Hello
My wifes 95 Xantia 1.9td has developed a strange fault with the power steering. When turned to the left or right wether stationary or driving it is unbeleivably hard then suddenly goes easy for about 1/4 turn then goes very hard then very easy almost like it has lots of really tight spots mixed with power assistance in between. Any one had the same problem or got any ideas?
Regards
Mike
Xantia Steering
Moderator: RichardW
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Dave Burns
- Posts: 1915
- Joined: 14 May 2001, 05:30
- Location: United Kingdom
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Iv'e known something very similar on a ZX, on that occasion it was the power steering ram.
The steering didn't just go heavy though because as it got worse the steering momentarily locked up, it then had to be turned a fraction in the opposit direction before it would carry on in the other direction, very dangerous to say the least.
Yours could be something similar, other causes could be the pump or the pinion valve.
When you say unbeleivably hard, how does this compare to turning the wheel with the engine off, if it is easier with the engine off I would be inclined suspect the ram.
Hold the wheel hard to the left and then to the right, note any difference in the sound of the relief valve in the pump, it should hiss loudly, if it does it less in one direction than the other this may be a sign of internal leakage.
Is there any pulsing felt through the wheel when this happens.
Dave
The steering didn't just go heavy though because as it got worse the steering momentarily locked up, it then had to be turned a fraction in the opposit direction before it would carry on in the other direction, very dangerous to say the least.
Yours could be something similar, other causes could be the pump or the pinion valve.
When you say unbeleivably hard, how does this compare to turning the wheel with the engine off, if it is easier with the engine off I would be inclined suspect the ram.
Hold the wheel hard to the left and then to the right, note any difference in the sound of the relief valve in the pump, it should hiss loudly, if it does it less in one direction than the other this may be a sign of internal leakage.
Is there any pulsing felt through the wheel when this happens.
Dave
I had a similar problem with my last bx.The cause of that was dirty LHM.I drained the old LHM cleaned the filters and refilled with Hydraflush (about £15 for 5lts at andyspares) ran with this in for about 3000 miles then drained and refilled with new LHM,steering was ok with hydraflush in and ok with new LHM.Hope this gives you some ideas.
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D.Slatford
- Posts: 129
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- Location: Wakefield, United Kingdom
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Any one had the same problem or got any ideas?
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In the past few days my M reg 2.0i Xantias developed exactly the same fault. It's very keen to straighten up, but gets progressively stiffer as you turn it 90degrees either way, then lightens up again approaching 0 or 180, etc.
It seems to improve though as the engine heats up... and it has been bloody cold just the last few days. I've read suggestions that it could be the pump seizing up, having a harder time pumping cold LHM that thinner warm fluid. I don't know if there's any truth to this. I flushed the system out only a year ago. Hydrolics seem ok otherwise, the front can be a bit jerky to raise when cold and the rear quick to sink when engine off.
Edited by - D.Slatford on 02 Feb 2003 23:58:21
Any one had the same problem or got any ideas?
<hr height=1 noshade id=quote></BLOCKQUOTE id=quote></font id=quote><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" size=2 id=quote>
In the past few days my M reg 2.0i Xantias developed exactly the same fault. It's very keen to straighten up, but gets progressively stiffer as you turn it 90degrees either way, then lightens up again approaching 0 or 180, etc.
It seems to improve though as the engine heats up... and it has been bloody cold just the last few days. I've read suggestions that it could be the pump seizing up, having a harder time pumping cold LHM that thinner warm fluid. I don't know if there's any truth to this. I flushed the system out only a year ago. Hydrolics seem ok otherwise, the front can be a bit jerky to raise when cold and the rear quick to sink when engine off.
Edited by - D.Slatford on 02 Feb 2003 23:58:21
Mike,
Before you start slashing the wrists, have a look at the site below regarding the pinion kits.
More a fiddly job than a difficult one if it does become necessary.
http://www.bx.citroen.org/m23/m23e.html
Personally speaking, I would do an annual LHM change if I lived in the climate you guys do, as regardless of what the oil companies would have us believe, I still do believe that either LHM is more hygroscopic than they would have us believe or it changes its characteristics in the colder climates as we seem to get so many more complaints such as this from the colder regions than we ever even hear of in the tropics. We also don't get either the rain or the snow to contaminate it which is why I suspect this could be the case.
Alan S
Before you start slashing the wrists, have a look at the site below regarding the pinion kits.
More a fiddly job than a difficult one if it does become necessary.
http://www.bx.citroen.org/m23/m23e.html
Personally speaking, I would do an annual LHM change if I lived in the climate you guys do, as regardless of what the oil companies would have us believe, I still do believe that either LHM is more hygroscopic than they would have us believe or it changes its characteristics in the colder climates as we seem to get so many more complaints such as this from the colder regions than we ever even hear of in the tropics. We also don't get either the rain or the snow to contaminate it which is why I suspect this could be the case.
Alan S
Freezing point of new LHM is stated to be around -50 C, but it's characteristics (viscosity) change with the temperature, of course. Also, LHM is stated to be non-hygroskopic, but it doesn't mean that the water can't get into the system, partially mixing with LHM and causing problems. So, changing LHM every year or two isn't a bad idea.
On my BX, I have about 4 years old LHM. When it's below cca -5 C, steering is a bit harder, but not as with the engine off. When you turn the wheel left or right, you can feel slight pulsing. After a minute or two, everything returns to normal. I suspect the flow distributor is causing problems here (in combination with old LHM, of course), because the car rises normally, but the problem may also be in the HP pump, coping with more dense LHM.
On my BX, I have about 4 years old LHM. When it's below cca -5 C, steering is a bit harder, but not as with the engine off. When you turn the wheel left or right, you can feel slight pulsing. After a minute or two, everything returns to normal. I suspect the flow distributor is causing problems here (in combination with old LHM, of course), because the car rises normally, but the problem may also be in the HP pump, coping with more dense LHM.