89 ka24et power steering problem of some kind. 1/4 turn hard, then fine, repeat.

[iamanonymous]

so basically.....my cars power steering has always been a low point. i recently had the high pressure line repaired. everything was good for a minute until it started getting harder to turn. for like a month or so. then last week out of the blue it started working normally. until yesterday. now its literally every 1/4 turn of the wheel it has a "smooth spot" then its hard to turn between them. its weird. so is my problem the rack or the pump. i currently have the stock rack.

.....wow first post in two years of being a member.....
Modified by iamanonymous at 7:01 PM 2/25/2010

[Infinitiguy19]

Check the pump then the rack boots to see if there torn. How is the fluid level?

[sx moneypit]

Sounds to me like your going to need a new rack .Make sure you don't have any suspension components binding up first though.

[iamanonymous]

yeah, after i posted i thought i probably shouldve said more.

fluid level is normal currently. no bubbles, no squealing sounds; which are two things i associate with bad pumps. and the belt was recently replaced.

so it sounds like i may need a new rack....more opinions?

[iamanonymous]

ok i now have two problems with my car....the rack and a new problem.

cant put it into gear at stop light.must rev match to shift

the slave cylinder is new.nismo clutch hosei removed the helper thing....rps street mega awesome blah blah clutch

when i put new clutch in i didnt replace throw out bearing or pilot bearing cuz im an idiot and was rushing. since i bought the car years ago i have had a constant grinding sound when driving.....when clutch is engaged. not when clutch in. slave cylinder seems to be working ok-ish. ive tried bleeding it two seperate times.....it is an autozone slave cylinder though.could it be anything else.....? ideas?

[sx moneypit]

Does the car make the grinding noise in every gear?Is your freeplay on your clutch pedal adjusted correctly?

[iamanonymous]

Does the car make the grinding noise in every gear?Is your freeplay on your clutch pedal adjusted correctly?

yes the grinding noise happens in every gear.as far as freeplay adjustment, i have never done that, but i will say it doesnt kick out the top inch or so most of the time. in addition, my clutch pedal is strong as all hell cuz the clutch and the helper removal mod. feels great when it works.

[sx moneypit]

As far as getting it into gear ,adjust your freeplay up and see what that does.As far as your noise , it must have a bad bearing in the transmission .

[iamanonymous]

adjusted freeplay. thats fixed.as far as transmission goes i picked up another and will swap out...so back to the steering issue.....the car when i bought it a few years back had a totally trashed front end. all ball joints and boots toast. boots for rack i mean....so how likely is it that the rack is toast. given that i am having this weird every quarter turn thing....i had a bad rack in another car and it stuck at only 1/4-1/2 turn ONCE each way....just making sure before dropping $250.00

[sx moneypit]

You might want to try flushing the power steering system first, that might take care of it.

[iamanonymous]

so happy when things dont work right. stupid hydraulics......so adjusted the pedal height to about 7.25" from the carpet.clutch just does not feel right. it lightly grabs right above the floor and just feels weak all the way through until my foot is completely off pedal. in addition, the hard shifting is still happening. meaning i have to rev match to shift. ESPECIALLY after getting on it hard. remember mine is turbo. and my clutch and flywheel is not stock. the funny thing is these problems happened overnight, even when my clutch pedal height was about 6" or so i didnt have these problems. i think im gonna replace the slave cylinder anyway. autozone piece of crap with lifetime warranty. nismo one is way to rich for my blood although at this point it may be the only thing that will work. my clutch is pretty tough. any advice on the clutch?

and the power steering. goody. so i ran a lucas additive for a bit a couple years back because the high pressure hose had a leak. it is possible that that caused some gunk buildup. how would one go about flushing power steering?

thanks for the quick replies

[sx moneypit]

Let me finish a couple of cars up and i will get back with you.

[sx moneypit]

On your clutch, maybe the pressure plate has collapsed some.On the power steering,remove the return hose from the pump,cap the nipple off and fill the reservoir with fluid until it is clean coming out of the return hose.Use something to catch the dirty fluid.

[iamanonymous]

i really dont think the pressure plate collapsing would be possible. im about to pull the transmission though. any telltale signs?

asfar as the ps pump bleeding goes....just remove the rubber hose between the pump and reservoir ok no problem. the only thing is, if its gunked up how will i know it all is out?

[sx moneypit]

You can measure the height of the pressure plate to tell if it is ok.On the steering,when the fluid runs clean you should have all the garbage out.You might want to get some power steering flush and run through it .

[Andy4106]

i have the same 1/4 turn steering problem, and a brand new rack:(

the way i work it out to, is the hard spots are not consistent, sometimes its in some spots on the turn, or its in a completely different set. but say if its in the top dead center. i can wiggle it back and forth then its easy in the top and not hard anymore. i dont know what it is, i thought it was the pump. but i have no noises, bubbles, leaks.

[Andy4106]

new update with mine, tonight steering became a bit easier for no reason. still the 1/4 turn then kinda hard then easy. never in the same spot. i think its my fluid. and maybe my pump. but i dont have 170 bucks to drop on a new pump yet on just hopes of it being the problem.

anyone else have this issue?

[rioredstang]

I don't think you have a pump issue. The pump is a pump, it supplies pressure. If steering is not hard all the time I think the pressure is OK. It sounds like something still binding. I would check upper strut mount plates. The bearing going bad will cause binding. I have seen the bearing lock up and the spring would jump on the strut housing when turning.

[iamanonymous]

replaced slave cylinder. still have an impossible time getting it in gear. rebuilding clutch master cylinder tomorrow. have not flushed power steering yet.

[iamanonymous]

rebuilt master cylinder. same problem.

[sx moneypit]

How does the clutch pedal feel?

[iamanonymous]

it doesnt feel any different than it ever has resistance-wise. as far as engagement goes, i would have to say it maybe feels a small bit better, but its tough for me to answer that because im usually trying to revmatch or pop in secound to quickly then pop in first and hope it goes before i get rearended at a stoplight. in other words, im getting very annoyed with the difficulty getting it into gear that i dont really notice anything else. i sent an email to a tech at rps clutch. im guessing that if they get back to me it wont be until at the earliest monday.

[sx moneypit]

Might be time for that new transmission!

[iamanonymous]

yeah thats a given. was gonna put that other transmission on, replace the tob and pilot bearing. any other ideas? problem is it still doesnt act like the clutch is fully disengaging when i push in the pedal. considering it keeps trying to go at a standstill. have to hold clutch and brake and hope car doesnt stall.

[sx moneypit]

I am still kind of suspecting the pressure plate,could have a worn out pivot ball or a cracked clutch fork.

[iamanonymous]

those parts would be on the other transmission too though, right?

[iamanonymous]

well to wrap this up, the pressure plate was collapsed. i got it replace by rps. they no longer make pressure plates for 240s anymore. bummer. also the transmission works great now that a different one is in there. still havent got the ps pump/rack issue figured out yet tho

[Klits562]

I don't think you have a pump issue. The pump is a pump, it supplies pressure. If steering is not hard all the time I think the pressure is OK. It sounds like something still binding. I would check upper strut mount plates. The bearing going bad will cause binding. I have seen the bearing lock up and the spring would jump on the strut housing when turning.

I've had this problem when i replaced my springs i tightened the nut on top of the bearing to hard and that cause the springs to jump but this is very noisy and cause lots of movement in the steering wheel so i dont think this is his problem.

I had the same problem as the op and my tie rods boots were TRASHED as well as the dust bellows on the rack. My rack and ps line were both leaking pretty bad.

Is the rough spot of the turn feel like theres no power steering or does it feel like weak power steering?

My ps would go completely out in my rough part of the turn. I had a new pump but that didnt change anything so i replaced my tierod ends with a new rack and new ps line and now it feels amaaazziinnnggggg so you might have to just go n drop the money but trust me its worth it.

Do note if your going to change your rack try n get a hicas rack it has a different ratio so it takes less turns of the steering wheel to turn your wheels more. And get some nice bushings( energysuspension work great n they're only $15)