Est. time to remove/replace Y33 power steering pump?

[tfvesquire]

I have to replace the p/s pump on my 98 and needed to know if anyone has done this and has a reasonable estimate of the time involved to remove the old one and install the new one. I looked at the FSM and also studied the limited space in the engine bay, so I know I will have to remove the battery, cooling fan (possibly the radiator?) engine splash shields, idler pulley and belt. There is not much room to work from the bottom with the front core cross support, so it looks like everything will have to come out from the top.

I am guessing the lines have never been off, so I will go ahead and remove them while the pump is still mounted and then secure them upwards to minimize fluid loss. As far as priming the new pump, I was thinking it would be easier to fill it with fluid and secure the steering lines to it before mounting it to the bracket.

If anyone has done this and knows of any tricks and/or things to watch out for, I would be grateful.

Thanks!!

Ted

[qship96]

Chances are a failed pump could have spit its internals into the fluid, so let the hoses drain while you are replacing pump and find a way to flush lines and rack with atf before connecting new pump

[tfvesquire]

Chances are a failed pump could have spit its internals into the fluid, so let the hoses drain while you are replacing pump and find a way to flush lines and rack with atf before connecting new pump

The pump has not failed or seized up, but it is making an intermitent chirping sound when you start off from a dead stop. I replaced the belt and pulley bearing to rule them out. I tried flushing the system, then Lucas, Trans-X and Prestone steering fluid giving them about 100 miles between each application. Each product claimed to fix the squealing, but nothing worked. I was told it is probably the vanes that got worn out because the PO never changed the fluid and also held the steering wheel turn to turn overworking the pump. At 75K miles, it was only a matter of time before it started to go.

I don't think there is any trash in the fluid, but I will definitely drain the feed line from the reservior to the pump in case there is any residual in the line.

If anyone else has any info or suggestions that woould be great. I plan on tackling this project first thing in the morning if it doesn't rain too bad. My daily car = outside, wife's daily car = inside, my classic = inside.

Thanks!!

[maxnix]

Really suspicious of it being the pump.

Did you replace all the belts and check all the pulley bearings?

[oldmako]

The pump has not failed or seized up, but it is making an intermitent chirping sound when you start off from a dead stop. I replaced the belt and pulley bearing to rule them out.

[bullittandy]

Really suspicious of it being the pump.

Did you replace all the belts and check all the pulley bearings?

Seriously man, do you read the posts before replying?

[maxnix]

Seriously man, do you read the posts before replying?

Sure do. Wonder if his belt tension is correct. Pumps don't chirp.

Andy, what can you add besides your ignorance? Really, I mean it. Make a constructive comment for once.

[tfvesquire]

Sure do. Wonder if his belt tension is correct. Pumps don't chirp.

Andy, what can you add besides your ignorance? Really, I mean it. Make a constructive comment for once.

WOW!!

I sold my Maxima and left Maxima.org because of ridiculous kiddie-crap arguing like this. I can assume most of the members on this forum wrench their fair share of cars and know how to check the obvious. If someone makes a suggestion(or posts a mistake), then so be it.

It is up to the person who created the thread or who is doing their own research to find out the details that pertain to their unique circumstance. If someone finds a mistake, we should all be men enough to admit where we messed up and move on. It appears that some of the above members have had a sour run-in on prior threads and that is a shame they still hold a grudge.

By posting this thread I was hoping to get some feedback from others who have done this repair and could offer some input to minimize wasted time or busted knuckles. I may not be posting a thorough "how to w/ photos" once I complete this task, but I will at least do a small write up so others can learn from my discoveries/mistakes.

In the words of Jerry Springer:

"Be good to yourselves and each other"

[maxnix]

You have to excuse some of thenew members who come to preach what they do not know.

So, back to your problem, how about the belts and pulleys?

Very unlikely the pump will chirp on standing start as it is always turning when the engine is running.

As stated before, I am not certain your diagnosis is correct.

[oldmako]

I replaced the belt and pulley bearing to rule them out.

Guess we can check those off!

[maxnix]

Guess we can check those off!

By your standards, maybe. But we're trying to verify a diagnosis as valid.

We still need to know was the tension adjusted properly? What about the other three belts and pulley bearings.

Too much sauce makes the mind fuzzy, especially before noon.

[oldmako]

I see.

"Hey tfvesquire, what about the belt and the bearing???"

I'll try and get with the program.

[tfvesquire]

** Update **

Well, I installed the p/s pump and made a minimal mess. I will say, that even though the pump was making an intermittent noise, and was not seeping, I made a good decision to change it out and have some peace of mind. I also checked the surrounding idler pullies and found one of the alternator bearings (there are two of them inside the pulley) starting to go.

I could see the grease was slightly squeezed out and while you could still turn it with your finger, there was a slight binding. I went ahead and purchased two brand new bearings and installed them myself for additional peace of mind. BTW, the bearing number for all the idler pullies is 6301. The alternator idler uses two of these -- be careful when pressing these in and make sure they seat properly.

I did not see any coolant around the water pump or hear any additional squeaking, so I will assume that idler bearing is fine for now. I plan on plushing the cooling system before summer as well.

As promised, here is a how-to guide to removing and installing the p/s pump:

First, you will need the following tools:

3/8 and 1/2 drive ratchets (air wrenches if you have them or can borrow them!), 12mm socket, 14mm socket, 3/4 inch socket, 24(?) mm socket, 10mm ratcheting wrench, phillips screwdriver, Torx bit (do not know the size) large long handle flat screwdriver, brake cleaner, large catch pan, jack and stands.

To begin with, remove the battery, top fan shroud cover and fan blade assembly. There are 4 10mm nuts holding the fan to the water pump. It only comes out the top, so to make it easier, remove the 10mm nuts holding the radiator top brackets to the core support. Then, carefuly pull the fan up and out. Removing the top engine cover also helps if yours is a tight fit.

Next, remove the p/s idler pulley and belt. if you consult the FSM, you will see the location of the idler pulley adjuster. Remove the engine splash cover. Loosen the 14mm nut in the center of the pulley and then the 12mm adjustment bolt enough to remove the belt and put it aside. Next, CAREFULLY remove the idler pulley (creates more room to work).

I emphasize carefully bc if you simply pull the pulley off, all of the washers and bearing dirt covers will fall on the ground. From the engine forward, the idler pulley is assembled with the smaller bearing cover, then larger washer, then pulley (pay attention to the grooves on the face of the pulley, it only goes one way) then, smaller washer, then the larger bearing cover. If your bearing is not turning smoothly, replace the bearing with a #6301 and have it pressed in. You can also press it in yourself like , but if you have never done this, then spend the $30 and have it done by a shop.

Next, remove the three 14mm bolts holding the pump -- two are the same length and one is about 5 inches long. Note: on the long bolt, there is an L shaped threaded bracket that mounts in the rear of the pump bracket that will fall off once the bolt is removed. When you reinstall that bolt you will have to hold the bracket in place and have someone else rethread the long bolt into the L bracket. You can do it yourself like I did, but I had the benefit of using an air tool.

Next, move the pump out of its cradle before loosening the hoses. There is one feed line (rubber) and one pressure line. Remove the rubber line by loosening the clamp and let it drain in your catch pan. Fluid will get everywhere, so have plenty of brake cleaner on hand on cleanup. Next, place the 24mm (I believe it is this size) socket and hold the pump while loosening the banjo bolt. This is where the air tool really shine. I was able to carefully remove the banjo bolt without damaging anything or busting my knuckles. There are two brass washers, on on each side of the pipe the bolt slides into -- keep these for reassembly. Use a piece of wire to mount this line out of the way.

Now, carefully pull the pump up and out and drain any remaining fluid in the pan. Now, bring the pump to your work bench and using the proper Torx bit, remove the pick up tube that attaches to the rubber line. The bracket that holds that line also holds the pressure line. Loosen the other line using the 3/4 inch socket and reinstall the line onto the new pump. Make sure you inspect the o-rings and lube them a little with ATF. Your new pump should come with a new o-ring for the pick up tube. Snug everything down and check to make sure the lines are seated properly. Then tighten the two Torx bolts.

Next, use the ¾ inch socket to remove the pulley nut. The pulley should fall off, but if not, carefully tap it with a block of wood and reinstall it on the new pump. Remember to tighten the pulley nut. Now, pour a little p/s fluid in the pick up and turn the pulley a little to prime the pump.

Installation is the reverse of the above. Also, remember the L bracket on the 5 inch pump bolt. If your pump has failed, there may be some trash in the lines that needs to be flushed out. After running some clean fluid in the lines, reattach the lines and use the FSM method for bleeding out the air. Don't forget to return your old pump and get your core deposit back. One thing that was recommended to me was to use straight p/s fluid instead of ATF. I was advised that ATF used to be fine to use, but the newer fluid contains too many cleaners that is attacks the pump seals. This may or may not be true, but I went ahead and flushed my system and put in straight p/s fluid. So far, no chirps and or intermittent squeaking. To finish up, liberally spray the area down to remove the spilled fluid. Also, check each line to make sure they are not seeping/leaking.

Total time from removal to driving the car, about 3 ½ hours. Like I said, the air tools helped budge the bolts that have been in place for ten years. You can use the above as a guide for your project and gauge it according to your abilities. I don't work on a project like a maniac to see how quickly I can do it. I take my time on each job to minimize redoing it in the future.

Good luck!!
Modified by tfvesquire at 11:23 AM 5/5/2008

[qship96]

I wonder if the idler pully bearings were the cause of your problems, and you replaced a perfectly functioning p/s pump for nothing? Pumps typically dont fail on the Q.

[tfvesquire]

To answer your question. Before I removed the pump, I removed the alternator idler pulley assembly and ran the engine for about 5 mins. Within about 45 secs, the intermittent squeaking came back, so I rulled out the alternator pulley bearings as the culprit. As I posted above, I did discover that one of the alternator pulley bearings were starting to go, so I made a decision to install new bearings so I would not have to so in the near future.

[oldmako]

Thanks for taking the time to post the write up.

[vanzant]

just looking at the location of the PS pump it seems like it would be more accessible from the bottom. You removed yours from above. Is there a reason? BTW, I've tried finding a rebuilt pump and they are non existent. Apparently there's been a rash of failures.

[doquinn]

Thanks for the detailed write-up tfvesquire. I think it will have to replace the pump on my '97 soon and your info gave me some good insight into how to go about this.