Nasty screeching/whining noise when steering

[5zigen]

1997 Q45 non touring. 99xxx miles. Not sure if p/s system was ever serviced. Has p/s pump moan too. When the wheel is turned when car is idle it makes a very nasty screeching noise. Just making sure this is a p/s system problem?

[maxnix]

How's the PS fluid look? This can be a real problem on the FY33 if not maintained, moreso than even the G50.

Get to it now (mechanical flush with m1 ATF replacement) and new belts and tensioners, or it may be too late.

Why preventive maintenance is the cheapest practice. Once broken, very expensive to replace.

[jtesensky]

Could be a bad tensioner, sounds like you need a good service on it. Maxnix is right, get on that thing quick, a new pump i slike $400.00 plus...

[5zigen]

The fluid is... *gasp* very burnt and brown. Its also a bit low... I guess I will be taking it to the dealership, they quoted me $160 for a flush!

[FarFetched]

Don't be ridiculous, don't spend that much. Get 2-3 qts of quality P/S fluid and flush it!Raise front wheel off the ground and do it. Save $$ for som else.

[FarFetched]

One thing about Nissan, and Jap cars in general, their p/s pumps don't get damaged as easy as most American built p/s pumpsI am talking from experience. Besides when I did p/s system flush on my Y33, it'd caught fair amount of air and I had hard time getting rid of it. I would say after 15-20 min of fight I won. P/S pump as quiet as it should be. Cheers!

[5zigen]

For a DIY job, where can I find the bleeder valve?

[FarFetched]

Quote »MAKE SURE YOU HAVE FRONT WHEELS OFF THE GROUND OR P/S PUMP MIGHT GET DAMAGED[/quote]All you have to do is disable fuel system (initial bleeding) and then find a return hose to the reservoir, disconnect it crank the engine (you might need a helper) till you get no P/S fluid output. Reconnect return line fill p/s fluid crank-fill-crank-fill (turn steering wheel full-lock-to-full-lock while cranking engine) ....till you get system semi-full. Then you need to enable fuel system and start the engine run it short peroid shut it off. let air bubbles to settle. Repeat until you don't see any bubbling i the P/S system. Cheers!Time consuming, but you'll save 160$$ and learn something about your Q45 Cheers!

[5zigen]

A few more questions... I searched through the FSM and was not able to find an exact answer on how to disable the fuel system.

Also, how many quarts of ATF do I need to get this job done? What happens if I leave air in the system? If there is air in the system do I return to the bleeding process? (crank-fill-crank-fill etc)

Thank you.

[DAEDALUS]

Pull the fuel pump fuse to disable the fuel system. I also pull the injector link if I'll be cranking for some time since there may be a downside to firing the injectors without fuel pressure. Maybe that's being overly careful, but it doesn't take much time. You'll need as many quarts as it takes till the fluid throughout the system looks new. It may be 2-3 qts like FarFetched said, and probably more for HICAS cars.

[5zigen]

Sorry for the gravedig, but I got to the job today. Is it normal for the fluid to take a long time to filter through the wire screen built into the resovoir?

Man, getting the fluid out of the resovoir was not fun... very very messy job, fluid all over right engine bay. Had to pour water through it to get most of it out...

[Q451990]

Had to pour water through it to get most of it out...

Hope you're talking about the engine bay and not the resivor! I've noticed that it takes a while to get fluid through the screen too - so I'd say that's normal.

Heath

[DAEDALUS]

Hope so too! For the PS you need to have a garage-dedicated turkey baster. Pull the screen out and go to town. Do it a few times between drives to incrementally replace the fluid. Note any debris on the screen--black bits would indicate deteriorating seals, discoloration other than what ATF would do means not enough fluid changes.

[5zigen]

Haha yes, had to pour water on the engine bay... fluid wasn't THAT messed up to need assistance coming out

The fluid was... something between a mix of amber and brown, and transparent, did not look like ATF was ussed in the previous change. I have an eerie feeling that my steering system is out of shape.

Okay the thing is, I poured the fluid into the resevoir about 12 hours ago... it hasn't moved anywhere! Do I need to take the screen out?

Oh and my biggest problem is, I was so excited about this job that, when the fluid was already out of the resevoir, I realized I did not release fuel pressure! So that means I have to refill the resovoir and THEN release fuel pressure, then drain it again for full flush... unless someone on Nico can assist me.

*Edit: it appears the mesh filter is not going anywhere. The fluid also, is only staying in the upper level of the resevoir. Nothing is going into the bottom end. HELP ME!
Modified by 5zigen at 3:32 AM 7/9/2005

[5zigen]

up

[DAEDALUS]

I'm not sure what you're saying. Only the upper level of the reservoir is full... You mean you drained the entire reservoir but you can't fill it because it's not bleeding through the screen? Are you trying to bleed or refill? The screen comes out with a small flat-blade. There is a notch to pry it out with.

Don't worry about the fuel pressure. You can just disable the injectors by pulling their link. It might fire up briefly, but it should die again right away.

[5zigen]

I'm not sure what you're saying. Only the upper level of the reservoir is full... You mean you drained the entire reservoir but you can't fill it because it's not bleeding through the screen? Are you trying to bleed or refill? The screen comes out with a small flat-blade. There is a notch to pry it out with.

Don't worry about the fuel pressure. You can just disable the injectors by pulling their link. It might fire up briefly, but it should die again right away.

Refill, thanks, I will get to the job right now. And yeah, it's not bleeding through the screen.

I just took a look at the injectors, I managed to get the ones on cylinders 2,4 8 out but not 6, and I had to use a very thin plier to grab onto the connectors and pull them that way. After inspecting the right bank I decided that pulling the injectors was out of the question. It's too hard to get them undone on the right bank and it requires removing stuff, which I am not willing to do, this P/S flush is turning out to be a much harder job than it really is.

Also, my screen still wont come out... I don't want to apply too much force beacuse I am afraid some plastic will chip off and fall into the fluid.

*edit: and heres what I meant about the "upper level" is only full... if you've ever taken a look at the p/s resovoir on the Y33, you will know the upper section is a bit bigger than the lower section. I've included a crude drawing; the maroon stuff would be the ATF fluid, and the silver thing would be the screen.

[DAEDALUS]

Whoa! Sorry I wasn't more clear! When I said "link", I meant "fusible link". It's a big fuse in a plastic compartment under the hood. Pull the link, and it kills the injectors.

I'm looking at the '97 manual, and the diagrams look the same as for the G50 model. I'm not seeing a difference with the reservoir, but it could just be an oversight on Infiniti's part. I don't think the G50 manuals say anything about the screen either, but I know they come out. Does it at least rotate?

[5zigen]

I'm looking at the '97 manual, and the diagrams look the same as for the G50 model. I'm not seeing a difference with the reservoir, but it could just be an oversight on Infiniti's part. I don't think the G50 manuals say anything about the screen either, but I know they come out. Does it at least rotate?

Nope, nothing. It appears that the screen is as a matter of fact built into the resevoir. You know whats really weird though? When I pull the return hose, the fluid FINALLY goes into the second level of the resevoir and out. It's a very interesting design, I would like to see what else goes on inside that tiny little resevoir.

I hate to ask but... I did a bunch of searching in the FSM and could not come up with what exact link to pull? Do you happen to know?

Thank you DAEDALUS for being the only one to help me
Modified by 5zigen at 6:10 AM 7/10/2005

[maxnix]

So much easier, safer and surely more complete to get it done by hooking up to the Sun machine.

[DAEDALUS]

I hate to ask but... I did a bunch of searching in the FSM and could not come up with what exact link to pull? Do you happen to know?

It looks like they took it easy on the Y33 and put the pump and the injectors on the same fuse. Since you're refilling it, just keep the fluid level up and bleed the system as instructed on page ST-7 of the manual. Wheels up, turn the wheel lock to lock rapidly untill there's no change in fluid volume. Then do the same with the engine running.

[5zigen]

After getting everything done, it appears that the screeching noise, which is still there but much much less quiet, only occurs when turning the wheels only when the engine is running. But when steering when the engine off, there is no noise.

Is a little fluid noise normal or is this still a problem?

Should I change the belt, because the idiot independent shop my dad took it to replaced the belt but it most likely wasn't torqued correctly.

Any other ideas?

[maxnix]

Check the idlers and pulleys. Is the belt OEM and sized correctly?

[5zigen]

Check the idlers and pulleys. Is the belt OEM and sized correctly?

Unfortunately the belt is not OEM, but appears to have a good fitment. I might replace it and retorque all the nuts/bolts.