Power steering quit and then started working again a couple of miles later

[Maximus Gladius]

Cool... glad you saw this post! So... is it your theory that the pumps start failing intermittently because they are overheating due to air in the system?

So... in order to get the air completely out, you have to jack up the front end and work the steering through 60-ish cycles lock-to-lock with the engine NOT running, correct?

I thought my theory was correct, …at first. My PS always quit in the hot summer temps and each time it quit I’d go place my hand on the pump and it was smoking hot. It would cool down and come back on. I then did the air lock burping and was surprised at how much air would come out and each pump would take an extra 1/2 quart more, even though the reservoir showed oil up to MAX.

The pumps failed anyway. This time I’m hoping to not have to deal with it again, especially if I’m doing a holiday in BC. Strong arming everywhere just sucks!

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[Maximus Gladius]

So... in order to get the air completely out, you have to jack up the front end and work the steering through 60-ish cycles lock-to-lock with the engine NOT running, correct?

Yes, correct. Crack the cap and stuff the area with rags. I’ve also just grabbed the front wheel and just pushed it left and right too. I’m closer to the bottle to see it and hear the air in the system.

 

[Raven65]

Yes, correct. Crack the cap and stuff the area with rags. I’ve also just grabbed the front wheel and just pushed it left and right too. I’m closer to the bottle to see it and hear the air in the system.

Cool... Thanks! I may give that a try and see if any air comes out. It certainly can't hurt.

 

[Maximus Gladius]

I also raised the passenger side a little higher to get the air to move in the direction of the bottle easier. Please post what you find out!

 

[Maximus Gladius]

I had my wife in the driver’s seat turning the wheel lock to lock the first time I did this. When we got to around 30 full cycles the nasty grammar started leaking out. Been married to her for 34 years and never heard such nastiness! She was done! I said OH NO YOU'RE NOT, give me another 30! It’s a real upper body workout.

She got even with me.

 

[ShrimpHappens]

Add me to the list of people it's happened to.

I was going 40-45mph, 20 degrees F. Floored it to get through a yellow light and the steering cut out for half a mile or so. Dead straightaway, thin traffic, thankfully.

 

[dcmdon]

Add me to the list of people it's happened to.

I was going 40-45mph, 20 degrees F. Floored it to get through a yellow light and the steering cut out for half a mile or so. Dead straightaway, thin traffic, thankfully.

Do you remember if it came back as you were slowing down?

 

[ShrimpHappens]

Do you remember if it came back as you were slowing down?

I started merging across two lanes of traffic to pull off onto a side road, so I wasn't accelerating anymore. I can't remember if I was maintaining speed or slowing down during this time, and it came back as I was turning onto the side road.

 

[Dave from Maine]

'22 Sport S - Stock except for Rubicon wheels/tires... roughly 9k miles on it. Near the end of my commute to work this morning (sunny in the mid-30's)... which is about 45 minutes long... the last leg of which is about 8 miles of interstate... I took the off-ramp near my office and just after merging onto the surface street, I noticed that I no longer had power steering. The EPS pump had just quit with no codes/warning messages. Two miles later, I slowed way down and was preparing to make the right turn into my office, and just as I started putting pressure on the wheel to start my turn, *bam* the pump fired back up and power steering was restored like nothing had happened. Still no codes/warnings. WTaF?!?!? If that had happened right before a big curve/turn, I would have been screwed! I've never been a fan of EPS - and this is why. Electronics can (and often DO) fail without warning - often intermittently. I just read the other day where there is a new Lexus coming out this year that has steer by wire... with NO direct mechanical connection between the steering wheel and the front wheels. This seems like a very bad idea. What happens when (not if) THAT system glitches?!? Hopefully they have built some redundancy into that system or its going to get people hurt/killed as those cars age and the electronics start getting flakey.

But I digress... back to my problem:

I just searched the forum and found were this has happened to others - usually resulting in the electric steering pump being replaced, but I did see where one person found that there was air in his system - and bleeding that out seemed to have solved his problem. I guess that could be worth investigating, but it sure seems like I would have had problems long before now (9k miles later). Also, the posts I found were all pretty old... nothing recent. Just wondering if anyone has had this issue recently - and what your resolution was.

Exact same problem. I can recreate the condition if the outside temperature is below 30F and I accelerate hard while making an abrupt turn to the left (passing). If I slow down to less than 20MPH the power steering comes back. A couple of additional notes. I have a Taser installed and show no fault codes. I also tried after the power steering loss putting the transmission in neutral at a speed over 40MPH to drop the RPM's to idle. Did not work. I find it interesting that dropping the RPM's does not restore the steering but dropping the MPH does. This makes me think it could be something with the ECM and MPH recognition?

 

[Noxian]

They finally replaced my power steering pump/motor at the beginning of January, issue hasn't happened since, I've tried several times and it hasn't happened again.

Hopefully it stays fixed next winter... But so far I am glad it's working like it should.

 

[Raven65]

Wow… interesting responses. I’m up to just under 20k miles now and haven’t had it happen again (yet). It’s always in the back of my mind though. Will continue to watch for it.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Replacing parts MAY fix the issue if it's an electrical or ground connection because the act of replacing the part often necessitates moving around wires, or removing and reinstalling wires or cables or ground connections.
I've seen before where people replaced electrical parts and then swearing their part was bad - when the whole time it was a connection.

 

[Noxian]

Replacing parts MAY fix the issue if it's an electrical or ground connection because the act of replacing the part often necessitates moving around wires, or removing and reinstalling wires or cables or ground connections.
I've seen before where people replaced electrical parts and then swearing their part was bad - when the whole time it was a connection.

I agree, trust me I had several conversations with the dealer service manager and they had it for a week troubleshooting it.

I am not 100% sold it was the pump but I have yet to have a problem and it even sounds different when I am maneuvering at low speeds.

 

[montechie]

Do you remember if it came back as you were slowing down?

I just had this happen twice on a recent trip. Not sure about hard acceleration, but it was at interstate (80mph) speeds, it 100% came back each time when we reduced speed to <25mph.

Both times we were out camping in sub freezing temps, but not very far from the highway. Engine should've been warmed up when we accelerated onto the interstate, but not sure about the power steering (PS), didn't have a lot of corners from either camp. Were on long straight stretches but either rolling hills or head wind (so lots of upper down shifting) when noticed the power steering was out, drove for a bit until there was a nice off ramp and as soon as the vehicle slowed under 25ish, full PS was back. No dash lights in these cases. Air temp was 23F-50F on the whole trip.

More unique to me: At home after the trip, in my driveway I start the truck up and go to crank the steering to one side and PS goes off, but I get a "SVC 4WD" light and the truck doesn't think the 4wd can engage (4wd/4auto light comes on, but Rubi disconnect won't switch), but PS is back on. Full power cycle off and the SVC 4WD light stays off and everything works as normal. Driving it around the past week and haven't had a problem since, even at interstate speeds.

34K miles and also a Jan. '22 build. Have checked fuse snugness before and after this trip, and have it scheduled to go in this week to the dealer that fixed my Pentaticker in August. Need to attach my scanner to see if any logs/codes show now so I can see if the same comes back after the dealer "fixes" it.

Will update with what the dealer finds.

 

[mountainpass]

Is everyone this is happening to a 22? If so post your MDH number. Its on a stick on the B pilar.

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