r_kage

I have a 1995 Honda Accord EX with a leaky power steering pump, so I'm replacing the o-rings and seals. The service manual says to lube parts with power steering fluid OR power steering grease. I picked up 2-12oz containers power steering fluid at the Honda dealership yesterday and requested power steering grease as well. The parts guy came back and said they do not sell power steering grease and the service department evidently never saw it in their shop.

So I was watching Eric the Car Guy rebuild his pump and he liberally used non Honda gold lube. I was planning on skipping the grease and just using the power steering fluid (since manual says "or"). I also wouldn't want to risk deteriorating the new seals with the wrong thing.

Am I on the right path?

1999 Civic Si

I personally would use just the power steering fluid as the lubricant. When I rebuilt the power steering pump in my 05 TL I just used the same fluid that was going to be running in the system, that was about two years ago several thousand miles later and no issues.

r_kage

Thanks--that's what I'm going to do, then.

*****************

BTW, I tried to loosen the pulley while the power steering unit was still mounted, but I wasn't able to wedge anything through the pulley wheel. There's a tool indicated for removing the pulley, a so-called "universal pulley holder tool." None of the local parts stores have them on loan, and I don't really feel like ordering it and waiting days, not to mention paying $50+, so I'm going to try to make my own tool tomorrow. I'll post what I come up with (if it works).

1999 Civic Si

I am not 100% sure if the older accords p/s pump pulley is attached exactly the same as my TL, but if you have access to power tools you can knock that nut off pretty easily. I just used my 3/8" drive impact and knocked it off, I already had the pump out of the car since I couldn't get my impact in such a tight spot. I used a jack handle to hold it in place when I loosened it and tightened it. I wasn't able to get the pulley holder tool, so this was the next best thing I could do.

r_kage

I picked up a used air impact wrench about a year ago, and when I tried to use it for this purpose the other day, it didn't work. It's either defective or my 6 gallon air compressor can't operate it. I made certain to set it for clockwise since it's a left hand thread.

At any rate, my tool made turning the pulley off a breeze.



You can't see it, but there are washers and rubber washers on the other side of the pulley, too.


The bar is actually about 3 feet long, which I picked up from Home Depot, along with washers and rubber washers. The nuts and bolts came off some old piece of furniture that I got rid of long ago. I eye-balled the spacing, with centers narrower than the distance between centers of the pulley holes.

1999 Civic Si

The pulley design on the newer Honda/Acura V6s use a pulley with larger openings, so doing something like you did would be difficult. However looks to be perfect for your situation. Depending on the size hose and what size/type of impact you are using, that 6 gallon compressor probably doesn't have enough air flow to power it properly and if that nut has never been taken off, I am sure it needed a little extra to knock it loose.

r_kage

I replaced all the o-rings and seals yesterday with the exception of one tiny o-ring; then I cleaned and painted it with Duplicolor Metalcast (just the silver base) and clear engine enamel.

I just wanted to say here that I bought the Powercraft kit from Advance Auto, and it evidently doesn't come with the small one under the flow control valve cover. It's not fun to be all set up to do a job and find this out, but fortunately it was not one of the internal seals that was missing so I can pick that up later.

^^I think such a tool could be made differently--like with larger washers or even a metal backing plate that bridges both holes. I guess it depends on the design of the overall unit. I didn't have clearance between the pulley and the housing, but I aligned the holes to the outside. If you even had one hole with clearance, you could drill the holes in the bar closer together so that the bolts touch the inside edges of the pulley holed, have shorter bolts pointing down. If you could even get one bolt and washer on the underside of the pulley and the other bolt just fastened to the bar itself, I think it would work just fine.

r_kage

This is not a "write-up" per se, but I like to leave behind helpful information for people interested in trying it. Just make sure you have a tray or neat area to organize parts and keep them from rolling off the bench.

Replacing o-rings in a power steering unit is totally doable for just about any DIYer. I did not use a vise, but just sat on the ground on the EVA foam mat. If you do use a vise, you'd want to take care not to damage the housing.

I think I needed 10mm, 12mm and 14mm sockets for most removing the power steering unit from the engine bay as well as for disassembly. I also needed a 19mm socket for removing the pulley (in addition to my tool, which you don't need if you have a capable impact wrench or you can use the so-called "universal pulley holder tool" called for in the manual.) You also need an internal retainer ring (circlip) removal tool. I found an old rotor to be quite useful for removing the pump shaft with bearing, since I don't have a large vise. I placed cardboard with a hole cut out centered over the middle of the rotor, placed the housing on the cardboard covered rotor with the shaft pointing downward through the hole and hammered it out. I also had a foam mat UNDER the rotor so it didn't hit the concrete floor.

A plastic hammer is called for in the manual for removing the bearing & shaft, but I tried a rubber mallet, which didn't work, then used a 2x2x6 piece of lumber with a brass mallet (lumber centered over the shaft) which did work. A 1 1/8" socket is useful for reinserting the bearing if you don't have a proper press tool (*credit to Eric the Car Guy for this tip), as you need to be able to make contact with the metal outer ring of the bearing, not the internals.

When I removed it from the engine bay, I wrapped paper towels around the fittings & hose to prevent spillage, and on my car, the power steering hose remained upright so I didn't bother to clamp it off or plug it.

I drained out the fluid from the pump into a coffee can, and cleaned off the sludge in a container of mineral spirits, blew it off with an air hose and then set it on a couple of layers of cardboard to absorb any fluids.

I removed the nut securing the pulley with my tool and the 19mm socket on a 1/2" breaker bar, and it came off pretty easily. My understanding is it's pretty easy with an air impact wrench, too, and might be able to be done on the car. It's a left hand thread, though, so go clockwise to remove (**I don't know if other models have right-hand threads, so be aware you are getting this right.)

OK... it's turning into a write up, which is for my 1995 Accord 2.2L 4 cyl.

**I cleaned parts in mineral spirits, air dried them (you don't want to get solvent on o-rings) and replaced o-rings as I went along, lubed each o-ring in power steering fluid as well as the surfaces they touched. I will bold face wherever there are o-rings. I would recommend NOT using compressed air into area containing the bearing.

1) There is a cover secured by three bolts, which covered the "fluid control valve." There are 2 o-rings to replace under this cover. While you are at it, you should remove the spring and fluid control valve, make sure the inside cavity is smooth and that the valve itself is free of sharp edges or defects. It should move smoothly inside the cavity. There is also a test (which I did not do--AFAIK mine didn't have any trouble, just sludge on the outside indicated a slight leakiness) in which you attach tubing to the top of that valve, submerge part of the valve so that a tiny hole is submerged in power steering fluid and see if any bubbles escape that hole at 14psi. I did not do this test as I did not have the right size tubing and also didn't see a need). Reassemble, making sure the valve is oriented the right way, and attach the bolts using 8 ft-pounds of force. <Not too tight, plus you don't want to risk stripping the threads in the housing.

2) The inlet joint (where power steering rubber hose connects) has one o-ring to replace. In my kit it was a different color than the rest, so I don't know if it's a different material or what. When you remove this, just keep it off until near the end.

3) The pump cover has one o-ring to replace. Remove this cover and keep it off, then:

• Remove the cam ring but make sure to note the orientation of the two dots on the top of it. Check it over to make sure it's not damaged and set it aside.
• Then remove the rotor and vanes and set these aside as well, trying not to let the vanes fall all over the place, though they will likely shift and fall to the side. When you reassemble them, you'll want to make sure the rounded edge faces out and is even with the other edge of the rotor (ie. not pushed all the way in--they need to make contact with cam ring when it operates).
• Then there are two rollers and a so-called "side plate" that contains 2 o-rings, as well as a spring. Set these aside as well.

4) Now it's time to remove the drive shaft and bearing unit, and replace the oil seal contained within.

• Remove the circlip (retaining ring) and set it aside.
• Now in a vise OR with the setup I used (cardboard covered rotor), where the shaft sticks out, point that downward. Then use a plastic hammer (or a block of wood with mallet) and strike the shaft to free it loose.
• Inspect the drive shaft and bearing to make sure it rotates smoothly and there isn't noise or excessive play, then set it aside along with the spacer.
• Flip over the housing. Using a hook tool, remove the oil seal.
• Now REPLACE the oil seal with a new one, making sure the grooved edge is face down against the surface. Press it in or line it up with your fingers. With the housing on a flat surface, you can use a socket and mallet to seat it. (It seated pretty easily for me this way, so I don't think a press tool is needed.)

5) Now it's time to reassemble (all o-rings should have been replaced at this point.

• Drop the spacer over the oil seal and then replace the drive shaft & bearing unit. With the housing on a flat surface, align the drive shaft & bearing over the housing with the threaded part that holds the pulley sticking out; then using that 1 1/8 or similar socket (that is over the metal rim), hammer it into place, so the top of the bearing is below the circlip groove--then replace the circlip/retaining ring.
• Now flip the unit over. Insert the long roller and the spring. Then replace the side plate o-ring side down (o-rings should have been changed at this point) aligning the hole with the roller. There is only one way it can go.
• Place the short roller into the hole on the side plate. Lube the rotor and vanes with power steering fluid, then center the rotor and vanes over the side plate, with a marking on the rotor facing up. Remember, the rounded edges of the vanes must face out and must line up with the outer edge of the rotor sides.
• Drop in the cam ring with markings in same orientation as originally, and secure the housing cover, using 14 ft-lb of force on the bolts.
• Attach the inlet joint using 8 ft-lbs of force.
• Reattach the pulley and nut with 47 ft-lbs of force.

IF anyone spots something I've missed, just add it below.

r_kage

^^The pump cover has an orientation, too. I think the most important thing is noting all things pertaining to part orientation and just plain staying organized. Don't mix up new o-rings with old ones. Old ones are always deformed in some way--flattened or even brittle. There are a lot of little parts, but it's not a tough job.