Power steering pump seizing up? - Troubleshooting - VWDiesel.net The IDI, TDI, and mTDI source.

• Power steering pump seizing up? by LeeG on 13 Oct, 2006 09:05
• Hi, what are the chances of a power steering pump partially seizing up suddenly?
  I was just finishing parking at work this morning when a belt started squeeling and smoke started pouring out.  It appears to be the outer belt that drive waterpump and PS that is getting hot, and it appears that the pump is spinning, but there is too much smoke to see much when I start it.
  
  If I remove the PS belt to drive home, the water pump will only be driven by the friction of the slip pulley....anyone have experience with that, will it spin the waterpump fast enough for me to get home if I take it easy?
• #1 by LeeG on 13 Oct, 2006 15:20
• Answered my own questions:
  
  After it cooled down the pump was seized solid.  I cut the belt and drove it, it didnt show any tendancy to run hot, so there is enough friction in the slip pulley to drive the waterpump.
  
  Anyone have a PS pump to sell?
• #2 by burn_your_money on 15 Oct, 2006 07:28
• I have one from a mk3 that I don't need. If it will work send me an IM
• #3 by coke on 15 Oct, 2006 21:41
• The P/S pump tends to seize up on our year vehicles. I can't explain it. THe belt that runs in the inside of the water pump pully is fully sufficient for cooling purposes. I ran my A2 without power steering and just the one belt for 2 years before I replaced the power steering pump.
• #4 by LeeG on 15 Oct, 2006 22:52
• Thanks guys.
  
  Burn_your_money:  I have a line on a couple locally.
  
  Coke:  Good to know, since I didnt get round to it this w/e so I am going to drive it this week on one belt.
  
  Strange thing is that the PS pump isnt seized anymore.  When I cut the belt off it was rock solid.  Driven maybe 75 Km since without a belt on it and now it spins freely.  Wierd.
• #5 by coke on 16 Oct, 2006 20:47
• Sounds like a bearing issue. Usually they dont come unstuck. I would never trust that pump again. In fact, I would get a new/rebuilt one asap. I put a junk yard one on my car and It has less than 10k miles on it and its already screwed.
• #6 by LeeG on 16 Oct, 2006 22:51
• yeah I wasnt going to use it again, it spins freely but sounds dry.
  
  New jobber part is like $250C.  They say that the rebuilt ones are not worth trying.  Used is $50.  Mine lasted 400,000km + so my reasoning is that if I can find a used one from a car with 'only' 200,000km on it, then hopefully I can get another 200,000 out of it?  Wishful thinking perhaps, we shall see.
• #7 by jtanguay on 17 Oct, 2006 11:19
• well you take your chances buying used... just remember if you buy used run some fluid around the pump by spinning it with your hand.  you can usually tell the state that the pump is in.  (but real testing is the high rpm's that you will be throwing at it  :twisted:)
• #8 by phantom59 on 01 Mar, 2008 19:53
• I know this is an old thread but I have a question in this area.
  When I purchased my 91 Jetta the PS belt was missing when I replaced it the pump spins easy and smoth but when I started the car the belt started slipping badly. Everything worked fine wheels turned smoth but it ate the belt in about a minute.
  New Pump?
  New Rack?
  Or something else?
• #9 by LeeG on 01 Mar, 2008 23:10
• Does your car have a slip pulley on the waterpump?  ie a pulley that is supposed to let the 2 belts travel at different speed.  when the bearing/bushing in the pulley gets bad they tend to sieze up.  The slip pulley on my olf '91 jetta did this....the belts lasted for a few thousand km if I kept it loose enough that it slipped easily.  I eventually replaced the pulley, but it was a dealer only $400 ish part.  
  You could test this by taking off the alternator belt and just running the PS belt for a bit.  if it still slips then its your pump or rack or something
  
  
  I never did get around to putting on the used PS pump I bought in relation to this thread.....I actually decided I liked driving it better without PS.  Better steering feed back when you are pushing hard into corners.  Parking isnt too bad, but my wife probably would have had trouble with it.
• #10 by phantom59 on 02 Mar, 2008 08:18
• I looked at that but the pully looks the same as the one on the pump and you can see the end of the bolts comming through on the back side.
• #11 by phantom59 on 04 Mar, 2008 19:35
• Ok went to the junk yard and got a pump installed it and I still have the same problem. the belt is slipping and smoking where do I go now? I called a local shop that specializes in foreign cars and he said change the pump also but here I am.
• #12 by denroldiesel on 07 Mar, 2008 05:24
• Quote from: "LeeG"

  Hi, what are the chances of a power steering pump partially seizing up suddenly?
  I was just finishing parking at work this morning when a belt started squeeling and smoke started pouring out.  It appears to be the outer belt that drive waterpump and PS that is getting hot, and it appears that the pump is spinning, but there is too much smoke to see much when I start it.
  
  If I remove the PS belt to drive home, the water pump will only be driven by the friction of the slip pulley....anyone have experience with that, will it spin the waterpump fast enough for me to get home if I take it easy?

  
  
  The fluid collects a lot of foreign stuff over time.  Take a sample in a plastic pipette and see if it is murky.  VWs have a longer life than most cars and this fluid is not part of the set maintenance programme. Five years is a good change period.