1979-1993 & 94 Conv [Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
Seeing a lot of steering questions lately. When I got my '85 900T a few months ago the previous owner told me it leaked power steering fluid badly. He was right. The resivoir was empty and I filled it with a quart of fluid that leaked out in two days. Even when full the power steering was intermittant so i figured it was FUC*ED and never refilled it. I finally had the car up on a lift and saw one of the hoses needed a new hose clamp so I replaced it and filled it with Dexron ATF as I had no P/S fluid handy and I thought the system was history from having no fluid in it for like a year. Now the wheel is stiff like it always was when it had no fluid but gets easy to turn after you turn it about 1/8 turn. Then it is easy to turn until you want to go back the other way. Is there some kind of spool valve that is wasted that I can change or do I need a new rack/pump? Where do I get one and how much. I also drive a '77 Chevy van with manual steering so driving the SAAB without P/S didn't really bother me at all. I actually kinda liked the nice stiff steering but I do like everything to work right too. By the way, ATF is almost the same thing as P/S fluid except for the color and P/S fluid has high pressure foaming/breakdown inhibitors since the system operates at a higher pressure than an auto trans. A lot of shops (like my friends) use it instead of p/s fluid without any problems but I wouldn't recommend it in a fully functional system. Actually, my '65 Chevelle Malibu convertible specifies Dexron ATF for it's P/S system right on the fill cap and in the owner's manual so I do use it in that car. Any input would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Frank
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