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Car Forum / Chrysler Cars / December 20062000 Concorde 3.2 L - power steering
The power steering "hesitates" momentarily at low RPM in this car. By this, I mean that it seems to stiffen up momentarily while turning the wheel in the driveway or at a stop sign - not at real driving speeds above 20-25 MPH. I took it to a "reputable" repair shop in my home town and their "solution" was to remove the shaft and lubricate it. That didn't work. Precisely accompanying the hesitation, there is a muffled clicking or thumping sound which comes seemingly from under the driver's side dash about every 1 - 3 seconds at low engine RPM. It sounds like some type of pressure switch, but I really don't know. The fluid level is normal, and never requires topping off. Does anyone have an idea what could be causing this? The belts were all recently replaced during the 60,000 mile maintenance, and the car has about 80K miles on it now. 3.2 L engine. Thanks, Carey > The power steering "hesitates" momentarily at low RPM in this car. By > this, I mean that it seems to stiffen up momentarily while turning the [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > > Carey Perhaps the new belt has loosened - have it checked and re-tightened if loose. The pump sees it's highest resistance to turning at idle - highest load on the belt at that time. If that isn't the problem, have p.s. fluid flushed and replaced (ATF+4 only). "I took it to a 'reputable' repair shop in my home town and their 'solution' was to remove the shaft and lubricate it" - that doesn't make sense. Bill Putney (To reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my address with the letter 'x') >> The power steering "hesitates" momentarily at low RPM in this car. By >> this, I mean that it seems to stiffen up momentarily while turning the [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] >highest load on the belt at that time. If that isn't the problem, have >p.s. fluid flushed and replaced (ATF+4 only). Both of these are worth a shot. I'll try these out. >"I took it to a 'reputable' repair shop in my home town and their >'solution' was to remove the shaft and lubricate it" - that doesn't make >sense. My statement or their solution? They said they removed the steering wheel shaft and lubricated it. I have had a lot of used car repairs done with them in the past, and have been satisfied till now. Thanks again for your reply! - Carey Carey >> The power steering "hesitates" momentarily at low RPM in this car. By >> this, I mean that it seems to stiffen up momentarily while turning the [quoted text clipped - 28 lines] >(To reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my >address with the letter 'x') Get this.... before I had a chance to try your suggestions, my battery up and died (while at the airport!). I got a jump, then a replacement battery. After R&R of the battery ... no kidding... my power steering problem disappeared!!! Go figure. BTW, the R&R of the battery did not help my trunk lid issue. Carey > Get this.... before I had a chance to try your suggestions, my battery up > and died (while at the airport!). > > I got a jump, then a replacement battery. After R&R of the battery ... no > kidding... my power steering problem disappeared!!! Go figure. The alternator and p.s. pump are on the same belt. Certain dieing battery problems would load that belt. If it was marginally tight, the extra load (on the alternator) could have caused the belt to slip, affecting p.s. at the same time. Along with that, for a given current load on the alternator, the torque load on the belt is at its worst at idle, hence the p.s. problem presenting itself at low rpm's and idle. Is it possible also that the shop that replaced your battery pro-actively tightened the belt? (or being cynical, the battery was alright - your belt got thrown causing the battery to die, and they replaced and properly tightened the new belt) Bill Putney (To reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my address with the letter 'x') >> Get this.... before I had a chance to try your suggestions, my battery up >> and died (while at the airport!). [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] >load on the alternator, the torque load on the belt is at its worst at >idle, hence the p.s. problem presenting itself at low rpm's and idle. Makes sense. It was the original Mopar battery and served me well for 6 years. >Is it possible also that the shop that replaced your battery >pro-actively tightened the belt? (or being cynical, the battery was >alright - your belt got thrown causing the battery to die, and they >replaced and properly tightened the new belt) No, I replaced the battery myself. Bought it at Wal-Mart and they didn't have enough people on board to change out due to the location of the battery. Gave the terminals a bath in liquified baking soda and greased 'em down with vaseline before installing the new battery. Sounds like I need to have a look at the belt tension. Thanks again for your time! Maybe my experience will help someone else... Happy New Year! Carey > ...Thanks again for your time!... You're welcome! Bill Putney (To reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my address with the letter 'x') |
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