Power steering hose to stock HICAS reservoir

[Chuckl]

I am having a problem with a couple of power steering hoses leaking. Seems like a lot of others have this same problem. I have a 1991 240SX with HICAS. I have a stock reservoir, but unlike non-HICAS, I have three inlets. Two are 3/8” and one is I believe 3/4”. One of the 3/8” inlets is the return from the rack and the other 3/8” inlet goes to the pump. The 3/4” inlet goes to the pump also. The hose I am having the most trouble with is the return from the rack to the 3/8” inlet on the reservoir. This is because it goes from hose and is crimped to a tube going to the rack and no one seems to have it. I had decided I wanted to get some 6AN hose with a fitting that would attach to a 6AN to 16MM adapter to the rack. The other hoses that are leaking are just hose with clamps. I wanted to find everything I needed in one place, but that is hard also. I was looking at chasebays.com and they had the fittings, but no hose on the site. I contacted them and they said they would make me the hose I needed, but they didn’t think I could attach a 6AN hose to the stock reservoir with a clamp. I would also like to get some 10AN hose to go from the 3/4” inlet on the reservoir to the pump. This piping goes all over this car going from hose to tube. I actually just need to get the reservoir hose replaced for now. I wish there was a tutorial on replacing the stock hoses and what tubing you could bypass, but I could not find it.

Here are my main questions. Can you attach 6AN hose to a stock HICAS reservoir inlet with clamps? Will 10 AN hose attach to the stock reservoir with clamps? Thanks.

Chuck

[ca18det_boy]

Yes you can attach a 6AN hose to an inlet with clamps...but it's going to suck. I would try to use fittings if possible. The same applies for a 10AN hose. FWIW, I get all of my AN products from Summit. It's simply just one stop shopping and if you get the Summit brand fittings/hose then the price goes down quite a bit compared to Earls.

[Chuckl]

I have to use clamps to attach any hose to the reservoir, that's the only way. I saw the chasebays.com reservoir kit and they attached the hose to the pump with clamps so I thought that would be OK. Why are you saying it would suck to attach it that way? Would it not be a good fit because of size difference between the inlet and the hose? It's that soft hose to hard going to the rack that is causing all the problems.

Chuck

[ca18det_boy]

Braided hose obviously doesn't flex a whole lot. So getting things over the barb in order to clamp it can literally turn into a bloody battle very quickly. The chase bays kit has all AN fittings except for reservoir to pump. Even then you need to trim it to fit your particular application. Using clamps isn't the issue, its getting the line on that can be an issue. If you're wanting to reuse your reservoir then you'll need to cut off the plastic barb and a 6AN line will get on there with relative ease. If you want to pocket a bit of dough and still have all AN, then you can get an SOHC reservoir or equivalent and either weld on an AN fitting or use a bulkhead fitting on it. Now essentially you'll need to order the chase bays pressure hose anyways due to the fact that the high pressure hose is rated to something along the lines of 2k psi, where as the low pressure line isn't anywhere close to that. So the high pressure line will need to be crimped on instead of the typical AN fitting assembly. I ordered the chase bays kit for $129 thinking it was only the high pressure line, it actually ended up being the new reservoir, -10 AN to pump, and 2 -6AN lines to the rack. Since I already built my AN lines with my cooler I'm only using the reservoir and the high pressure line. Since you're dealing with a HICAS model then things could get a bit more interesting. I haven't messed with a HICAS steering system so it'd be tough to assist without seeing it.

[Chuckl]

My main problem is that one hose to the rack and I was hoping to get a solution pretty easy. This car is mostly driven for fun. I am not looking to drift or anything right now, so I didn't want to put a lot of money into a problem that isn't there. The high pressure lines seem to be all over the place, but not the return one that I need. If I cut that barb I don't know if it would hold good. If I put oil on the tube, like in the chasebays video, could I get it on? I wonder if I cut the hard tube, would the rubber hose stay on it with a clamp? I suspect the hard tube has a barb also. The AN lines do make a clean look though. Thanks.

Chuck

[Chuckl]

Could I run rubber hose from the reservoir all the way to the rack? If they make it, I could use a 6AN to barb fitting and mate that to a 6AN to 16mm fitting to the rack.

Chuck

[ca18det_boy]

Provided that the rubber hose is high pressure I don't see why you couldn't run it from the reservoir to the rack. Essentially that's what it is from the factory. The only line I would be very worried about is your high pressure line. That one has to be a crimped line, if it's not then it will just start vomiting fluid all over your bay and you don't want hydraulic fluid getting on a hot manifold. Just so we're on the same page, can you host a picture of specifically which line we're talking about? I'm 98% positive that we're talking about the same hose, but I don't want to feed you bad information.

[Chuckl]

I will get a pic when I get home tonight. I thought this was a low pressure return line. I does have a crimp though going from the rubber to hard tube.

Chuck

[Chuckl]

Is there an easy way to post pics? I have them on my PC, can't I just past them in or do I have to go another route?

Chuck

[ca18det_boy]

https://www.google.com/search?q=free+im ... e&ie=UTF-8

[Chuckl]

OK, I am still having trouble posting a pic. I am at work and our firewall prevents me from going to certain sites. Luckily not this one. I could go to photobucket, but when I tried to create an account it kept saying the username was taken, I even put in crazy ones. I like the forums that I can copy and paste.

Here is what I have decided to do. The line I want to replace is the bigger tube where it goes to the rack. If you look down at the rack from above it is the hard tube on top. It also has the bigger fitting of the two where it enters the rack. The service manual says this is a low pressure line. I don't know why Nissan put a crimped line there, maybe they had a bunch laying around. The rubber tube is not all that big, maybe 5/8" OD and 3/8"ID so I don't think high pressure. Since this goes back to the reservoir as rubber and has a clamp at the inlet I think I will be OK with a 6AN to barb fitting. Then I will mate it with a 6AN to 16MM with oring fitting that they sell for the rack. Also everything at the reservoir is low pressure, correct? I will make sure the tube is power steering rated. Worst that can happen is that it bust and then I will know. Thanks for all your help.

Chuck

[ca18det_boy]

Hope this helps, does it clarify anything for you? Also I sent you an email. We'll get this sorted!

[ca18det_boy]

I've hosted the pictures that Chuck sent. It appears the hose in question is the high pressure crimped line that goes from the pump to the rack.

[Chuckl]

The bigger line in the first pic goes back to the reservoir. The hard line to rubber with the crimp in the second pic goes back to the reservoir, not the pump.

chuck

[ca18det_boy]

Your reservoir should only have 2 lines coming off it. A 3/4" or 5/8" that goes to the pump, and a smaller 3/8" that goes to the factory cooler. The smaller line goes through the cooler and then gets clamped on a hard line that screws into the rack. From your pump should be a factory banjo bolt fitting that goes to a crimped soft line, that soft line wraps around and the other side is back to a crimped hard line that is then threaded into the rack. The only line that is high pressure is the crimped line that goes from the pump to the rack.

[Chuckl]

I have HICAS. My reservoir has three lines coming from it. One like you say is 5/8" maybe, and goes straight to the pump. One other is 3/8" and could go to a cooler like you say, not sure, but it does go to the front of the car. The third line is 3/8" and goes for a foot or so and turns into the hard line with a crimp right there. This is the bigger line that goes to the rack. My pump has two outlets with the banjo connectors and I am not exactly sure how it routs. There is a HICAS solenoid that handles fluid and these pump lines and maybe others go to it. I wish the manual would show better pictures of how this routs. I thought at first there might be two pumps. I will try and get some more pics tonight. I guess the question now is, is this crimped line high or low pressure? Actually I am thinking now I might get a local hydraulic to make me a line.

Chuck

[ca18det_boy]

New photos from Chuck, looks like the line in question is in fact a low pressure line from the reservoir and not one of the high pressure lines from the pump.

[Chuckl]

Here is an update that isn't actually an update. I got my parts in which were a 6AN to 3/8" barb and the 6AN to 16mm for the rack. I decided I could buy hose local. I got the 3/8" hose first and was just going to replace the one to the rack and see how that went. I found out right away that I should have ordered a 90 degree 6AN fitting because it lays so close to the underside rails. This may be why Nissan used the pipe. I was going to have to change the route different and I was going to order a 90 degree fitting next week. After I got that changed I decided to change the other hoses to the reservoir also. I had to cut them off. For hoses that were leaking, they did't want to come off. I had some 3/8" hose so I replaced the next one. The 7/8" hose for the reservoir to the pump I was going to have to go get. I thought everyone would carry plain old 7/8 rubber hose, turns out the don't. I thought OK, I have to order the 90 degree fitting anyway, I will order hose also. That fitting to barb is looking like it might be hard to find and the hose also, are you kidding? Not sure If I can use other types of hoses, like heater etc.

Here is what I am thinking now. I sent summit racing.com an email telling them of my problem. I may take a chance and order the nylon braided hose. Everything is available if I go that route. Because the nylon braided hose is rubber lined I may can get it over the barbs. I also thought the reservoir was plastic, but its aluminum so I can be a little rough. There is a chasebays video that the show them getting the reservoir to pump over the barb on the pump, by putting a little oil on the barb. That barb is 7/8" which is the same size on my reservoir. That line is actually 16AN in the chase bays video. So I am waiting to here back from summit racing, but will be down for at least another week.

Chuck