MK3 2008 C5 HDI Tourer Steering issues

[Wolins1]

Hi All

Just registered on here as require some help

Ive just bought a 2008 MK3 C5 HDI Tourer and the steering is heavy. It has no error messages and i can drive the car.

The steering is heavy and notchy but does not feel as heavy as it would if you turn engine off and turn the wheel. If you turn the wheel and take your hands off when going around a corner or turning it will NOT self correct and straighten up
The LDS fluid is at the correct level
There are no leaks from the rack or anywhere else

What would your thoughts be? Electric steering pump or rack needing replaced?

Thanks

[GiveMeABreak]

Assuming this is a hydraulic model, set the suspension to low and turn the steering wheel full lock left and right a few times to bleed it. The raise the car back to normal and try again. If it's still playing up, see if you can check the power steering electrical connector at the pump to make sure that's is all clean and that there's no contamination there.

[Wolins1]

Thanks for the reply

Yes its the hydraulic model, will tey dropping and turning wheel as you have said.

Where is the steering pump located so i can check connections etc

Thanks

[GiveMeABreak]

It is accessed via the front right wheel once you've removed the wheel and the splash guard protection. You should be able to see it as per the pictures below. I'm assuming you don't have the V6 engine. There are 2 types of wiring harness for the pump the one in 'B' has a split pin.

If it all looks ok visually, with no oil contamination or not loose, I wouldn't take them off or disturb them. Try the bleed first. How old is you battery incidentally? The C5s need a good healthy battery as there is a lot of kit on there to run.

X7 Electric Steering Pump

[Wolins1]

No idea on battery ive just bought the car alrhough everytime i go to start it i get the economy mode message. It does start straight away every morning and everything seems to work

Will have a look at pump in the morning

If thats ok, would you think pump on way out or rack?

[GiveMeABreak]

I would pray it's not the rack as little change from a grand! The racks were revised due to issues with water ingress to the pinion, causing rust and rapid deterioration of the seals there, and internally. Most of the examples I know of had actual leaks first. Citroën only supply the modified rack complete and some who have had refurbs have had limited success, often leaking again after. Best to ensure the pinion is well greased to protect it from the elements if it's the original one. Try bleeding it first and see how it goes.

[Wolins1]

Checked pump all connections look fine no oil and didnt unplug them

A friend has suggested changing the steering/suspension fluid

Is there a technique for this?

Thanks

[GiveMeABreak]

Checked pump all connections look fine no oil and didnt unplug them. A friend has suggested changing the steering/suspension fluid
Is there a technique for this? Thanks

Glad there are no leaks, that's good news. There is a procedure, but can be a bit of a faff and LDS is expensive. I would try the simplest things first. A poor battery or drain can cause many electrical problems, so if you are sure it is in a good state of charge, I suggest you try the BSI reset first that will reset the ECUs on the car including the Power Steering pump ECU.

Follow this guide to the letter - and don't open any doors, or press any switches during the process or it will 'wake up' the car's systems.

• Put the driver's window down, lift the bonnet and ensure all equipment is switched off.
• Ensure all doors are closed and remove key from the ignition.
• Wait for 3-4 minutes (you can sometimes here a whirr or a click after a few minutes), and again, don't open and doors - disconnect the vehicle battery negative terminal and wait at least 3-4 minutes and don't let it reconnect to the terminal. Again, don’t open any of the doors or tailgate during this time, or the BSI will ‘wake up’ again.
• Reconnect the negative battery terminal (try to make a clean contact by not attaching and removing the negative terminal whilst re-connecting), wait a further 3 minutes (do not open doors or tailgate).
• Switch on the side lights through the driver's window you left open.
• Switch on the ignition (but don't start car) and check dash display lights are ok.
• With key still in ignition, hold the lock button on key down for about 10 seconds to reinitialise the key fob.
• Remove the key then operate the central locking with the fob - open & close the doors several times.
• Now start the engine and check everything is ok.

This will reset the main BSI on the car and is known to iron out lots of electrical gremlins. Try this and then see if that has made any difference to the Power Steering.

[Paul-R]

Ive just bought a 2008 MK3 C5 HDI Tourer and the steering is heavy. It has no error messages and i can drive the car.

The steering is heavy and notchy but does not feel as heavy as it would if you turn engine off and turn the wheel. If you turn the wheel and take your hands off when going around a corner or turning it will NOT self correct and straighten up
The LDS fluid is at the correct level
There are no leaks from the rack or anywhere else

My car has this a little bit although I wouldn't call it notchy.

The best way I can describe it is stiction. When I'm going round a roundabout or moving lane on the motorway, the steering wheel displays a slight reluctance to move back to straight ahead by itself. If I turn the wheel manually there's a slight give before I can overcome this stiction.

It doesn't happen all the time and when I brought it up with dealer (when it was still under warranty) they said that they couldn't find anything wrong. If pressed I would say that it occurs under mild acceleration which makes me think that maybe it's an effect of the CV joint under load.

[Stickyfinger]

All sounds like a steering joint or lower joint to me.....

[ell270390]

When checking lds fluid level, the hydraulic system must be fully depresseried using a diagnosis machine!! Overfilling can cause tank the explode!. When operating the steering left and right can you hear/ feel the PAS pump if not carry out lives and earth's at pump sounds like pump failed possibly also blown fuse? hope this helps

[ell270390]

If the pump is working get the level checked properly and make sure there are no kinked or damaged PAS pipes

[GiveMeABreak]

You don't have to fully depressurise the system, the suspension can be set to the lowest setting and left for a while, then measured. Fluid should be between the lowest two marks.

[ell270390]

Thats the way I was trained by Citroën to do it! its manufacturer procedure is to fully depresurise ,when fully depresseried the vehicle drops all the way and rests on the Bumpstops giving the correct level reading! Obviously in the low position you can get an idea of the level

[GiveMeABreak]

Yes, that's correct as per the procedures, but it also gives you a choice of doing this with and without the diagnostic kit. There are many members here with Lexia clones, but there are a lot that don't have this kit, so we try to keep it as practical as possible