What size is the nut that goes to the rack?

 

for future reference for anyone coming across this: top 2 bolts for the hp hose on the pump are 10mm. The hard line side going to the bottom of the steering column on the rack is a 14mm. I took the wheel off to give me more room in the fender well. I recommend using a line wrench to break the 14mm free, the open-end on a regular wrench was going to slip. For me I set the wrench on the nut from the bottom of the car and then broke it free from the top side using another wrench on the top end for torque multiplication. Mine was on their pretty snug so I had my dad break it free while I kept my finger pressed against the wrench on the nut so it wouldn't slip. Once it broke free I used a 14mm crow foot with a 12inch extension (3/8" ratchet) to speed up backing the line out until it became loose enough to spin with my fingers. From there once you're fully backed out I pulled the top of the line down and out into the fender well and very tediously routed the hard line out from around the column. Maybe for some it wasn't so bad, but that was a pain in the butt for me, that was the hardest part of the job.

The line going back in is pretty much the same as going out. I started with routing the top of the line up through the fender well into the engine bay. Then we very tediously routed the hard line side back around the column. That part was a pain but for us definitely easier than pulling it out. The tedious part for this was getting the nut on the line to thread back into the rack. It had a tendency to stay at an angle so it took some dedication to try to manipulate the line the best we could to get the nut started into the threads. We finally got it after about 15 minutes and I started tightening it up with the crows foot method above until it seemed to bottom out. I do want to point out that in my scenario the nut actually did not thread all the way down against the surface. I probably had a few threads left but it seemed to have bottomed out earlier than I anticipated. I did not compare the length from the old hose to the new since this didn't cross my mind while they were both out. I tightened it appropriately (not as hard as possible but nice and snug) and I have no leak on it. Everything from this point forward is self-explanatory.

I will say this: make sure you do a good job applying tension to the belt with the pump when you tighten it down (if you replaced or removed it). You may want to pry up on the pump while tightening down the tensioner bolt. At first I just pulled the pump up by hand as hard as I could and then tightened the tensioner bolt but alas the belt was squeaking when turning the wheel. I went back and used a pry bar for better leverage and retightened the bolt which fixed the squealing. You want that belt to be tight so it holds. You may have also gotten oil or fluid on it during this process which won't help at all if the belt isn't tensioned properly. All this was done on my 2000 Accord EX F23A1 automatic. The pressure hose I am referencing is an "Edelmann 80268 Power Steering Pressure Hose: Replacement for - 2002-98 Honda Accord"