Power Steering Dilemma…

Maintenance/Repairs
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1

2005 Toyota Solara 4 cyl.

Trying to diagnose mysterious whine when turning steering wheel that started after replacing pump (twice now in the span of about a week) and high pressure hose (aftermarket). I replaced these parts because they were original, leaking, and failed inspection. Even though the original parts were leaking, there was no whine when turning the wheel.

Shop did the work. The first replacement pump they used aftermarket and despite bleeding properly multiple times and driving over course of 3 days it still whined when turning 3 days later.

They gave me 1 year warranty on part and labor so I went back to them with concerns about the persisting whining noise and they replaced the pump a 2nd time, this time using OEM. They also replaced the reservoir (with my permission) with a brand new one because they said they found the old one had a lot of debris/old dirty fluid stuck in the bottom…

Now it’s been 4 days since they replaced the pump for the second time using OEM and the 2nd pump is still whining after thoroughly bleeding the system multiple times (once at the shop and again later on jackstands at my house) and driving for a few days after.

I’m considering possibility of defective 2nd pump, but now I’m starting to think that the the 2nd replacement pump being defective is not likely at all…

I’m wondering; Can using an aftermarket high pressure power steering hose cause a whine in power steering system when turning (even if the pump is just fine?) The shop that did the work will only cover the pump part and labor but if I want the hose done again I will have to pay for the full job. So obviously I don’t want to pay for the hose job again unless there’s a very good chance it’s the culprit.

The steering wheel turned just fine after both the first and second replacement pumps (not hard to turn or anything) and there are no leaks (the shop I went to cleaned off all the old oil from underneath and then ran the car on the lift for 30 minutes occasionally turning the wheel) all while I watched. They actually insisted I watch so I can see for myself there’s no leaks.

Again, what’s more strange is before I replaced anything (with the leaking original pump and leaking original high pressure hose) that failed inspection, there was no power steering whine despite the leaks.

Now the pump has been replaced twice, currently using OEM one and both times it whined after bleeding properly, multiple times and driving for 3-4 days.

If there is a likely chance the aftermarket hose is the culprit or persistent whine, I will pay to replace it again with OEM. Some people say aftermarket hoses may whine if they don’t have a flow restrictor, but the part they used does have one…

What is the chance the 2nd replacement pump (this time OEM) is defective vs the aftermarket pressure hose? Or does anything else come to mind that could be the culprit?

In the case, that the aftermarket pressure hose is the cause of the whine would there be any harm driving with the whine as long as there’s no air in the system and no leaks? (Which i’m sure there’s not) if there’s no harm, I might just live with the slight whine noise instead of paying again to replace the hose.

Any help is appreciated

2

what brand aftermarket parts?

did you reuse the pulley?

are the belt, tensioner, idler, etc. in good shape?

power steering hoses routed correctly and not rubbing on anything?

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3

Try adding this to the power steering system to see if it eliminates the whine.

61mym2W941L
61mym2W941L640×360 64.9 KB

Tester

4

First pump brand was maval I believe, 2nd pump is OEM. Both pumps came with new pulleys.

I believe the hose is routed correctly because there are no leaks. Not sure about belt or tensioner. They don’t make any abnormal noise so I believe they’re ok

As for the rislone, I have heard mixed things. Does that stuff cause leaks or damage to power steering pump?

5

Not that i know anything but new pumps need to have the fluid flushed and the air purged. Sounds like maybe air in the rack. Never had a problem when I replaced mine. I did use the stop leak additive once and worked for years to stop seal leaks. Normally pumps are good for hundreds of thousands of miles before failure.

6

At this point I am almost certain the aftermarket autozone high pressure steering hose is causing the steering whine since I’ve read from multiple sources aftermarket pressure hoses can often cause steering whine.

I am on the 2nd replacement pump, this time OEM, the systems currently been bled multiple times, (jack-stands, key on, engine off, turned lock to lock slowly probably 100+ times now) and then driven for 4 days after, all while monitoring the fluid level in the reservoir (which is also brand new)

There are 100% no fluid leaks anywhere and almost 100% certain there is no more air in the system due to how much it’s been bled plus the driving for 4 days.

Assuming that the aftermarket high pressure hose is indeed the cause of the persistent whining on the new OEM pump, would someone be able to shed light on if this noise alone would be detrimental to the new pump or rack and pinion or is it just a noise I can live with that won’t damage anything? The steering fluid is new/clean and again, no leaks anywhere.

7

If the replacement high pressure power steering hose is too small in diameter, it may cause a whine in the power steering pump.

Tester

8

Sorry but I did not read very much of your OP (need new glasses bad)…

If not already, start the vehicle and turn the steering wheel all the way to one side, hold it a second, then all the way to the other side hold it a second, then while still holding the steering wheel to one side (don’t matter) turn the car off/key off and make sure the steering wheel locks as close to full turn lock as possible. then walk away for 20-30 minutes… then start it up again and do it all over again (make sure fluid id good) but when turning the car off make sure the wheel is turned the other way…

EDIT: although not requied, probably best to have the tires raised a little…

9

I guess you’re saying that some of the air in the rack can be very pesky in terms of getting it out.

@J162_165342, if you do give this a whirl, I like to have the car moving while turning the wheel - less stress on the steering linkage and tires. Of course, I also have a driveway big enough for that.

10

Yes, I have all to often seen mechanics fight to get a new pump to stop whining all due to air still in the system, I have done it the way I describe and most of the time it takes care of the whine…

Also make sure the pump didn’t have a X mile break in period…

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11

Another demerit for Autozone parts. Replace with an oem and see if that does it. Just as a non pro.

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12

I’m guessing something in the belt path was disturbed when the first pump was replaced, and that’s what’s causing the sound. Ask your shop to make sure all the pulleys line up. If they remain aligned ok , then remove the belt and hand-spin each component in the belt path, listen & feel for any roughness. Still stumped even after following all of the above advice ? If I had this problem my next step would then be to replace the tensioner, idler(s), and the belt.

Disclaimer: I’m a diy’er who (according to some posters here) knows nothing and is incapable of reading or understanding anything posted.

13

Hey guys, something else that came to mind is that generic universal power steering fluid was used when mechanic replaced the pump and reservoir. Maybe I want to try changing with OEM Toyota tranny fluid to get try to get rid of the whine? Since I’ve read anything besides OEM fluid in steering system can cause noise.

Would it be safe for me to do several “spill and fills” essentially siphoning as much of the generic power steering fluid from the reservoir as I can using a fluid transfer pump and then refilling reservoir with Toyota OEM ATF, then driving a day or two, then repeating 3-4 times until the fluid is mostly Toyota ATF?

Or would it be harmful to mix the generic power steering and OEM Toyota tranny fluid since I wouldn’t be able to siphon all the generic power steering fluid out of the system right away so I’d basically be driving around with a mixture of the 2 for a while until maybe the 3rd or 4th siphon/refill… Is this ok to do? Or could mixing them cause damage to power steering system?

Thanks

14

Your vehicle specifies Dexron II or Dexron III transmission fluid be used as power steering fluid.

Using something else may lead to pump noise.

Tester

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15

Would doing 3-4 times of the siphon and refill methods through the resovoir be harmful mixing the dexron 2/3 and generic power steering fluid and having by them mixed in the power steering system for maybe a week or until I can do enough siphon and fills to dilute it enough so that’s it’s mostly Dexron in there?

16

Doesn’t your shop know how to flush a power steering system?

Tester

17

Are you going to get an OEM hose? Seems that would be first step, then change out the fluid at the same time.
If the fluid used by the shop was not stated on your bill, why not give them a call, find out exactly was fluid they used in your pump&rack.

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