raleighBahn

Hey folks,

I was putting on the only944 SSK last night, and had the car jacked at the driver rear wheel as well as the floor jack in the center at the center of rocker panel (only in support - weight was on rear jack). Front driver wheel slightly suspended and not supported.

When I came down to finish the job (put rear wheel back on, etc), I noticed power steering fluid all over the floor. Drove it up on ramps can it seems to be coming from power steering rack. There is a small rubber dust plug with a hole, and it seems the leak is coming from inside of here.

Any idea where to start on further narrowing this down, and did having my car jacked probably contribute? I'm guessing with the front wheel being a couple of inches off the ground, maybe it pulled an internal seal loose?

FWIW, I think the SSK is great, at least how it feels with car off. It may be a while before I actually have fun with it based on the above...

raleighBahn

I don't know if it's helpful, but all the fluid (100%) appears to have leaked at once. I noticed on Texas Blake's page that when the pressure line on the power steering pump is disconnected, all the power steering fluid will leak out. Maybe I have a loss of pressure similarly that took me from no leaks to 100% on the floor?

raleighBahn

Found it - the boot on passenger side is full of fluid....

raleighBahn

Legion of smart folks, ideas?

Aivar88

when i blew my original clutch on S2, i didnt have this tow hook and had to jack the car from left front wheel also, after what i had steering column leak at somewhere which i have had repaired but it wast fun job i believe. i guess these cars dont like to be jacked from wheel.

raleighBahn

I had the rear wheel and center rocker jacked, which lifted the front wheel along with them (only not as high). Even if I had put a jack in the front jacking point, the wheel would still have hung by its weight. My current hypothesis is that the steering rack has old seals (perhaps original - I can't find record of any work, and I have all the records). With the front wheel suspended over night, one or more of the seals inside the rack gave way. Perhaps it is better in this case (installing SSK or similar) to jack driver side front and back and take both wheels off. Or maybe I was well on my way to a PS seal leak and it would have happened anyway, and maybe not somewhere as convenient as my garage. I suspect the latter.

Not a job I think I want to do (resealing) - maybe will have my shop look, validate, and reseal. Maybe have them do something else while they have the car there and the access like replacing the suspension rubber up front...

raleighBahn

Question: For purposes of getting this to the shop without damaging my power steering pump, is there are way to electrically disconnect it and get it into manual steering mode?

jeffrsmith

Take the belt off the power steering pump and drive it. There is nothing electrical in the power steering system on these cars.

Replace the rack with a rebuilt unit, the cost of having a shop rebuild will be great than buying refurbished. I purchased my rebuilt rack from Rack Doctor http://shop.rackdoctor.net/1976-1995...?productId=835

raleighBahn

Jeff, did you put yours on yourself? Trying to decide if I want to give it a go. My preference always is working under the car on ramps as opposed to jack stands (also have kids around and this job will take time). I suspect the wheels need to be off to get the weight off the tie rods and etc.

jeffrsmith

I did replace it myself, the most difficult part is getting the steering shaft off the rack. I had my car on stands so I could get the wheels off to have easy access to the outer track rod ends (impossible to get off with wheels on). If you do it yourself, make sure you count the number of turns it takes to get the ends off so you can get them on the new rack at about the right spot - you will need an alignment after it is changed.

You could put the car on stands, pull the tires, separate the track rod ends, put the wheels back on, then put it on ramps while you finish the job, then reverse the steps.

raleighBahn

Thanks Jeff. I've decided to man up and do this job - this is not a DD, just sits in air conditioned garage and gets the occasional spirited drive.

Ordered re-manufactured rack with 1 year warranty and accompanying new parts (tie rods, boots, etc). No core required for return, so I'll keep it and reseal it at my leisure for the next time it breaks.

william_b_noble

what you describe is the typical failure of the steering rack when the seals go bad. I've changed about 6 of them, every single one leaks on pass side. you can get a kit from Rennbay or just install a rebuilt - changing is about an hour's job if you can see the "easy" way to unbolt the steering shaft retaining bolt, or about 2 hours if you can't. I'd recommend buying a rebuilt. check tie rods while you are at it.