I just picked up a 1989 Prelude 2.0 Si 4WS for my daily/beater so I can keep my Camaro off the road as much as possible (especially for the winter) and it has a couple little quirks that I need to work out.

First, I have a power steering fluid leak. It looks like the engine is spraying the fluid up at the hood and also dripping down next to the manifold heat shield. It appears to be leaking from the PS line that runs from the PS pump across the front of the engine and wraps around the left side to drop down behind the engine. It is leaking at what looks like some sort of coupler right past the heat wrap above the manifold heat shield.

I have not attempted to disassemble it yet but I figured I'd get some ideas before I tried to tackle it. Do I need to replace this entire line or can part of it be replaced?

Also, my brakes need some work as well. They still stop the car but the pedal is soft and eventually drops down to the floorboard at a red light. Pumping the brakes causes the RPMs to rise up to ~1500 which makes me think it is a vacuum issue. I am also thinking there is just moisture in the lines and a full bleed and fluid replacement will fix the issue but I can only hope. I am going to try that this week if I can find the time.

What do you guys think?

Thanks.

 

*** BUMP ***

No one?

 

Your P/S problem is probably the line man. Open your hood and tell a friend to turn the wheel while the car is on (parked of course) make sure they turn left to right a couple of times and if you see something leeking then you found your line has a tear. If not, look around for leeks, something is leaking!

 

That came to mind tonight when I drove it home from the grocery store. When I parked in front of the house with the headlights on, I could see some smoke coming out from the headlight housings. I also noticed that while driving, I could smell the PS fluid burning whenever I turned the wheel almost all the way to one side.

I'm going to be skipping out on the gym Thursday night to see what I can do. I'm pretty sure I know where it's leaking. It's a matter of figuring out how to stop it from leaking.

Guess I'll be driving the Camaro around for a couple days.