Intermittent power steering fault

[Homer62]

Hi,
Bought my c5 exclusive 2lt hdi manual from a garage in Edinburgh, it was a trade in, good condition throughout low miles of 76,000 no warranty as mileage could not be verified, salesman said it had intermittent power steering fault, loss of power, bought the car anyway cause I liked it drove about 4 miles and steering went stiff, straight road so no problem, came to lights switched engine off and started car and power steering back on, used every day to the Tuesday and happened again, stopped switch of engine, started car and power steering back, read on here about checking air in hydraulic system, guess what no reservoir cap on hydraulic reservoir, topped up fluid with proper stuff bled with cap off, suspension up and right down, turn wheel 10 times, so I done this process twice, have driven it 11 days and it cut off again, found in one of the compartments service book all stamped up, so full service history and timing belt changed at 70,000 miles. Is there a chance there is still air in system? Could it be a communication error? Bad connection? Seems it might be a process of elimination, any help would be gratefully appreciated, thanks in advance. Forgot to say previous owner had it for 16 years
Davie.

[PaulC5]

Check the battery voltage in case it is low since the steering pump is likely electric.

[Homer62]

That’s great thanks, the car has hardly been used so could be that. Thanks.

[Homer62]

Hi again, noticed that using air con seemed to quicken the time power steering would cut off, bought new battery today, I was convinced it was that however still cutting off and can only drive a couple of miles max and it cuts off but usually much sooner than that, so at least I’ve ticked one thing of the list, what would be the next thing to look at, thanks in advance,
Davie

[shtu]

If it's been run with a low fluid level, it can take a while to get all the air out of the system. Giveaway is it'll feel a bit odd, assistance will come and go as you steer.

Beyond that, I'd wang a meter onto the pump's supply and see what's going on.

[Homer62]

Thanks for advice, I have noticed that sometimes steering can feel really light and other times a bit more firm. Went out and went through bleed process, no air bubbles, thought I’ll do it again but 3 times the pump cut off, does this seem more like an electrical issue?

[Homer62]

Well who would believe it, went out for a 40 mile jaunt and everything is working great, my hunch is the brains in the car have somehow reset with fitting new battery and voltage going up, thanks for help it’s much appreciated, this car has been a little frustrating but I love driving it.

[toolfan]

I case the issue appears again: I had the same symptoms on my 2.0 HDI too. The loss of the power steering was first very seldom, after restarting the engine was mostly fine again. Then it got worse, until 100% failure. Had nothing to do with the battery. I found out, that the main power supply (always on, even with ignition off) to the pump lost its power under load. No idea why. I installed an independent wire from the battery to the pump, 70 A fuse in-line, since then over one year no issue any more.

[Homer62]

Now it gets weird, Saturday went on holiday with car drove 126 miles with no problem, gets to our destination driving thru village and pump goes again, didn’t use car Sunday but went out today drove 17 miles and pump stops 3 times within 5 minutes so decided to call breakdown service, diagnostic check says DTC:5203 blockage of pump motor, will check it out Monday when we get back, probably get another motor from eBay and change myself.

[Homer62]

Hi, think I’m going to get a second hand power steering pump but don’t know what number I should match. Can anyone help out with this please, the numbers read as follows on two labels,

21601746 5070 40
Bar code
THKF51720260

1037 1205
90209 B FR HP5
DAEH 2.1 CEM 00
21601746 50. 70. 40

Thanks in advance,
Davie

[GiveMeABreak]

We can help if you need an original genuine part number, part diagram or factory build sheet and can't already find the info you need on the Forum. For this service, we do ask for a membership upgrade for official parts data as we are in turn charged for this. It will cover you for future part number requests for up to 2 years, so excellent value.

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[Homer62]

That sounds great thanks will do that shortly.

Back to the intermittent faulty power steering, I drained the reservoir and found the fluid to be a light Green possibly chf but not sure, filled the reservoir with 3 litres of total lds, jacked the front of the car up and with engine off turned the wheel 10 times but done it twice to be safe, then went thru the bleeding process, however to the right of the strut going under left plastic liner there is a small pipe and connector that was not connected and had misting around it, this pipe ran down to bottom of strut to steering, strange I thought, can’t see it in workshop manual but must have something to do with steering? Used the car today and bleeding process twice and so far ok, I’m not saying this has fixed it as time will tell. Can anyone shed light on this little pipe please? Thanks.

[Homer62]

The saga continues, I’m going to replace the pump with a second hand one but I have a question.
The manual says remove high pressure pipe from pump, I’m presuming the pump supplies the pressure so will be safe to remove am I correct in thinking this? The rest seems straightforward.
Thanks in advance.
Davie

[GiveMeABreak]

I must of missed your later responses after your initial request earlier Davie.

If you are still needing parts numbers, please let me know and I'll sort this - but I also don't know what vehicle you are referring to from your list - so please provide the VIN for the vehicle in question. Please post your VIN in full without spaces - it will be automatically masked from public view after submitting your post & will only be visible to staff.

[Homer62]

Hi, thanks, I put it on the Citroen parts request section and Richard W informed me there are two part numbers but are no longer available so have to go down the second hand route, although I did find a new one but not prepared to spend amount it costs. Just wanted to make sure I’m safe removing high pressures pipe. It’s for my C5.
Thanks very much.