Leaking power steering fluid...

My '02 Jetta wagon is currently not driveable, as I have a very sudden, and fast leak of power steering fluid. I haven't had time to slip under the car, to see what is going on, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it is not the rack.
In such a situation, is it more likely that the pump has taken a dump, or might it be the rack? I'm dreading doing a rack & pinion job on this car....

could also be a hose. You have to take a good look

For what it's worth, I've been driving my '02 without power steering for a few years without issue other than a little difficulty parking. I ran a shorter belt and by-passed the power steering pump. I've got both the a/c and power steering bypassed now as the a/c doesn't work either and it's not worth fixing on an 18 year old car.

I've posted the belt sizes in other posts on the forum.

macoombi said:

For what it's worth, I've been driving my '02 without power steering for a few years without issue other than a little difficulty parking.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the info! Just curious. Was it the rack, pump, or hose on your '02?

I “repaired” the steel lines on my Beetles rack with JB weld. It’s working fine and has been for months. I also blew the power steering pressure line but JB weld wouldn’t fix that one. That one is easy and cheap enough to replace. Mine blew because of a seized upper strut bearing plus rust.

quartersaw said:

Thanks for the info! Just curious. Was it the rack, pump, or hose on your '02?

Click to expand...

No idea. I never got that far into diagnosing. Either way it looked like it was going to require dropping the subframe to fix and I could forsee snapped bolts thanks to all the salt the car has seen over the years. I'm shocked I'm still driving the car.

Last year I removed the power steering pump and most of the lines. Weight savings I probably gained a tenth of a mpg from less parasitic drag.

How's your universal joint after a couple years without power steering? That was my main concern and reason for changing my rack. Not sure it was designed to be used without it. That and I didn't want to accidentally fracture a bone in my hand...

Thanks for the feedback, guys! I've been too busy to diagnose the issue, but I'll report back when I see what is going on!

It's the rack. I bought a USED replacement from a junkyard, as I have not had good luck with TRW rebuilds in the past (w/non VW's) I wasn't going to buy a new rack for a car w/286k on the clock.
Ugh. I hate this job...

These racks are fairly easy to rebuild. Why not just diy it!

Get your steering wheel and wheels in a straight ahead position. You will have to turn the steering wheel one revolution to access the 13 mm bolt that holds the steering column U joint to the rack. Once that bolt is removed rotate your steering wheel back to the straight ahead position and lock the steering wheel in place. Then wiggle the steering column U joint off the splined shaft of the rack. Do not unlock the steering wheel until you wiggle the U joint back on to the splined shaft of the new rack.


Not a bad job just don't allow the steering wheel to freewheel or you'll have more problems than you want.

Tdijarhead said:

Get your steering wheel the steering wheel until you wiggle the U joint back on to the splined shaft of the new rack.

Click to expand...

The steering wheel would not lock in a straight position, so it IS unlocked. Am I screwed?

Doesn't the wheel lock when you pull the key from the ignition? If not you'll need to figure out another way to be sure it does not turn on you once you wiggle the U joint loose. Duck tape?

Huh? Why does it matter? The steering rack can only go into the u-joint one way. Remove steering rack, match the length of tie rods with the center shaft in the correct position, and reinstall.

Tdijarhead said:

Doesn't the wheel lock when you pull the key from the ignition? If not you'll need to figure out another way to be sure it does not turn on you once you wiggle the U joint loose. Duck tape?

Click to expand...

The wheel does not lock in a centered position. (11 O'clock)

You need it locked as straight ahead as possible, 11 o’clock is fine as long as you put it back on straight. When I did mine I didn’t lock the wheel, the weight of the steering wheel turned it upside down, I didn’t see it happen, so which way did it turn? In about 5 minutes of trying to get it back to center I had such a mess on my hands the clock spring eventually failed.

Dont spin wheel and blow clock spring. Speaking for a friend.not a hard job with a lift. Sucks in the dirt. I had good luck with Detroit axles from Amazon. Comes with prepaidlabel an lifetime warranty if you send back old one. 300bucks.

mittzlepick said:

Dont spin wheel and blow clock spring. Speaking for a friend.not a hard job with a lift. Sucks in the dirt. I had good luck with Detroit axles from Amazon. Comes with prepaidlabel an lifetime warranty if you send back old one. 300bucks.

Click to expand...

Well, I went ahead, and stupidly cross threaded one of the friggin' Banjo bolts. I did a transplant of the 'old' collar, on to the 'new' rack. I would've preferred to install new seals, but I didn't want to buy a complete seal kit. (40 bucks) I did buy a pair of replacement banjo bolts, just to make sure the fitment would be uncomplicated.
Anyone been down this road, before?