97 V6 PS pump leak questions:

[kenratboy]

Hello,

Haven't posted in a bit. My car (see sig and it has 110k miles) has a leak coming from the power steering pump. Looked at the Hayes book about how to replace it and the hoses (I am under the impression the hoses do go bad after a while, as it is in my case) and I gave that project a - so will have it done for me.

Few questions:

-What is probably leaking? The pump or the hose?
-When I first start driving (like backing out of my driveway or a parking space with a cold engine) - there is some wining noise that directly correlated to the steering. What is causing this?
-What should I expect to pay/what should I want to have replaced?

Thanks guys!

Other than that, the car is soldering along. Just have my eye on a 2007 328i with a manual and sport package

[mazdaverx7]

its probably a hose rather than the pump leaking. the whining noise you are hearing is the pumps' bearings failing. pretty common. to replace the pump, i would suggest that you will have to drop the front subframe. i replaced my pump when i was changing the clutch on my 92 SE with a 3VZ and the subframe was down due to the clutch being replaced. if there is an easier way to do it, i'm all ears. a shop here locally charger nearly 1K to replace a steering rack on my buddy's sister's 97 XLE V6. hope this advice helps.

[kenratboy]

We put the car up on a jack, pulled the wheels and inner fender as per the Hayes book - I have no idea how you could do that!

So am I looking at the better part of $1000 for the parts (low and hi-pressure hose and pump) and labor!? The car is worth, what, $3000?

[mazdaverx7]

well, i paid about $150 for the pump from napa. your guess is as good as mine when it comes to a labor charge. as you probably know, it'll depend on where you take the car. were you saying that it looks next to impossible to get the pump out? yeah thats what i thought befoer i pulled teh subframe. and it still was a bitch because the fittings on the lines were stuck.

[kenratboy]

I got quoted from two auto parts stores for ~$450 IIRC for the pump (the core refund factored into that) and the two lines (those MFers are $$$). That is a lot of money. I would imagine at the absolute minimum being quoted, what, 3 hours for labor - or are they a lot faster?

[mazdaverx7]

i oufnd a reman pump on napa's website for $200. as far as a labor time is concerned, call the dealer and have them give you a quote.

[kenratboy]

Dealer - I was thinking checking a few independent mechanics.

The pump wasn't as bad as far as parts go - the supply hose was ***$250***

[jhbhatia]

Are you sure its the pump, i'd try replacing those 30-45 dollar high pressure ps hoses first.

[gearhead@steves]

the only real way is to clean it off good and use uv dye to check the leak. I fix these cars for a living lots of these have leaky racks and leaky pumps I would guess w/o seeing your car it is most likely the pump the wining is caused by fluid being by-passed internally in the pump the p/s seal kit is about $60 from toyota and labor is about 4 hours it comes out thru the right inner fender area where the axle is not real hard the hp line is the tough part to get loose from the pump. I would also check that the rack isnt leaking at the right boot all that oil in that area can get confusing! good luck
Steve

[kenratboy]

Most of the oil is on the DRIVERS side (opposite the pump), so not a lot left to the imagination unfortunately.

[gearhead@steves]

ok well then that only leaves 2 possibillitys on that side of the car unless its an euro spec car the rack is what usually leaks there or an o-ring at the end of a steel line going into the rack or it may be a loose line there Ive seen that before as well clean it good you will see it. hoses are rarely the problem FWTIW. pumps have an o-ring inside that gets hard and causes some of the noise. good luck!
Steve

[kenratboy]

Yeah, the guy at the shop said it is usually not the hose, but the pump, and they replace the little (<$5) gasket while they are in there.