Bleeding Power Steering

[Biniecki]

I just finished replacing the rack and pinion, power steering cooler, power steering pump, and both hoses/lines on my 96 Explorer Sport 4.0L. I added fluid to the pump and then worked the steering wheel back and forth with the resevoir cap off to try and get all the air out. I also have done this while the engine is running. Both while it was cold and once it hard warmed up. I have turned the wheels from lock to lock for about 20 minutes and still have air shaking the wheel. Its not very noticeable when the engine is off or when I turn the wheel very slowly. When i turn the wheel at normal speed or faster is when its very noticable.

I have checked all the lines and dont see any leaks. Anyone have any suggestions on how to remove the air better? I am thinking about getting a vacuum setup to see if that might speed the process up.

 

[koda2000]

NEVER turn the wheels with the engine off. doing this is what causes air to get into the system, although how/where it gets in is not clear. my theory is that it gets sucked in through the rack's seals. with the engine running turn the wheels from lock to lock multiple times. best to use Mercon V for fluid. getting the air out can take a while and having air in the system can cause rather violent shaking.

 

[Runnin'OnEmpty]

Once you get air in the system it turns to a
bit of foam and is almost impossible to get out
completely by turning the wheels.
However, if you let it sit overnight the foam will
dissapate and the steering will gradually return
to normal. I had to drive mine for a couple of days
enduring slight shuddering before all the air came
out.

 

[Biniecki]

Well after letting it sit overnight after messing with it the other day the steering is much better. Still probably has a little air in it so I might try a vacuum pump to get a little more out. I will also need to get an alignment done as the steering wheel is ****ed to the right a little and it pulls to the right. Guessing this is probably why the wheel is not rebounding all the way sometimes.

 

[koda2000]

Well after letting it sit overnight after messing with it the other day the steering is much better. Still probably has a little air in it so I might try a vacuum pump to get a little more out. I will also need to get an alignment done as the steering wheel is ****ed to the right a little and it pulls to the right. Guessing this is probably why the wheel is not rebounding all the way sometimes.

the last time I changed a rack (on a Pontiac) it took a good week+ for all the air bubbles to dissipate. this cased humming in the pump and was very annoying. on Fords it can also cause violent shaking.

 

[Biniecki]

Just got it back from getting an alignment. Tech told me that they were able to get everything back inline except for the camber that it needs an aftermarket kit to be able to adjust it. I guess i shoulve replaced that last year when i did the control arms. They said that it still pulls a little to the right because of this. I also noticed that the wheel still doenst rebound fully. Any ideas what might be causing that issue?

 

[swshawaii]

The camber kits allow for precise camber and caster adjustment. If you had the OEM passenger side two piece UCA and replaced it with the single piece, you lost most caster adjustment causing poor return to center. The camber kits should also help correct the steering pull providing all other suspension parts are functioning properly, especially the lower ball joints. Installing the driver side eccentrics can be difficult because of hard line clearance issues. Hopefully installation cost is not excessive, I've heard more than $300 including the camber kits and alignment.

Ford Truck Upper Control Arm Replacement
http://www.moogproblemsolver.com/_pdf_en2/DYK10_106_En.pdf

 

[Biniecki]

I replaced both upper and lower control arms on both sides along with new lower ball joints last year. The Driver side was a PITA and don't look forward to messing with it again lol. The passenger side I left as the 2 piece design. I only replaced the part with the ball joint and left the other alone. When i had the alignment done last year I paid extra for a lifetime warranty so I can get it adjusted anytime I want now for free for as long as I own the vehicle. Even with that the price was going to be outrageous to add the camber kits. They were going to charge $50 a kit plus 2 hours of labor each at around $80/hr. The total would have been $420 + tax. If I do it myself I would be looking at a total of $50 and a day of my time

 

[swshawaii]

$420 sounds steep, especially since you have a lifetime alignment. If you have the time and patience install the kits yourself.
Here's a couple of good write ups. Only difference is one bends hard lines, the other cuts bolts. After installing get aligned ASAP.

How to: Install camber adjusters 2nd Gen Explorer
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=191742

Replacing Camber/Caster Bolts
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?p=2268137

 

[lizardflats]

I recently had to replace my water pump, and because I snapped off one of the bolt heads, it required moving the truck with no power steering since there I was moving it with nothing on the front of the engine as far as belt, pulleys, water pump, etc. This meant I was using unassisted steering quite a bit to position the truck.


After getting the new pump on and all the pulleys and belt back on, I fired it up and it was running fine, but as soon as I went to back it up to road test it, I got loud groans and major vibration out of the steering. At first I panicked and thought I had somehow screwed up my steering rack. In addition to noise and vibration every time I moved the steering wheel even a little bit, the power assist was inconsistent and not smooth. I consulted this forum and discovered I probably just had a bunch of air in the steering rack due to using the steering so much with no power assist.


I went to a parking lot at the park across the road and did lock-to-lock figure 8’s for about 10 minutes. This helped some, but there was still noise and inconsistent power boost. I decided to just drive it to work the next day and see if it would get better. Next to my office is a large parking lot where I was able to do full-lock circles multiple times in each direction for 15 minutes. This seemed to help a lot more, and after driving home again, the steering was back to normal. Thank goodness!

Many thanks to the people that post here for giving us information that can help resolve issues like this quickly and without spending a lot of money where it’s not needed.

 

[manimal]

Once you get air in the system it turns to a
bit of foam and is almost impossible to get out
completely by turning the wheels.
However, if you let it sit overnight the foam will
dissapate and the steering will gradually return
to normal. I had to drive mine for a couple of days
enduring slight shuddering before all the air came
out.

Yeah had the same problem.. Tried for hours to bleed the system. Drove it out to the local school parking lot and did donuts. Still made a ton of noise and notchy steering. Went home frustrated, parked the truck and left it overnight. Came out in the morning, started it, and after the first few turns of the wheel, it started running great. No problems since.

 

[Dave98XLT]

To bleed steering try this: top off fluid, put car in neutral, foot off brake so not to scrub tires, and gently turn wheel all the way to left, hold there, rev engine a bit, and listen for cavitation noise to stop. Repeat in the opposite direction. This should fill each chamber with fluid, and push all of the air out of the system. If fluid is foamed wait until it settles before trying this. If air is returning there might be a leak.