Hi All,

1989 shorty, 3.0L

I'm getting a constant whine now, and think it's power steering related, but I only hear it at idle, I guess cuz the engine is quieter?

I flushed out the old fluid from the res, and added some nice new syth to there, and the van steers fine, just has that little "hiss" sound when you turn the wheel, outside of that wine...

don't think it's the tranny, cause it gets less when I'm moving....

Can anything else whine like that? I don't hear it exactly right at the unit, like I do on my exploder - I just don't want any surprises

 

water pump?

To verify that it's the power steering pump, have your van parked, and turn the wheels in either direction. The whine would get louder.

If it's the water pump, it gets louder and higher pitched with engine speed.

 

On my Explorer, the noise is a constant whine actually, and doesn't really change all that much, but that is the culprit...

the sound seems to be less noticeable the faster I drive :-) - I'll just turn the radio up :-) - kidding... don't want the water pump to strand me...

how hard are they to change? looks like the hardest part will be the cowl/fan situation? it is the original unit (both) and it's 21 years old... ford tough!

Thanks

 

maybe I shoud post a video if it doesn't settle down after I drive it a while... purged the PS tank, so maybe that will help...

I noticed that the fluid was pretty dark when I did the purge - and it's clear almost going in... is that normal?

Thanks

 

If it's the original fluid, it was overdue for replacement. You might want to drain out some of what you just put into and compare to new, to see how dirty it is inside. You could do a flush by running more fluid through it.

Most of the Ford PS pumps of that vintage are pretty noisy compared to others. Is this a really loud whine? It could be normal, and just louder than others.

 

Hi, ok, I listened today - it's not the PS pump....

Sounds like it's on the other side - Alt or lower - maybe Water Pump?

one thing I did notice was I'm only getting 12v at the battery at idle, but the battery was DEAD - when I rev'd her to 3000 RPM's, it went up to 13...

could this be the bearings in the Alt starting to go? - I would think they would chirp, or screach more than whine...

the sound does change pitch a little when I rev it... but you don't notice it as much when driving, most noticable when stopped or at idle...

I also thought I smelled a burning smell under there... not really strong, but I did just change the oil yesterday too... this though, smelled more like brake lineing - but I didn't drive it today, just idled it... I was doing my usual winter clean up on the inside, windows, etc...

I have the battery on a trickle charger now...

I change the PS fluid every year, just whats in the tank... cause water likes to find it's way there sometimes, and I even see fluid on top of the cap sometimes... strange...

 

My alternator crapped out last year and a couple of the symptoms you described apply. My battery died and there was a scent of something burnt so I would advise you to get your alternator checked. If the alt has to be replaced you might consider replacing the voltage regulator with it since it's relatively cheap and easy to replace once you have the alt out.

 

Yep...

I'm hoping that's all it is... should be...

I checked volts at batt at idle - 12v, goosed was at 13v... should be 14.5 at idle... so right there I can see that something is not right.

Also, the van will not start up right after it was just running, and even on a low battery, it would always have enough juice to do that, 1 min later, etc...

Also, when I put my trickle charger on there now, it will not let me charge the battery with it connected to the van... it is telling me RED, same as if you shorted the too clips together (so there is a short, bad diode?). when I disconnect the neg cable, I can get it to charge it as normal.... short in the rectifier, right?

The Voltage Regulator is part of the alt... right there on the back, black piece with 3 prongs sticking out...

Got a replacement tonight, gonna put it in tomorrow, and hope that cures all... it's sad to see the dash gauge sit at like 11 volts when I put my turn signal on at a stop light... just at the top of the red lines... yikes, never seen it that low before!

I'm gonna charge the battery overnight, so I don't ruin the new alt...

Do I have the record on here for the oldest OEM alt? - this is an 89, and it's the original Alt!! - so, it doesn't owe me anything...

the replacement has motorcraft stamped on the casing... but it is an AfterMarket unit... hope it lasts 1/2 as long :-)

any good tricks on how to get the left side plug out without breaking it? the top one, the one on the Voltage Reg I can see, just the typical plastic clip, etc - but the other looks a little bit different there.... does it just pull straight out? looks like the plug is a little bit recessed on that connection... just don't want to break the plug...

Thanks

 

After you charge up your battery, make sure it reads at least 13.8 volts. If it's lower, it can have a shorted cell, which will ruin your new alternator.

You can put a Coke can cut in half over the PS pump cap to keep water out of it. It usually catches water from the cowl drain tube.

 

ok,

Changed the Alt today - wasn't the easiest job I ever did, like anything on that van, you have to disconnect everything to get to stuff, etc... but it's in, and I have JOY again! - no more whine either...

Yeah, they also tell you to not run it on a dead battery either, since that can kill the alt - found out the short had to be from the old alt - here's how....

disconnected just neg terminal - with pos still on - still shorted... took both terminals off, and trickle charged the battery overnight, and never ground faulted...

replaced alt, reconnected both sides of batt, charges normal now, no ground fault, or short... (just checked it)

fired her up, just to see what the gauge did, and back to normal! - above middle again - I didn't leave it run for 10 mins as they said to do before you move, etc... cause I knew the batt still wasn't fully re-charged yet, but I figure by tomorrow it will be ok...

no more whine either - hope this post helps anyone that has something similar...

now of course, the PS pump is the loudest thing I hear again, but only with the hood open, and it's not even whining really...

Makes sense on the cowl drain, since I see it there... yeah, I will have to do that, but I'll use a beer can :-) aeros are too hard to work on not to have a couple after the work is done!!

one question i had...

Can I still get the belt adjustment block and bolt? - I almost broke the long bolt trying to loosen the belt enough to remove it, even with PB blast soaking overnight - the theads are just toast - I got it just loose enough to re-use the old belt, but I knew a newer belt will be tighter... and if I tryed to loosen it any further, I know I would have broken the bolt...could feel it....

I actually really like that design, more than the spring pully type, since you can really adjust it exactly how you like it, and I never get start up squeak, etc... but do they still make them? - just don't want to have the belt break on me, and then can't get a new one on there....

Cheers
Bob

 

I would check the local salvage yard for old parts like that. With any luck, the one you find will be in better shape than yours.

 

Actually, all i need is the bolt - I could cut it off at the bottom, and just use a new one... something stainless maybe - 10mm head... wonder if the threads are metric - it's a long bolt though... like 8 inches or something...

even if the dealership had it, I bet they'd want $50 for the stupid thing...