So a bit of a rough day today. I went and picked up a 350,000 BTU heater out in the middle of nowhere today for my dad. I was headed home (about 5 miles from the guys house I bought the heater from) and some guy decided he wasn't going to share the road with me. This was a pretty narrow 2 way road covered in ice. I pulled it over and went into the ditch where there's about a foot drop off into snow and an embankment with sporadic trees. The nice gentlemen didn't have the courtesy to stop, so I hopped out and broke the branches on the tree already hitting my hood. I then rocked it back and forth to get moving and plowed down the ditch a way through another tree (even folded my mirror in.) I got stuck again and had to rock it back and forth when I noticed my brake petal became hard as a rock. So I said the heck with it, threw it in 3rd gear and held it at 3500 rpm until it pulled itself out. When I got out I put it in neutral and the truck skidded to a stop. For some reason the ABS had locked the brakes. Unplugging the module did nothing, so I shut it off and beat on the brake petal with my foot and they released. After that I've got virtually no brakes below 1500 rpm and nearly no steering power below 2000 rpm. Idling I can not turn and have no brakes. I did limp it 80 miles back to school driving very carefully but it's pretty sketchy driving through parking lots and such. 

So I've got a scratched truck, no brakes and no power steering. Does this sound like a PS pump issue or does it sound like something else may have let loose?

I'll have to say power steering pump since it's responsible for both steering and braking also could just be pressure spring or something in the pump stuck, not sure if it could be Hydro Boost, since  fluid goes through that also, sorry just mumbling things out.

Most likely the power steering pump. No pressure, no assist. Most likely when you high r'ed the engine the pump was damaged or blew the pressure regulator in the pump.

@TFaoro

Ouch man.  I am guessing PS pump also.

 

That sucks.

Thanks guys. Now, do I replace my PS pump so I can safely drive to finals? Or use that time to study so I don't fail my finals?

 

Looked over the scratches too. Looks like they can be buffed out. Gotta love having 3 coats of clear. 

I think I need a new power steering pump to it's been harder to turn wheels at idle all started after I did The Flash

I'd  say fix your truck then do some studying,  more than likely multiple-choice you always got a 50-50 chance, 

Edited December 13, 20168 yr by Dieselfuture

7 hours ago, TFaoro said:

Thanks guys. Now, do I replace my PS pump so I can safely drive to finals? Or use that time to study so I don't fail my finals?

Take the time to study.  You get only one shot at the semester finals.  You can replace the pump any time after the semester.  Take Uber to school.

So I left to go study at a friends house today and it acted just like yesterday for the first ten minutes or so. No brakes or steering at idle. By the time I got to his apartment it had started to loosen up and was just a bit stiff at idle.

The truck sat there for 5 hours or so and completely cooled off. To my surprise, everything is acting perfectly normal again???

I'll see tomorrow if it's still acting normal, but I have a theory. For those who have been around here a while know that I go through PS pumps like crazy, especially during the summer. They usually last about a month in the heat before they start making noise at 1200rpm, and the lines running to the hydroboost are always on fire.

 

I wonder if I didn't dislodge something in the hydroboost that was causing the pumps to burn up, and it got stuck around the inlet to the pump, making flow nearly impossible at low rpm. Then that debris either fell down into the reservoir or broke apart? What do you guys think? Either way I'm going to replace the pump after finals. Gotta love the lifetime warranty. 

Hard to say.  I am about to rebuild my hydroboost... once i learn more about it I may have more thought.  

 

Your bypass could also have been stuck open, and as it cooled, it closed.  More viscous fluid in a cold motor also helps.

14 minutes ago, CSM said:

Hard to say.  I am about to rebuild my hydroboost... once i learn more about it I may have more thought.  

 

Your bypass could also have been stuck open, and as it cooled, it closed.  More viscous fluid in a cold motor also helps.

I'll feel the lines tomorrow and see if they're on fire like they normally are. Maybe you're right....

What's going on with yours?

12 minutes ago, TFaoro said:

I'll feel the lines tomorrow and see if they're on fire like they normally are. Maybe you're right....

What's going on with yours?

 

Got on the abs a bit heavy.  Now it moans a lot but works ok.  I think i blew a seal somewhere and it is near max pressure at the pump.

 

My 2000 did this, but it wasnt this bad.  It would boil the fluid in the summer. 

Edited December 14, 20168 yr by CSM

On 12/13/2016 at 6:47 PM, CSM said:

My 2000 did this, but it wasnt this bad.  It would boil the fluid in the summer. 

After city driving for about 30 min, the lines were only warm. They used to be boiling hot, but I'm not sure because it's only 20* right now. 

The Bypass in those PS pumps is just  ball - spring type. I would wager your spring let go after the extended high RPMs + Steering demand in the ditch

Little update on this.....

I flushed the system with the old pump, installed a new pump and still have a nice groan from 1000 to 1200rpm while turning. Not a big deal for now, but something elsewhere is definitely wrong. I'll tear into it this summer, but for now everything is working "well" so I'll leave it alone until the summer months come. 

 

My 2000 had this issue for 3 years.  It worked fine.  The pedal has a bit of a "kick" to it when you first apply it.  In the summer it would overheat and puke fluid everywhere, but once warmed up it was fine.  I thought I had old fluid so decided I would just refil it and let it purge itself.  Strangely, it never worked.  Thankfully, I am no longer using such archaic maintenance practices. Flushing it and refilling with synthetic fluid didn't fix it either. 

 

I want to fix my 02.  I read that it isn't the pump, its the hydroboost system.  Somewhere in there, it has a sick seal that I popped by standing on the brakes too hard during ABS operation.  It seems to take fluid from the high pressure side and shoot it back to the low pressure side while restricting the flow from the pump inside the hydroboost.  Practical testing will prove if this is truth or not.  
 
I bought a seal kit for 23 bucks, as the only hydroboost units I found were like $500-700.  Pirate Jack I think was the vendor.  I plan on doing it sometime in February if you want in on the party. 

 

 

1 hour ago, TFaoro said:

Little update on this.....

I flushed the system with the old pump, installed a new pump and still have a nice groan from 1000 to 1200rpm while turning. Not a big deal for now, but something elsewhere is definitely wrong. I'll tear into it this summer, but for now everything is working "well" so I'll leave it alone until the summer months come. 

 

Edited January 10, 20178 yr by CSM