Power steering leak

I have a leak in the out-going line from the power steering pump. This does not look like an easy fix but I'm hesitant to pay $500-900 to fix it which is the quote i got to fix it especially since I have a transmission issue (minor rattling at low rpms in low gears). Instead of scraping the whole car, if i can fix the leak or somehow patch it, the car would be a good commuter car. I will probably head to the junkyard to see if I can pull the part, any suggestions for any sort of easy fix?

I assume you are talking about the line leading from the pump reservoir to the rack or pump itself? O course I have no idea what kind of car you're talking about. Jetta? 4, 5 or 6 generation or maybe a toyota or ford?

That's why it's a good idea to fill out your profile completely.

MK4's very easy to fix, even major box stores carry the parts.

If its a mkiv and the long high pressure line, its kinda annoying but not terrible to do, its a real pain at the rack to get in there and screw in the banjo fitting with the crush washers(without stripping it). Type of transmission matters for a fitted part as well, keep that in mind. You can get away with using Gas ones but they are shorter and take a bit of finessing.

Its a manual 2002 Jetta TDI. The line comes out of the power steering pump towards the front of the car. It is a really long high pressure line.

I had to replace the line from the banjo fitting just behind the front drivers wheel to the pump on the other side of the engine. About $100 for the line which included the crush washers for the banjo fitting.

It’s not that difficult, if it’s the one that runs underneath the engine the hardest part is the banjo bolt behind the wheel, specifically getting it restarted without stripping the threads. $500-900 sounds a bit excessive, but maybe there’s more that needs doing than just the line.

I am attempting use JB Weld putty to patch the leak, if that doesn't work, I'll have to replace the line. Thanks for the responses, I'll let you know what happens next!

jonnywater said:

I am attempting use JB Weld putty to patch the leak, if that doesn't work, I'll have to replace the line. Thanks for the responses, I'll let you know what happens next!

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I tried JB but it failed in short order.
If I recall, I removed the skid plate and fender liner to get better access.
A friend silver soldered the hole .

This works. jb wled is usually useless in most applications, this putty, i have sealed 200+ PSI lines with and are still holing. as long as the surface is flawlessly clean, it will work.
A tip, roll oit around in your hands FAST so you mix it up as fast as possible the hotter it gets when mixing, the better it bonds. it will come off your hands but i wear rubber gloves to do that. sets up in like 5 minutes so be quick with it .

Get yourself some "QUIK STEEL" it's a two part epoxy you mix with your fingers. No muss, no fuss.

Sorry my two threads became one! The other thread is here
http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=485391&page=2

But at this point the JB Weld putty worked, such a great suggestion! Lets see how long it will hold, but right now my power steering is at about 98%. There could be another leak or maybe it didn't work perfectly or i could have damaged the system when i drove it home with no fluid pressure. Its good now though!

your not going to harm it much with no fluid, should be ok. best of luck

Mongler98 said:

your not going to harm it much with no fluid, should be ok. best of luck

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If you run the engine with the pump dry, you can trash it in about 60 seconds. One of our porters found this out the hard way.

I had just done a bunch of work to a car, and was in the process of refilling on the fluids, but was out of PS fluid. So the car was completed, except for that, and had not yet been started. I set it down on the floor, cleared the rack arms, and left for the day.

Next morning I come in, the floor under the car was cleaned, and the car was sitting there with the brand new accessory belt chewed off into melted shreds, with the PS pump pulley at an odd angle, and the shaft locked up.

Porter thought the car was "together", he started it, backed it up, cleaned the floor, and pulled it back in place and just then "heard a noise".

So yeah, don't run the engine with the PS fluid low (or in this case, empty).

I would not trust an epoxy-from-a-tube fix on a high pressure hydraulic line. These lines are not all that difficult to replace, just a bit fiddly to get out. There are a couple different versions on the ALH, and I am not just speaking of manual vs. automatic. So if you get a new or used one, make sure you get the correct one.

i ran about 190 miles on my mk3 with no fluid in the pump, its been 140K since that happend, no signed of any damage. That weld on a stick was meant to get hi to and from the junk yard. i have repaired lines that see over 200psi before, if the prep is good, it will chemically attach to the metal and is way harder than it too.