B-lackGSX99
15+ Year Contributor
- 112
- 2
- Nov 9, 2006
-
Edmonton,
Alberta_Canada
Okay, i've read through every single thread with the words "power steering" in the title, and although it's given me some ideas, I do want to start a new thread here as my issue seems different than the things I have been reading about.
I park my car in the winter, but take it out once a month to run a short errand (just to give it some fluid flow, ensure i move the tires to avoid flat spots, and of course to have a little fun in the snow). Anyways, last night it was -50 celsius, and I took the car for a quick drive to the store. An hour later I came back outside, and when I started it up (no issues in starting), the power steering was no longer working. When I turn the wheel as i move the car, there is no whining noise or anything similar to what i've experienced in the past with a car that has leaked or is low on power steering fluid. I suspect the following:
a) leaking fluid because something may have gotten caught on a snow/ice rut (maybe tore one of the boots on the bottom of the car?), and I cannot hear the whine becaues the engine/exhaust is simply too loud.
b) blew the power steering pump, or the belt is shot?
c) thought the power steering fluid froze, but after having it parked in a room temperature garage overnight, the problem has not resolved itself.
When I get home, I will pop the hood, and check the fluid levels. I didn't notice any excess of fluids on the garage floor underneath my car. Also, I will jack the car up and inspect the power steering rack boots.
Any other recommendations or ideas??
I will report my findings later this evening, thank you in advance for your help.
Okay, the power steering fluid dipstick wasn't even picking up fluid, and after i poured about a quarter liter of stop leak p/s fluid (prestone), it basically just sucked it all in and is still not giving me any reading on the dipstick. This is as expected, as I know the capacity of the p/s system is .9L (or .95 quarts). In any case, the steering hasn't eased up at all, so i'm assuming that either the pump blew (because there was no fluid going to it) or it needs more fluid before it's going to work.
I believe that I have been running the car with unreadable levels (too low) of p/s fluid for quite some time (definitely weeks, maybe months), but the p/s system has felt normal to me until yesterday. The only reason I didn't fill it was because the idiot at the lube-x where i last changed oil (3 weeks ago) showed me the dipstick and told me it was for the manual transmission fluid. I don't know why it didn't click back then, but I don't think there is a dipstick in Mitsubishi's for the MTF.
Tomorrow, i'm going to fill the power steering up to par, and see how the car does. I have placed a sheet of cardboard under front driver side of the car to monitor any dripping / leaking that may be occuring.
Any feedback, or suggestions?? Can I test the power steering pump by just turning the wheel and listening for the whining?? Also, there did appear to be a wet area on the ground that wasn't water around the p/s pump area of the car...it's pretty snowy here, so it's tough to tell if it was just from stuff brought in from outside. This is primarily the reason why i've put the cardboard down.
I park my car in the winter, but take it out once a month to run a short errand (just to give it some fluid flow, ensure i move the tires to avoid flat spots, and of course to have a little fun in the snow). Anyways, last night it was -50 celsius, and I took the car for a quick drive to the store. An hour later I came back outside, and when I started it up (no issues in starting), the power steering was no longer working. When I turn the wheel as i move the car, there is no whining noise or anything similar to what i've experienced in the past with a car that has leaked or is low on power steering fluid. I suspect the following:
a) leaking fluid because something may have gotten caught on a snow/ice rut (maybe tore one of the boots on the bottom of the car?), and I cannot hear the whine becaues the engine/exhaust is simply too loud.
b) blew the power steering pump, or the belt is shot?
c) thought the power steering fluid froze, but after having it parked in a room temperature garage overnight, the problem has not resolved itself.
When I get home, I will pop the hood, and check the fluid levels. I didn't notice any excess of fluids on the garage floor underneath my car. Also, I will jack the car up and inspect the power steering rack boots.
Any other recommendations or ideas??
I will report my findings later this evening, thank you in advance for your help.
Okay, the power steering fluid dipstick wasn't even picking up fluid, and after i poured about a quarter liter of stop leak p/s fluid (prestone), it basically just sucked it all in and is still not giving me any reading on the dipstick. This is as expected, as I know the capacity of the p/s system is .9L (or .95 quarts). In any case, the steering hasn't eased up at all, so i'm assuming that either the pump blew (because there was no fluid going to it) or it needs more fluid before it's going to work.
I believe that I have been running the car with unreadable levels (too low) of p/s fluid for quite some time (definitely weeks, maybe months), but the p/s system has felt normal to me until yesterday. The only reason I didn't fill it was because the idiot at the lube-x where i last changed oil (3 weeks ago) showed me the dipstick and told me it was for the manual transmission fluid. I don't know why it didn't click back then, but I don't think there is a dipstick in Mitsubishi's for the MTF.
Tomorrow, i'm going to fill the power steering up to par, and see how the car does. I have placed a sheet of cardboard under front driver side of the car to monitor any dripping / leaking that may be occuring.
Any feedback, or suggestions?? Can I test the power steering pump by just turning the wheel and listening for the whining?? Also, there did appear to be a wet area on the ground that wasn't water around the p/s pump area of the car...it's pretty snowy here, so it's tough to tell if it was just from stuff brought in from outside. This is primarily the reason why i've put the cardboard down.