Power steering quit while driving in freezing weather. Checked fluid was overflowing when pulled out dip stick. What is problem ?
I have seen issues where the PS will act jittery…like be smooth one second and then as if someone shut of the power for a second then back on and off on and off…you get the idea. It can be caused by FROZEN water in your PS resivior… However if while temps were higher you had liquid water in there it should have made the ps fluid cloudy or foamy looking…did you have that symptom b4? If not then your ps pump may have died…but I dont recall ever seeing a ps pump actually die now that I just said that…they usually spring a leak to warrant replacement…usually very very very reliable little items. Not sure on this one… but its a simple system… What happens when you turn the wheel? Is the wheel hard to turn? DOes the PS pump change in pitch at all when you grab and turn the wheel…i.e. does the pump seem to know you turned the wheel by whining or groaning?
No power steering at all. Went out all of a sudden. No noise from the pump. I drained the resivior and refilled with new fluid,no change.Could it just possibly be the pump that went out ?
It could be the pump. Have you verified that the pulley is turning? This should be a pretty cheap part from a salvage yard. I guess your other options would be a bad control valve or steering gearbox.
Yes make certain that the pump pulley is turning…if it wasnt you would have smoked a belt by now I would think. I dont recall ever seeing a total ps pump failure in this manner before…they usually leak and get replaced.
The control valve is another area to look at as well…could be the ps pump pressure is being blocked somehow? That would overheat the pump though