Power Steering Question
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Senior User
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 164
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Power Steering Question
Hi all,
Long story short, I had some work done to my truck ('74 F250 4x4), just picked it up and drove it home. I'm not used to it yet, put a smaller steering wheel on it, etc., but as I was driving out of their shop, it became obvious to me that they didn't do one thing I asked:
Fill the power steering pump. It wasn't just low, it was somewhere between low and empty, because I rebuilt my motor in my garage, and the pump got sideways at one point of course. I got the motor back together, but needed these guys for something else, and had it towed there.
I drove it home, probably only a mile.
Did that just trash the pump, or is there a chance it could be ok when I get type F fluid in it.
If there's a chance it's ok, I'm sure I don't just add fluid. What would you do? Fill it, jack up the front, turn it from side to side for a while, then start it, turn it again from inside for a while, then call it good? Or is there a method to bleeding the system I need to do?
Any advice is appreciated. Thanks.
PS
I'm not interested in a long term solution, only short term. In a few weeks, I'm going to drive it probably 30 miles or so to a 4x4 specialist who will replace it with an actual power steering system, with crossover steering (yep, I'm reading these forums!), and other crazy things like replace the front D44 with a D60, and rear D60 with a 14 bolt. I can't wait to get there. Cheers.
Long story short, I had some work done to my truck ('74 F250 4x4), just picked it up and drove it home. I'm not used to it yet, put a smaller steering wheel on it, etc., but as I was driving out of their shop, it became obvious to me that they didn't do one thing I asked:
Fill the power steering pump. It wasn't just low, it was somewhere between low and empty, because I rebuilt my motor in my garage, and the pump got sideways at one point of course. I got the motor back together, but needed these guys for something else, and had it towed there.
I drove it home, probably only a mile.
Did that just trash the pump, or is there a chance it could be ok when I get type F fluid in it.
If there's a chance it's ok, I'm sure I don't just add fluid. What would you do? Fill it, jack up the front, turn it from side to side for a while, then start it, turn it again from inside for a while, then call it good? Or is there a method to bleeding the system I need to do?
Any advice is appreciated. Thanks.
PS
I'm not interested in a long term solution, only short term. In a few weeks, I'm going to drive it probably 30 miles or so to a 4x4 specialist who will replace it with an actual power steering system, with crossover steering (yep, I'm reading these forums!), and other crazy things like replace the front D44 with a D60, and rear D60 with a 14 bolt. I can't wait to get there. Cheers.
Posting Guru
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 1,196
Likes: 2
I say throw some fluid in there. A mile didn't fry your pump. So put the fluid in...leave the cap off, jack the front end up and go side to side. If you want to go further in depth, you can crack tghe nuts loose at the control valve and the power cylinder. At the cylinder hold the wheel to that side until you get a steady drip with no air...but be careful not to go back the other direction or it will suck air back in. Then do the same at the valve block.
