole way around. If you cut too far here, you will pierce the hose and will have to buy a new on from ford ($400) or an aftermarket one from bursons ($97)

Once the fitting in in half, you have to cut horizontally accross the fitting. You can only cut so far here without damaging the hose. I used a small compressor powered hacksaw attachment and slowly cut through the fitting on each side, being careful not to nick the hose. Once I was almost through on one side, I was able to use a screwdriver and split the fitting (because the opposite side had already been half cut making it weak and easier to split)

I then used some wet and dry and sanded the pump end of the hose that I was just cutting around and got rid of any sharp edges.

Then I re-attached the new pump fitting from fraud ($11) and then slid the hose back up into it.

Reattach the hose at the rack, do up the rubber block again, and fill it up with fluid. Let the car run for a bit until the fluid drains back into the rack/hose, and add as neccessary. It'll gurgle a bit, then settle down once it's been idling for a bit. Turn the wheel while the cars running and make sure there's no noises. If there are there might be air in the system and you may need to perform further bleeding.

I was going to take pictures, but I never got round to it. Might make up some paint diagrams to show what I did..

Good luck mate

hqracer89 has some pics on when he did it to his..

15082008408.jpg

as you can see by the above pic, you can see where he has cut 'around' the fitting (just where the thread meets to head...

Then he has cut 'horizontally' in two places on the head, then snapped it off the fitting.. (left hand side piece in this bottom pic shows this better)

15082008405.jpg

As long as you don't damage the high pressure hose too much, you're new fitting should be fine, and the hose will push up and 'click' into place. Couldn't be easier.

Oh, and I removed the high pressure hose from the car and put it in a vice.. If you're good, you might be able to cut the fitting off while the hose is attached to the car, but there isn't much room in there....

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  • Member For: 16y 7m 7d
  • Gender: Male
  • Location: South Australia

Thanks heaps Christiaan, I really appreciate the trouble you went to posting this along with pictures.

I was thinking of using a Dremil with a tiny metal cutting wheel on it so I can remove the fitting without removing the entire hose from the car. I wonder if the circlip (which makes the fitting impossible to remove)

can be removed so that it is a two way fitting? Probably not, but afaik the circlip simply holds the pipe in place for quick assembly at the production line, I don't think it does much else, the O-ring and bush would be what seals the join, but since the circlip is internal I think it is there to stay. Thanks heaps Christiaan once again. Bluesmuso

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  • Member For: 16y 6m 17d
  • Location: Richmond, Melbourne

you might be able to use some sort of tool.. I didn't have anything at my disposal so I couldn't exactly use anything else other than the neumatic hacksaw and hand held hacksaw..

Hope it works out for you,

good luck!

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  • Member For: 16y 7m 7d
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ok this may sound silly, but couldnt you just use internal cir-clip pliers once the hose is off?

You mean on the new fitting? It looks pretty tight in there but with the right tool you may be able to.

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  • Member For: 16y 7m 7d
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I have just been having a closer look at the fitting, I think if the circlip was removed it would not attach to the pump housing and fail to seal, so I can assume that removal of the internal circlip would render the replacement fitting useless.

Edited by bluesmuso
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  • Member For: 16y 7m 7d
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  • Location: South Australia

I split the nut with a small dremil using a 30mm cut off wheel, I did a pretty good job and didn't touch the pipe at all, only to find that some previous owner had tried the same trick with an angle grinder and had scored a deep cut along the pipe.

Plan B: I phoned a different Repco store and got an after market complete pipe with nuts, o-rings and instructions with 24 month warranty for $89.00 and it can be removed and replaced easily with another after market one. Unlike Ford's assembly line one way circlip fitting this one has a more conventional flared end with removeable o-ring......much better. And $89.00 Repco versus Fraud's $347.00.

NB: It pays to phone around because a guy from another Repco store told me that there is not an after market one available and that I would have to buy the Ford genuine part, which is why I tried the replacement nut coupling thing first.

For those in S.A. Repco south rd. St Marys=good store and open Sat and Sunday.

Tomorrow AM I will fit the new hose assembly, it seems pretty straight forward. Thanks everyone Bluesmuso

Edited by bluesmuso
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  • Member For: 16y 7m 7d
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Did the job, not as easy as I thought working under the car without a hoist never is, problem all fixed no leaks until 3 bloody days later it started leaking again, I must have damaged the little o-ring, I'll replace that and see if that helps.

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I think the Repco after market one is simply a generic replacement item for generic BA's (non turbo)

The Repco one pushes up hard against my intercooler duct whcih would not be there in a non turbo BA.

It only leaks when I drive it harder, if I take it easy it never leaks at all.

I think that the section of pipe with the sensor on it is being pushed by the torque of my engine when I accelerate hard causing it to spray out (which explains why I have not been able to get it to leak whilst looking under the bonnet and having someone turn the wheel from lefte to right etc)

I compared my car with another XR6T in a yard today, the original Ford one just clears the intercooler pipe and also has a degree of movement, but my replacement Repco hose butts up hard in a rigid fashion against the intercooler pipe and has no movement.........unless I drive it under boost :roflmbo:

I could try bending it so that it clears the intercooler pipe but I am afraid of crimping or perforating the line if I try this.

Has anyone else had problems with after market power steering hoses for XR6T's?

The guy at Repco said this would fit my car, when I compared the Repco one to my original it looked the same to me but clearly the turbo one would have a sharper bend where the sensor is to clear the intercooler duct.

I don't know of any other after market hoses available and still don't wish to pay $347 for a ford one which may need fixing again within a couple of years.

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