Replacing high pressure steering line

Maintenance/Repairs
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1

So, I just found out that the noise my car has been making is related to the power steering. The mechanic said I need to replace the pump, two belts and the high pressure line. The car is a 1993 Honda Accord LX. I can’t afford to have the mechanic fix it, so I’m going to have to do it myself.
My questions are:

  1. how long should it take me? I’m not experienced at all. I was thinking of just doing the high pressure line as a ‘warm up’ to start. Is half a day wishful thinking? Any tips?

  2. The mechanic said the hose is leaking all over the belts. He said it was “squirting and pouring out”. I tried to duplicate the squirting by turning the wheel all the way and revving the engine. What I saw was a very small leak at the joint. So small it wasn’t falling, but I’m sure it would if I waited long enough. The belts appeared dry to me, but I’m not really sure what they are supposed to look like. The mechanic said that they are getting soaked in fluid and that I might throw a belt. Anyway, so my question is how can I tell if the belts are “soaked in” steering fluid.

  3. I’ve been told that if the belts are getting steering fluid on them they might be responsible for the loud squealing noise when turning. If I clean the belts with degreaser, and the noise stops, does this mean that replacing the leaking hose would be sufficient?

I’m making a long road trip in about a week (ca to wa). I’d prefer to deal with the replacement when I get to wa, but I also don’t want to make things worse.

Thanks for your advice!

2

First, before anything else, are you losing PS fluid? If so, do yourself a favor and ONLY use Honda Brand fluid,it’s not expensive, and it is the best. Aftermarket fluids can cause noises. If your drive belts have PS fluid on them, they will be wet, to some degree. Take a newspaper or paper towel, push it against the belts, if there is fluid on them, it will absorb some and be wet.If there is only a little on the belts, you can clean them. I’ve never seen fluid “throw” a belt on a Honda. A wet belt can squeak. Definitely replace the high pressure hose if there it has any leak, it will only get worse. Not an easy hose to replace, make sure you use a line wrench to loosen the end at the rack,14mm, I think. It probably needs the return hose between the reservoir and pump. They get hard and will suck air into the system, not expensive, simple fix. This makes the fluid foam up, and the pump squeals. An output, (high pressure) leak won’t make noise, unless the fluid gets too low. I’ve put 2 aftermarket output hoses on '97 Preludes lately with no problems so far, a big savings over Honda factory hoses. You didn’t define the noise you are hearing very well, a better description would help.