High Pressure Power Steering Hose

[pmg88]

Has anybody replaced their high pressure feed power steering hose? It looks like mine is leaking and dripping on to
the manifold/ Torque converter area ( see my post Mild Leak). I know the part is expensive $145 and I've heard
a real pain to replace.

BTW. This is for 1989 SI with 4WS.

Its mildly leaking from what looks like a coupling in the hose ( where a smaller bit comes out from what looks like shieldin?)
Do I need to replace the hose completely or anyone know of a quicker and cheaper fix?

Thanks.

[spiffyguido]

You'll have to replace the hose.

I've never done this before, although I have pulled off both ends of it. Chances are the biggest pain of the whole operation is going to be snaking it through the engine bay. Make note of the route it takes when you pull the old one off.

If you're short on cash, this is the type of part that would be totally acceptable to source from a self-self auto wrecker. Is there a Pick N' Pull near you?

[pmg88]

I was afraid that there is no quick-fix. There are Pick and Pull type places nearby however, I've read online that the
PS hose was a problem to the effect that there was a recall for the 88 models. Problem is Honda will not honnor the recall for 89s even though it is virtually the same car and same part. Also I'd hate to get one and have the sme problem occur later on.

How flammable is PS fluid? Some Luders who have had the same problem have complained of engine bay fires caused by spraying PS fluid. My leak doesn't quite touch the exhaust manifold. Instead it drips down onto the top of the torque converter and down.

[spiffyguido]

I had my power steering pump let go once and bury the engine in fluid....no fire. I'm sure it burns, but I've never known it to be super flammable. Either way, best you change it out soon rather than having to post pictures of your burnt down car.

[91darkness]

It is best to replace the hose. I tried to be cheap and try to patch the hose with a tire patch kit, but the pressure is to great. I got mine off of Rockauto for a decent price. The only problem with the aftermarket hoses is that it does not lay as flat across the engine bay as an oem. It was touching the underside of my hood. I pulled it tight and wrapped it with heat shield tape though.
It is best to feed the hose from under the car, right where the bottom end connects. It will take a little finagling, but it is a lot easier this way. It was my first time trying through trial and error to figure that out. Two people make it easier, one to feed from the bottom and anther to pull the end of the hose to the top.

[pmg88]

Thanks for the suggestion.

I chickened out and had someone else do it. Question: when you did yours, were you able to properly clean off
most of the PS fluid or did you have residual " leakage"? I think in my case alot of fluid leaked on to the splash guards
and the suspension components. I still have drips from somewhere.

[91darkness]

I used some high pressure silicone gasket around the top end of the hose where it meets the power steering unit. The screws strip very easily if torqued too much and the end will not seal properly. The hose i had was not bad enough to leak every where, it just had pin holes. If your leak was bad enough i could see it getting everywhere. Did you end up getting a used or new hose?
You could always get your engine and underside detailed to get all the crud out.

[pmg88]

I did get the hose completely replaced completely and the drippings finally settled down. It took about 4-5 days for the residual crud to completely drip out.

With the new hose came a complete flushing of the PS system. I do notice now that my PS pump is louder than it used to be with the OEM hose and the older PS fluid. Is this normal? My steering is fine in fact because it is 4WS it seems its even quicker now.

Has anybody changed their PS feed hose and noticed any noticeable changes?

[91darkness]

I didnt get any noise after i changed mine, but i also dont have a 4ws system.