I was replacing the oil in the transfer case and came across this under the passenger side. Power steering rack seems to be leaking through the rubber boot, but I have not noticed anything on the garage floor in recent months...
Can the boot itself be replaced? I hate to think the whole system needs to be replaced.
I'd noticed an oil leak drivers side and upon investigation it appears the rack has developed a leak. I lifted the car on the vehicle lift and when I did noticed oil pouring out of the boot surrounding the steering linkage coming from the steering rack. With the tires dropped the full amount this created a tilt of said boot allowing the oil that had filled the boot to drain out. My conclusion is the rack has developed a leak with the boot being full of oil.
I did a "steering rack" search but nothing of value appeared.
Last week I took my 2004 Honda Odyssey in to Firestone for a rear brake job and they ended up selling me an oil change, two new tires, alignment, an alternator drive belt, and two front engine mounts as well. When I picked up the vehicle late Friday afternoon, I noticed the power steering was making a whining noise and the steering seemed a little stiff. I took it back to Firestone Saturday morning, and they looked under the hood and said my power steering fluid was low, so they topped it off. That fixed the whining, but the steering still had a bit of a kink in it. They said it might be an air bubble in the line that would work itself out. Monday morning on my way to work, the whining was back and the steering very stiff and getting noticibly worse by the minute, so I took it directly back to Firestone.
It turns out the rack and pinion is leaking, and Firestone denies that it could have happened while they had the vehicle. The manager I spoke to said "all we did was replace a couple of belts -- didn't even get near the rack and pinion." Well, that's not all they did, but if anything they did could have caused the current issue. I know there were no suspension or power steering issues before I took it in, and after I picked it up suddenly it's leaking fluid like crazy. What can I do or say to press my case?
My car is in the shop and has a leak at the Power Steering Pump. The rubber O-ring on the Power Steering Pump Solenoid Valve (p/n 4417030120) is leaking fluid. The Solenoid Valve is ok, just the Rubber O-ring is bad, but it looks like you have to buy a complete new Solenoid Valve to get the O-ring (a lotta bucks).
I did find a Lexus Power Steering Pump rebuild kit online at, but I can't see if it includes the solenoid valve o-ring or not. Have to replace their solenoid valve o-ring?
I'm going to replace tie rods assembly. I have a question about inner tie rod boot. How do you attach it to the steering rack? No room there, horrible access.
View 1 RepliesSo I have ordered practically a whole front end for my Ranger. I decided to replace all the bushings, ball joints and shocks. Only thing not getting replaced are the springs, steering knuckles/hubs and sway bar. I did find that the lower half of the upper left hand sway bar bushing was completely missing along with the upper left ball joint boot. I was looking into replacing the Rack and pinion bellows/boot. I noticed that there is a line that goes up into the boot where it attaches to the body of the rack and pinion. What is that and does it need to be removed to replace the boot?
View 3 RepliesMy 2006 Toyota Camry LE (4cyl) is in the shop today for its 120,000 mile maintenance. The Toyota shop says my power steering rack (or boot?) is leaking, the whole thing needs to be replaced, and this is a $1200 repair. I had an accident in this car on 01/03/13, I was hit on the front passenger side tire, pushing it in and under, along with damage to the front lower corner of the door and the whole fender. I got the car out of the repair shop last week and immediately noticed a lot of banging and bumping that was not there before. I called the repair shop, they said bring it in and they will look at it, I was planning to take it in tomorrow. Meanwhile my car was due for an oil change and the 120,000 mile maintenance, so I dropped it off this morning and you know the rest of the story. I asked Toyota if this could have happened in the accident - they said while it could be that the banging and bumping noises are the boot rattling, it was not likely this would have happened in the accident. What do you think, is it possible or likely the power steering rack could have been torn in the accident or in the ensuing replacement of parts on the undercarriage?
View 6 RepliesWe have a 2005 Camry XLE, with 102,00 miles on it. It has been very well cared for, and only serviced by our Dealer. We would like to keep the vehicle for another 50,000 miles. We have had an assessment of the vehicle done by the Dealer, because our brakes were very soft.
He found a great deal of air in the lines and flushed them out. He also found:
1.) Leaks in the power steering rack, which he graded as a level 8 severity on a 10 point scale. Repair estimate is $1100 to replace and align.
2.) Both front struts are cracked and graded for severity as an 8 on a scale of 10.
What do you think:
A.) Are these safety issues ?
B.) What are the consequences of delay ?
C.) Are these problems indicative of other likely problems ?
D.) Is it better to have a Dealer perform the repairs ?
Just took my 2007 GX-470 with 133,000 miles in for an oil change and the tech told me that my rack assembly is leaking and needs to be replaced to the tune of a little over $1000.
Is this something fairly common? I haven't been able to find a whole lot of information on this forum pointing to problem with GXs..
Was bleeding my brakes and clutch. Using a power bleeder and it seems as though I put a little too much pressure into the system. The Slave cylinder's green rubber boot filled with brake fluid and began leaking a little. Did I blow a seal? Is this normal with pressure like that? I feel like pushing the clutch in would give more pressure than my little hand pump gives...
View 2 RepliesI noticed a little bit of grease splatter on the frame last night when I was changing the running board lights. The grease was coming out from the clamp, no ripped or torn boot.
Maybe one day I'll buy the special clamp and crimping tool but for now I used some silicone tape. It seals to itself and it doesn't leave a sticky residue if removed. If you use this tape make sure you stretch it and pull it really tight as you're wrapping it so it can seal to itself. I used some zip ties just in case.
Either one of my power steering hoses or the gear box is leaking on my 93 Ranger. It appeared the return hose was leaking where the rubber meets the crimp. So I decided I would go ahead and change the return and pressure hose to see if it stops the leak. It was a disaster. It's 2.3L manual transmission 4x2. I got the return hose off ok. I put the wrong size wrench on the pressure hose fitting at the pump but thought it was loosening but it was rounding the nut off. So I couldn't even change that hose. I installed the new return hose and retightened the pressure hose at the gear box.
Well it was a pain getting the flare fittings of the hoses into the steering box so I could tightened the flare nut down. I finally got them tightened, I think, but then when I started the engine fluid shot out of there like a water hose. It's coming from the fittings at the gear box that I thought were tightened. I reloosened and retightened them again and still it's shooting out everywhere. There is so little room getting a wrench on the hose fittings, it was slow going. What do you need to remove in order to get a good straight shot and installing these flare nut fittings and tightening them down right? If I remove the pump will it be easier to install the hoses on the gear box? I have to remove the pump now to change the pressure hose.
Mine is leaking badly from both tie rod ends. I am guessing the seals got nicked up when the tie rods were replaced. Is there anyway to replace just the seals? I would really like to avoid replacing the rack.
View 2 RepliesThe steering rack on my 2009 Sonata was previously replaced under warranty but now it start to leak seriously.from the two boots at the ends of the steering rack ends. Is it possible to replaced seals only where it leaks?
View 13 Replies2009 Sonata 2.4L ... About 60 000km ago, the complete steering rack was replaced under warranty. Now I notice the PS fluid going down in the PS reservoir. I checked for any loose fittings, all look OK. But I did notice PS droplets hanging from the steering rack boots. So today I replaced the PSF4 fluid with Amsoil PS fluid. I suspect maybe some seals are leaking. Any good product I can use to maybe stop the leaks?
View 1 RepliesI bought my 2008 GS 350 in March of this year, got it checked by Lexus of Edison at 70,606 miles (I purchased it at 69,850 miles) and everything was fine. So I went in for my 75,000 mile service and now they're saying that my LF axle is leaking grease from the boot and to replace it with a brand new axle it will cost $1773. Here's a picture from directly underneath the drivers side
View 14 Replies2007 Es350 with 60k. Boot is not cracked or split and does not have any holes. It appears to be leaking where the big band is next to the tx.
View 3 RepliesI have a 2000 lexus rx300. the steering rack was replaced 2yrs/20k ago. now, there is very slight seeping of fluid. only noticeable on on the boot and never drips onto the floor. i took it back to the dealer and they said that is normal and after 2yrs it's in very good shape. i question why if the seals are working properly then should i see this?
View 6 RepliesMy main concern with this replacement job( I am not doing it), is that the R rack is different that the standard golf rack. is that so?
I have a very good friend and excellent mechanic who said "...it's the part number it gives me." which makes me nervous. I don't want a "less sporty" steering feel.
so are the racks the same? what part number it should be I am having a hard time finding it.
I bought a brand new 07 Legacy 2.5i sedan at the end of 2006. At 1500 miles the steering was problematic, took it in to the dealer, and by the time they were done, they replaced the entire power steering system. They said the problem was with the power steering rack, which they replaced. I asked if this new part was from the same supplier, so could also be defective, and apparently it is. I am rather alarmed, this is the 1st brand new car I have purchased in 20+ years.
View 27 RepliesI need to replace the power steering rack on my car. Mech wants 300+parts. I supply the parts. Is there a different rack for the vr6 VS the I4 jetta?
View 1 Replies