JAW's BF Falcon: Power steering leak

When your car is bleeding on your driveway, then first thing to do is work out what blood is it - engine oil, brake fluid, auto trans fluid, gearbox/diff oil, power steering fuid?

picture
Leaking on radiator hose and into alternator.

When you pop the bonnet and see oil on your top radiator hose, directly below the power steering reservior, it's pretty clear what it is. If there is oil everywhere and you can't really tell, maybe high pressure clean your engine bay and try looking again a few days later? I've had a high pressure cleaner for years, cost me around a hundred bucks, and I use it regularly for cleaning paving and outdoor furniture and cars. Careful though - they can remove paint, and when you do use them to clean your engine bay your engine might need to dry out a bit before it will start again/stop running roughly. It will make you nervous, but I've never had an engine stop running altogether because I blew water all over it.

The power steering pressure hose on a Barra engine ain't a great design. It kinda bends around some obstacles on it's way to the drive, with a pressure sensor in a length of metal line, and that isn't supported except by the attachment flanges at either end. Sure the flanges are pretty beefy, but vibration is the enemy of anything rigid and will kill the o-ring in the fitting.

picture
New hose, cable tie for more support.

A new hose isn't expensive, I paid (AUD2020)$80 for a new one. Unfortunately there are two versions and I got the wrong version. But, it will fit, it's just difficult. I only realised I had the wrong one when I had already painstakingly fitted it. Take your old one with you if you can, or a photo, it is the drive end that is different, one version has two bends, the other has three. Save yourself some hassle, get the right one!

Otherwise, there is not much to say about this. You are going to spill a bit of fluid, have some rags ready and move quickly.

If you are feeling lucky, your could try just replacing the o-ring on the pump side. My guess is that is all that fails.

Now when you get it back together, there is going to be air in the line. The pump will prime itself, but you will find as you get close to full lock, it will grumble with all that air in the line. This part will make your eyes water...you have to go from full lock steering direction to the other direction with the engine running. As you hit full lock some internal bypass value opens and some of the air bleeds out. Do this over and over again, eventually it will stop grumbling near full lock. It's nice to do this with your front wheels jacked up off the ground, or on some soft ground, if neither of these are an option, then just where-ever. I find this part hurts my mechanical sympathy, but don't worry, you'll be okay.

I cable tied the hose to a nearby hose to try and give it some support so it wouldn't wobble. After 2 years it hasn't leaked again, I don't know if this was necessary.

Just make sure you don't let a leaky pump go too long - that fluid drips in all the wrong places - something a lot more expensive than an o-ring or a hose is going to let go otherwise!

picture
Old versus new. Note the differences on the left side. It will fit, just, but try to get the right one.