By WVA (Vince) on Monday, November 05, 2001 - 11:52 am: Edit

I have developed a power steering leak on my 97 Disc. Any clues as to problems? The steering is quite normal and I don't hear any noises while driving. I would like to know the extent of the problem if I can fix it myself, or have to take it into a front end place. thanks

By Leslie N. Bright (Leslie) on Monday, November 05, 2001 - 02:59 pm: Edit

Quite possibly, it may be the hoses that attach to the bottom of the reservoir... it seems to be common for the stock hose clamps to not have enough umph, and so Joe w/ the Disco pops into the dealership who then charges "How much??!!!" for a new PS setup when all that was needed was a couple of decent clamps installed....

Could be worse, but it COULD be that simple....

-L

By Bluegill (Bluegill) on Monday, November 05, 2001 - 03:05 pm: Edit

like Leslie said, before you shell out big bucks, first check the 2 hose clamps on the bottom of the reservoir and also check the 1 clamp on top of the box:

By Frode Hübertz Haaland (Discofrode) on Monday, November 05, 2001 - 08:34 pm: Edit

Check the center shaft is secured (the counternut/unbraco thing in the middle of the box).
Try find from WHERE it leaks, may be several of them. Clean all up thoroughly, and take lots of that babytalc/powder all over the place. This will make clear where it comes from.
Hope this helps!
Frode

By bthaxton on Tuesday, November 06, 2001 - 08:00 am: Edit

I recently sprayed my entire PS pump/hoses/gearbox with degreaser (enviro-friendly) and cleaned all with semi-high pressure water. I discovered TWO leaks where I thought that there was only one. The first was one of the hoses coming from the resevoir (the clamp was weak). The second was the hose coming from the pump (again, weak clamp).

BTW, does anyone know how to get these factory clamps loose so I can replace them with aircraft hose clamps?

By Jorge P. Gutierrez, Jr. (Jpg2esq) on Tuesday, November 06, 2001 - 05:59 am: Edit

I pried my factory clamps off with a pair of needlenose pliers. They are junk and come off with little effort. I will check the hose coming form the pump again since I am getting a leak above the box after I cleaned it off with degreaser.

By Bluegill (Bluegill) on Tuesday, November 06, 2001 - 12:01 pm: Edit

I just left the factory clamp on in the above photo. I added my $0.39 clamp right next to it. No leaks. I used needlenose to yank the reservoir clamps, though.

By WVA (Vince) on Tuesday, November 06, 2001 - 12:43 pm: Edit

well, i thank you all for info. When I got home last night, I checked and found leakage right under reservoir as Bluegill and Leslie mentioned. So, I tried cleaning (might do what bthaxton said and use degreaser tonight) and put on 2 good clamps. Now, I'll take a trip and see how it goes! I'm almost sure it was from the reservoir. thanks