Power steering failing during cold but fine warm

[James]

I have a 06 rsx base. The power steering stops working when the temp is below freezing. I let it warm up and after 30 mins it works fine. I just replaced all the fluid with genuine honda power steering fluid. Is my pump going bad?

Topic

[James]

Sure, when I get home. I checked the rack and pinion and it’s not leaking anywhere. But I don’t know what the symptoms of a bad one are.

[Wyr Twister]

Thankfully , have never had one go bad , so I do not either .

Best of Luck ! 🙂
Happy Thanksgiving ! 🙂

God bless
Wyr

[James]

Here is a video of the sound. As you can see, this is a new pump but its still whining. Let me know what you guys think. I’m taking it to a mechanic to see what they say.

[Mike]

Thanks for putting up that video, but I’m not getting much of anything from it, except for this: You have a helluva lot of red Warning lights on your dashboard.

I’d be inclined to put some time and money into getting them sorted out.

[mckrishes]

That’s interesting. I would expect more of a change in the sound when turning the wheel. Try removing the drive belt and then starting the car. Make sure you have a fully charged battery. Then start the car and see if you can hear the noise again.

[Rick Cropper]

How well was the system flushed before installing the new pump? Sudden loss of steering when turning into a parking lot, etc (full lock turn) can be a sign that something has jammed the bypass relief valve in the pump body open. This valve opens to prevent too much pressure in the system such as when you have the wheel hard against its right or left limit. This just dumps the excess fluid volume/pressure back into the inlet of the pump. If, after turning the wheel back from its limit, this valve then fails to close the pump builds no pressure. Often if a pump starts to disintegrate the bits and pieces can jam this valve in the open position. Therefore it is imperative that all contaminants be flushed.

Also aftermarket pumps generally suck for Japanese vehicles. I’ve seen more than one that didn’t work out of the box. We have taken to only using OEM new pumps from the dealer. More expensive but they work every time and they last – usually it’s just once in the life of the car that they need replaced.

Rick

[James]

Haha that’s the color of my dash lights. Low fuel, seatbelt, the odometer, the check engine light was on but I just fixed that. Anyway, the problem was indeed the new pump. I replaced it because it was still under warranty and now it’s ok.

[Author]

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