Need some advice on taking a bit of a short cut. I need to replace the O ring underneath the top square plate on my power steering gearbox. I’ve check around and it seems to be the culprit of a rather large power steering fluid leak. Would it harm anything to just replace this seal while it is on the vehicle itself? Would rather not drop the gearbox if I don’t have too, trying to save a bit of time and elbow grease.

thanks!

 

The center nut is the lock nut for the sector shaft adjuster screw. The top plate unscrews from the adjuster screw. So, if your adjustment is ok to begin with, you will want to make sure to get that back in the same spot that you start from. The locknut also provides a seal, so you want a new one on there. The Workshop Manual spells it out very well.