How is your serp belt?

 

I saw what looked like a seam since it’s straight but at first I thought it was a crack. I’ve never replaced it. The vehicle is around 145,000 or so now. Do I need to increase the tension or any other checks and tests I should do? It doesn’t seem oily and it doesn’t look like the teeth are too worn down but maybe they are. I’m not really sure.

 

Easy way to tell if it is the pump or box. Oil will not go up, only down. So if the pump area is oily, the pump is leaking. The pump rear gasket is the most common leak point, the factory gaskets were thin mylar that begins leaking with age. The noise is because you have air in the system from running it low on fluid.

Your choice for repair is replace pump or replace gasket (assuming that is the cause). The gasket is available from Abbes Performance. I would get it before you disassemble if you choose to go that route. It is best if you can take a little time to do the repair.

Start by removing the upper fan shroud and then the fan. Then break loose the pulley bolts on the PS pump before removing the drive belt. I like to then remove the air intake tube for better access. Break loose the hose nut on front hose at the pump but do not remove it. If the pump has never been off the truck the AC bracket will have to come off as there is a stud that goes in to the head and through the bracket and the pump. I never put that stud back on after removing it as it is not needed. You can look at the RAVE manual for full removal. Caution, there is an o-ring that seals the end of the hose against the pu I take the tank out of the bracket and lower it down, so I can remove the hoses and then constrain the open ends up so that all the fluid is not lost. You might be better of just draining it in its entirety.

Once the pump is out of the bracket and off, I clean the exterior thoroughly with a high flash point solvent to remove the oil and leave it dry. You can decide once it is off if you want to replace the gasket before you know for sure it is the leak point, but if it is original I can almost guarantee it is. Take off the rear cover and the rear thrust plate inside and see if you can move the shaft at all. If there is any wiggle up and down or in and out, the front bearing is worn out and you should probably replace the pump. If you replace the gasket, clean the mating surfaces thoroughly then coat both surfaces with Permatex Ultra Grey Rigid Hi Torque silicone, then re-assemble immediately and snug the bolts down hand tight only - no wrenches. Let it sit 4 hours minimum, then tighten. Re-attach the hoses ( I put a thin layer of silicone on the return hose fitting barb before installing the hose, and let it sit a day before tightening the hose clamp to let it cure). and leave the pump down low on the engine, clean it again so you can see if it is leaking. Refill the tank let it sit for a few hours, see if it leaks. Once you have it sealed you can put it all back together, I leave the stud out.

To bleed the pump, I put a hose on the bleed fitting on the steering box and run it up to the reservoir. The fitting is an 11mm hex, loosen it and then start the engine. Make sure the reservoir is full, if it is not the pump will suck air back in to the pump. Run it and cycle the steeering wheel back and forth to get all the air out. Caution, moving the wheel will surge oil in the hose and it will try to jump out of the reservoir - use a clamp or rubber band to hold it in. Once there are no more air bubbles in the hose shut he engine off and tighten the bleed screw before removing the hose.

Let me know if you have any questions.

 

Thank you for all the help - so I'll get to work removing everything and I'll clean the gasket area with mineral spirits (should be good right? or use something else?). Just checking, I couldn't find the gasket, but this o ring isn't what you meant right? https://www.roverparts.com/steering/...ls/QYX100260G/ I was thinking I might as well replace this while I'm in there. I'm thinking the fluid in the system is bad since there's a mix of different things in it and I got new fluid that should be better - green Pentosin.

Maybe the gasket you referenced is one of these seals? I got a new pump just to make this easier, so I don't have to rebuild the pump and worry about any damage that was done either over the years or recently when it was run without enough fluid. With a new pump, would I still need the gasket that's referenced? I couldn't find a part that seems like it's the right gasket.



Also, if I have some other kinds of Permatex like the copper type and the red one that I used on the throttle body heater plate, can I use them instead of getting another special sealant?

Also #2 - if it is the steering box, is there a way I can determine that? When you said, oil will not go up, only down, you mean that as a symptom of a failed pump, so I'd see a very oily mess by the pump? Is there another way to be sure the steering box is OK? This vehicle doesn't feel like it drives properly... I had an alignment a while ago and it was better, but still squirrely and I was told the ball joints were worn. I have a new steering damper that I installed (Terra Firma - seems to have helped a bit, but the car still doesn't feel very straight and stable when it drives above about 45 MPH now). Before, I was able to go about 65 MPH alright but it was still really touchy and would move around a bit, so it didn't feel that safe. I wonder if any of this is related to this problem, which seems to have made everything with how it drives (handles/steers) much worse.

 

This is the gasket I was referencing: Land Rover Gasket of Pump assisted steering + photo tutorial

The gasket in your photo is an upgraded one by the manufacturer and will seal nicely without the sealant if you have it. Abbes needs a bit of extra help in my experience. You could use a different sealant than the one I recommended if you want but in my experience they probably will not seal for long as they are not stiff enough when cured.

Zero chance your pump internals are worn out, they just don't do that. Your front bearing could be worn out and the front seal leaking, but it takes around 200k+ miles for that to happen.

Your steering slack could be in the steering box, there is an adjusting screw on top of the box to take the slack out. Check the Rave on that but it is pretty straightforward. It could be leaking, but far more common for the pump to be leaking. If you clean everything with brake cleaner it should be pretty obvious after running for a few minutes where the leak is coming from. Over time a pump leak will cover everything in oil as the engine fan blows it everywhere.

 

I see, thanks for all the help.

This is the pump I've got - just arrived the other day: https://www.ebay.com/itm/37269629991...m=372696299917

So this one already has the gasket installed right? It would be sandwiched in the pump where the large hex head bolts are on the back (motor side) of the pump? This part is supposedly good for 10 years (they warranty it for 10 years), so I'm guessing they know what they're doing with the gasket and sealant and I won't have to mess with this in my case, since I prefer to install a replacement pump than rebuild the one I've got or try to do more than what I should be doing in the first place. This will be a pretty gnarly job for me. I've never bled a system like this and want to make sure I don't screw up getting air or contaminants into it or missing something and allowing it to continue leaking if it's not just the pump itself but also another seal, a hose or something else like the steering box itself, but from what I understand that's unlikely.

I'll see what I can gather about tightening the steering box - thanks! It's not so much that the steering itself is off, but that the car just doesn't feel stable somehow. I was told that the ball joints were pretty worn when I went to the alignment shop. It was better with the alignment and the steering damper I installed, but not for long. I think the alignment went out again and apparently they could only do so much for it the first time due to the ball joints (I'm not sure if upper or lower, or both and I know replacing them is another big job - I don't have stands or a lift either and it would require some other tools from what I've seen. I plan to get there bit by bit, just trying to manage with the time and money factored into this.

The alignment shop quickly looked at the wheel weights and said they were good but said it could be that a suspension coil is broken somewhere - that's another thing I'd like to redo myself when I've got the time and money.

Are there any other ways you'd try to figure out why the vehicle doesn't feel like it drives well? The engine seems fine, but I mean the handling - I think I said "steering" before but the steering itself seems OK other than the power steering problem that just came up. It's really how the vehicle handles on the road driving at highway/freeway speeds. I'm too scared to take it on the freeway again until I've tested it on a highway a bit more after some more work here. Maybe it'll go back to "normal" (wasn't quite normal actually) when the power steering is fixed, but I can't tell if it's just something else like the ball joints that's making it "wander?" I guess is the word? It feels like when it hit a bump it wants to take a dangerous turn...

 

So I have had lots of these (16 to be exact), and none had ball joints so bad it felt unstable on the highway, your mileage is not that high. I will take your old pump off your hands. Where are you located, maybe a forum member can drive it for you and confirm the issues.

STOP taking it to a shop that is not a LR specialist. They will only make it worse. There is almost zero chance it has a broken spring. Alignment could be off, but my guess it is the steering box. With the engine off, how much can you move the steering wheel without much resistance?

 

Thanks for this advice - I'm in an unincorporated area of Santa Barbara county in California - it's about an hour from Ventura county or 2.5 hours from Los Angeles county. I would really like to know others around here who have a lot of experience with these vehicles. I thought I'd seen someone mention Santa Barbara or Ventura in the past on here.

The alignment shop only did the alignment (which seems to have gone out quickly - although I did do some off-roading a couple of months after and I think that messed it up again. Other than that, I've just been maintaining the vehicle myself (oil change - shell rotella 15w, PCV modification, terra firma steering damper, throttle body cleaning/gasket and TB heater plate replacement, some other electrical sensors, ABS SVS replacement - haven't got to the trailer harness modification yet, just haven't had enough time, crankshaft position sensor, that sensor or switch by the brake pedal that allows/prevents the gear selector from shifting). I want to do everything I can on my own without going to a shop, but I'm still learning a lot and getting tools when I need them for a repair.

When I turn the key to position II and unlock the steering wheel, I'm able to move the wheel a good amount (I'd say) - maybe this video will demonstrate more clearly than I can explain though:
I tried to show how much play there is in the wheel before there's resistance, as well as when there is resistance. I could try to get more accurate measurements though. There's also that buzzing in the video - probably something electrical just getting itself going, but I'm not sure if that's something else I should check out. Any ideas about it?

Thanks for all your help - I really appreciate it

 

Yeah, the steering will tighten up when you adjust the slack screw, you just loosen the nut and adjust the screw until you feel resistance, then tighten the nut.

Your mod list is good, but I would recommend the inline thermostat mod and replacing the anything in the cooling system not replaced in the last 5-7 years to prevent overheating and blown hg. Water pump, hoses, radiator, tank, fan, fan clutch - all of it. The plastic bits will crack/split (including radiator end tanks) if they are old while you are driving, pump all the coolant out, and cause an overheat and blown hg. The water pump bearing and seal will wear out, causing the seal to leak, causing low coolant causing an overheat.... The fan will crack, throw a blade, cut the hoses....The clutch will slip, not drive the fan fast enough when idling, causing an overheat.... LR/BMW plastic from that era was absolute crap. If I ever meet the engineer who specified those grades of plastic I am going open a giant can of ....

 

Give him one for me too heh

So, I actually had a friend help with some hoses, a radiator and thermostat in April of 2016. I used a hose kit for Lucky 8, which I believe included some genuine hoses and some from others like Britpart and possibly some from Uro, but I can't remember exactly what was in the kit.






I think that everything is still OK although the plastic hose that connects the throttle body heater plate to the expansion tank got a bit chewed up as I was replacing the heater plate since the coolant leak had really fused the rubber end of the hose to the nipple on the heater plate. I had a difficult time getting it off and needed to use a pick, which did some damage. It was leaking a tiny bit when I first did the repair, but I tightened the clamp more and I think it's OK now. That plastic hose didn't seem too bad otherwise, but I'm not the best judge of these things. I had clamped it at the rubber end and I'm not sure if the plastic part of the pipe extends through the rubber end or not. From what I can tell, that was the leak (at the TB heater plate - expansion tank connection) and the coolant level hasn't dropped like it was before, so hopefully I'll be able to get to the point I can flush the system and use a better coolant in there instead of what's in there now due to the leak and necessity while I was on the road without too many options.

Any idea about how long those hoses should last? I can't remember if it included the rubber hoses for the power steering system or if I should get those while I'm replacing the pump. Yes/no?

I was thinking I'd get the O-ring that's recommended just in case, as well.

I planned to flush the system using the method described in the sticky here while I'm at it because I'm hoping to clean things up that could have been caused by using the wrong fluid and clear build-up. In the meantime, do you think it's bad to fill the system with a store-brand fluid so I can drive a little here and there? I've driven twice so far. Virus lockdown helps, I guess.

I'd be more than happy to send you the old pump so you can repair it and use it. I'd like the challenge of repairing it, but I really don't have enough time or a good place to work on the vehicle, so just replacing the pump will be enough for me.

About the inline thermostat modification, I'll have to do some research and see if I can manage it, maybe at the same time I do a flush of the cooling system, since I had some cooling issues and want to flush everything to start anew. Do you recommend any specific coolant, by the way? I think I heard recommendations that were all over the place last I checked.

I'm really interested in trying to tighten up the steering/handling issues. Is it possible to get at the nut/screw for the steering box without removing anything else or would I need to get into things before I've got a chance of that?

Thanks again for all your help - I'm overwhelmed with gratitude.

Do you happen to know anyone in the area, by the way? I'd really like to meet some people from the community who wouldn't mind giving the vehicle a bit of a look.

Cheers