steering pump fault

[jesfirth]

I have a griff 500 which has a retrofit PS system comprising a citroen saxo PS pump mated to a standard griff PS rack so basically the same set up as the T cars. it has worked flawlessly for 6 years but I now have PS working intermittently. it seems to happen when it feels like it - no particular speed or revs and its not just right or left hand corners so its not a rack or column issue.. it will work fine for 15 minutes then it just stops working then 2 minutes later it fixes itself.

I have checked and resoldered every electrical connection - the fuse looks ok

no fluid leaks and the rack is recently rebuilt and feels just fine when its jacked up with the wheels off

any bright ideas? do these pumps wear with age and become dodgy?.

[Penelope Stopit]

With the pump connected, work out a method so that you can connect a Voltmeter to the pump cables, now check if there is 12 Volts or more at the pump when it should be operating
If there is an ECU in the Power Steering Pump circuit you may possibly need to be driving the car above a certain speed to be able to test it

[jesfirth]

thanks will try that - there is no ecu so that makes it easy. my challenge will be to get it to fail while I am testing it.

[gruffalo]

Common issue with the pump.

I had to change mine last year for the very same reason, £45 gets one off eBay and it takes about 10 minutes to swap, best to get new washers for the high pressure bango connection.

[jesfirth]

Thanks

[leerdam23]

Do you have the saxo relay? they can give up. try tapping it when the pump has stopped. they are only rated for 30a but the pump can draw more than that when fightinig the steering.

[gruffalo]

leerdam23 said:

Do you have the saxo relay? they can give up. try tapping it when the pump has stopped. they are only rated for 30a but the pump can draw more than that when fightinig the steering.

Good point, I stuck a 70a rated one in my car.

[Penelope Stopit]

If you need to fit a new pump - Have you considered wiring in a circuit that stops the pump running when driving in a straight line? If you were to wire in a pump stopper circuit, the new pump should last a much longer time

[mk1fan]

Would that not lead to spikes on the electrical circuit?

[s6boy]

Can't understand the thinking behind adding more complexity when a new pump is £45 and a relay a couple of quid.

[Smokey Boyer]

I have exactly the same system installed on the car I purchased, and also experienced similar problems. I eventually found it was the relay holder that was at fault. The contacts in the holder needed the curled metal edges adjusting to ensure a tight fit and therefore good contact.

One of the cheapest fixes I have ever done on the car.