pinhole leak pwr steering line

[dieseljunkie]

I felt a slow loss of power assist to the steering last night. Just so happen I have a fresh can of CH-11 pwr steering fluid so I filled the empty reservoir and started up the engine and saw fluid dripping out the bottom of engine.. Closeer look revealed the lower steel line on the pwr steering rack has 3 pinhole leaks squirting out fluid. VW must use crappy lines! I have a MB older than the Passat by 12 years and have no problems with lines rusting out. I better go check my brake lines and other metal lines for rust!Is the lower line the high pressure line? Is it dealer item only?

 

[dieseljunkie]

Mine is a TRW rack, smooth with no waffles. It's the lower of the 2 steel lines that is part of the rack with the pinhole leaks. According to 1stvwparts those lines are not available separately. Has anyone tried making up their own lines? They look like they have brake line type fittings. The lines from the pump to the rack and reservoir don't look good either. The line from the pump to the rack has a banjo fitting on the pump and some kind of flare fitting on the rack. I suppose that is the pinion valve>

I am going to take all the lines off and clean the rust up and rust proof them with POR15. Any tips to make the job easier appreciated.

 

[dieseljunkie]

How many psi is in those lines? It's not labeled in the pic but is the 2 lines that item 15 connects to (the pinion valve) where there are 2 lines that make almost a 90 degree bend downwards.

I can't drive the car with no fluid (will damage the pwr steering pump?). I can't remove the belt since it also drives the water pump. If the psi is not too great, Iam thinking of cleaning the area around the pinholes, degrease and seal it with epoxy so I can drive it and get it on a lift to make it easier to work on.

 

[dieseljunkie]

Just measured the diameter of the 2 lines. They are 6.4 mm which is 1/4". I am going to make new lines using copper lines, which will not rust. Anyone see a problem with that? What are the ends flared to? Inverted flare? bubble flare? Anyone been there?

 

[dieseljunkie]

Ran into problems getting one of the line nuts off. The end on the pinion vlave came off eventaully after a lot of penetrating oil and back and forth with a wrench (the line was rusted to the nut). On the rack end, same problem except access was tight and the nut rounded and couldn't get it off. New plan: Cut out the section of rusted line and splice in a copper section with 2 unions.

In the flaring tool is the end from the pionion valve being flared. To the left is the section of rusted line.

 

[dieseljunkie]

Copper line installed. This is pinion valve end.

 

[dieseljunkie]

This is the rack end. I had to flare the steel line with the rounded nut on the rack and barely had enough room to make the flare with the tool. See the black paint of the steel line? I think due to poor surface prep, cheap paint and lousy plating on the line, the paint peeled and holds moisture and caused the line to rust. If it had quality zinc or cadmium plating and no paint I wouldn't be having this problem

 

[dieseljunkie]

I haven't filled the reservoir to test my splice yet since the suction line (pipe between reservoir and pump) also had lot's of ugly rust (painted line also). Getting the 2 fastening bolts off was a PITA due to rust and tight access. One of them rounded and I had to cut that bracket. I filed and sanded the rust off and pressure tested it to make sure no leaks and POR15 it today and it's curing.

It's item 29, mounted under the AC condenser getting direct hit with sand and salt. It really need a shield in front of it. Maybe I'll add one.

 

[dieseljunkie]

Success! The spliced flared copper line is good and my B4V is back on the road with no leaks in the pwr steering! Here's a pic of POR15'ed suction pipe which was also badly rusted and about to leak anyday. I wish I took a pic of it before I cleaned it up. See the broken mount tab on the right? I'll have to fashion one with a hose clamp.

Installed. You may want to check yours for rust and be proactive before you get stranded.

 

[dieseljunkie]

The pipe I POR 15'ed is aka the cooling pipe. In case anyone wonders why I went through all the trouble of painting instead of buyin a new one, that pipe is $180 from my local dealer. The other lines with metal ends are $280 and $270 for the pressure and return line to the pump. Those are not leaking but has some surface rust on them. I will be cleaning and painting them with enamel. My brake lines are in similar condition and will be cleaned and painted also.

 

[BamaB4S]

Really nice work and pics Dieseljunkie. Good job!

 

[dieseljunkie]

Really nice work and pics Dieseljunkie. Good job!

Thanks! Repair holding up. No leaks!

 

[Campbellonh]

I am reviving this thread because I would like to make a similar repair to my car. Can you tell me how this fix held up long term? Did you do anything to prevent galvanic corrosion where the copper met the steel? What flare did you end up using? For the tubing, just standard 1/4" OD tubing you can pick up at a hardware store? Would you do anything different if you had to start over?

Thanks

 

[dieseljunkie]

I am reviving this thread because I would like to make a similar repair to my car. Can you tell me how this fix held up long term? Did you do anything to prevent galvanic corrosion where the copper met the steel? What flare did you end up using? For the tubing, just standard 1/4" OD tubing you can pick up at a hardware store? Would you do anything different if you had to start over?

Thanks

Car was sold a quite a few years ago and the repair held up fine while I owned it. I didn't even think about galvanic corrosion......don't think it will be an issue. Can't remember the exact tubing I used but it was probably from Home Depot. Just get something the same diameter or close to the existing line and get the thickest wall that can be flared with a hand flaring tool. I believe the flare I used was called an inverted flare or double flare. Would I do anything different if I have to start over? Probably not.