Hi guys ive got a 5.3 89 V12 and im trying to resolve the power stearing leak.

When the i fill it up with fluid as soon as i start moving and turning the wheel the fluid comes straight out and theres a horrible grinding noise mainly when i turn the wheel full lock. Ive had the Jag up on stands today to try and establish whats going on, ive put more fluid in and started her up turning the wheel. I still get the grinding noise but the fluid doesnt leak!! Can anyone help as to what the problem could be?

 

there are three main components to the power steering

1 , the pump/reservoir
2, the fluid cooler mounted on the front subframe
3, the steering rack

the trick here is to establish the leak, the main components are all in a different place to each other, so place a large bit of cardboard under the car when its on all 4 wheels, and go through the process of turning the steering with the engine running

then assuming you had a leak, inspect the card board for its location , this will indicate where it may be coming from

don't forget that the pipes run around the engine bay as well, so it may not be under one of the main components

if you find a leak, establish if its a union or a pipe, or a main component

process of elimination is the only real way with this , and you may need to replace something to fix it, the bad news is that the pipes for the V12 are very hard to obtain , and if you can find one they are mega expensive, so do your best to repair to a safe standard

the pump is probably the easiest to replace, and if your getting a grinding, it could well be the pump , but it could also be the steering rack tower, as its this that drives the rack,

with the car off the ground, manually pull the steering using the wheels, the rack should move without any noises, if it does this you can eliminate the rack being at fault

keep at it, as this is an important safety issue, and you shouldn't drive the car with a known issue

good luck

BB

 

I've had similar happen. I always presumed that, with wheels off the ground, the system isn't being loaded/strained enough on the pressure side for the leak to occur.

I suspect the grinding noise is coming from the pump which may well have been damaged from lack of fluid.

My money is on a leaking hose but BB is right....it could just as easily be a component or a union/connection .

A couple years ago I worked on an '89 XJS with a PS leak. In that case both the pressure and return hoses were clearly leaking. After fixing those rather gross leaks and cleaning the mess it became obvious that the rack seals were leaking a bit as well...but those were left alone for the time beng. The power steering cooler had already been bypassed....and there's only one reason that would've been done: because it was leaking.

My point here is to be prepared for the possibility of fixing more than one leak

In some cases there is such a mess from the leak(s) that you'll have to spend some time cleaning the possible culprits and surrounding areas so that you can see the actual leak,

Cheers
DD

 

Thanks for you help guys :-) where is the pump and is it easy to replace?

 

the pump is the reservoir where you add fluid to the system , all the same item

quite easy to remove/replace, if a little messy

don't tighten the drive belt to tight , as this will place undue strain on the pulley bearing, and it will make more noise when running

BB

 

Ok thanks everyone for all your help. I will look online for a replacement pump and use the cardboard trick to find all leaks. 😃

 

I just replaced mine on 1992 XJS v12. New GM Saginaw pump . I believe the invoice was $120.00. I used the same pressure valve from old one and works fine.