hi guys ..

i took a seasonal job to earn some extra christmas money ..

it's a good drive and i'm putting alot more miles on bonnie than is her custom .

she handles it great / aside from having to regularly start her to keep her warm and goin' ..

so here's my question hopefully you guys that have had some simalar issue might know ..

she always uses a little bit of power steering fluid .. there's a slight drip .. but i'm thinking it might have gotten worse .. or maybe it's just more pronounced now that' i've been driving longer distances ..

usually i top her p/s off once every month or two whenever it starts to whine .. no big deal ..

- i topped it off about 5 days ago - but today i heard the whine .. which was a bit surprising because i had just topped it .. so i looked in and it looked okay from the top .. but the bottom /

it was all slimed out with the p/s fluid looks like it's spraying from ][ steering ][ gear] ??

i'm not sure because it's too dark and cold tonight to more througly investigate but it's a blowout somewhere .. just a cursory look it looks like from where the pitman arm comes out of the steering gear ..

is this a likely place for a blowout? '

is this something i can fix ? pull off pitman arm / replace steering gear seal or o-ring ?

i tossed whatever p/s fluid i had left in and when the top was off it had a distinct burn smell that i've never smelt before .. it was only real low and whining for maybe 10 miles it seems ..

but when i put more fluid it quieted right down and works like normal .. is that gonna be okay when i repair and just drain and replace with fluid or is burned up stuff gonna effect other parts ?

is there a worthwhile and safe 'stop leak' product that isn't gonna do more damage than good ? for a temp solution ..

i have mercron atf in the bed .. that she sips along with her daily dose of diesel .. can this be safely mixed with what p/s fluid is left ?

if it is the bottom can i pull one off a donor pretty easily and replace from all across the 80 - 96 F-series spectrum or is there some thing particular .. also if it needs a p/s gear can anyone recomend on that will fit with a high ratio .. i love tight turn boxes i hate my 5 turns lock to lock (seems like) gear box anyways ..

also i have a 69 f-100 that has a beefy looking gear box on it .. i don't know what it is but i don't suppose that would bolt up ?

suggestions / ramblings / advice about steering gears/ p/s pumps / leaking please

i will have a much better look see tomorow .. it may not even be from the bottom of the gear/pitman .. but that's what looks really wettest .. at least at night in semi dark with drippy fluid ..

 

also .. on a side note .. i pulled my block heater last year .. it was leaky ..

but to help her going in the morning i strapped a thrift store hair dryer from off the starter pointing at the pan ..

and ran a really long extension cord to the house .. now .. when i wake up i plug in the cord from the comfort of my home .. and let if blow on it a few hours ..

it's not a 'block heater' and doesn't work as good .. but it deffinetly takes the chill off so that it fires off ether and doens't clammor and klank so bad from being cold as withches ******* ..

i'm gonna strap another one on top pointed at the intake manifold to help it bump over that much faster ..

 

ohh .. also i wrapped an insulated rubber and carpet door matt around my battery to retain it's heat a little and have a little more cold cranking amps after some hours ..

doesn't make a humongous difference .. but every bit helps dem diesels go in the cold ..

 

sweet *** **** .. i just looked up on rock auto ..

and they list a power steering gear seals kit only 7 dollars..

looks like a puller + few o-rings and a snap ring pliers should seal that bottom end up ..

so i'm guessing one of those o's blew out ..

gonna order it and slap it on there .. drain and change the fluid ..

still seeking any relevant information about a potential 2-2.75:1 ratio box if anyone knows / and or advice on replaceing said seals ..

 

If you do not want to reseal that one the complete pump is not very expensive from Rock. The one I got was a Lares. Check your return line at the pump

 

buy a magnetic stick to the pan type block heater 200 watts way more effect than your current set up and cheap. started my 91 van 18* no block heater, three 15 second cycles of the key started right up. you may still have a glow plug problem.

 

thanks guys for the replies ..

so it isn't a huge blowout as i initially feared .. just a leak expounded by more driving ..

i put a 1/4 quart of atf and it's doin fine after a few days ..

at this rate this isn't gonna be some emergency fix at 30 degrees on the ground .. i will just keep topping it and buy new orings .. and the first nice day i'll sealer up again ..

also .. yes i do want to get a magnetic heater .. the hair dryer is just an ohh **** stop gap manuver .. and it does help ..

i guarentee i have no glo plug problems though .. i have no glow plugs

starting off glo plugs is more of a suggestion than an assurance .. i need my truck as a daily driver .. so starting is not optional - i gets her goin every time thats' all that matters to me .