kdesiderio
2/4/2006 3:05:11 PM
Anyone ever have this problem?
I have a 2002 SLS and the other day I was backing out of a parking lot and noticed that the wheel was very hard to turn to the left. The power steering seems to be OK when turning to the right. Turning the wheel to the left is very hard to do. What do you think it could be? I do not notice any fluid leaks. What gives?
Thanks in advance.
Katzmans Caddy
9/16/2007 7:22:09 AM
Bumping this post for some imput.
Eddiek
9/16/2007 4:59:33 PM
My 2001 Deville did the same thing. It was the steering rack.
Eddiek
Stealth
9/16/2007 5:41:06 PM
quote:
ORIGINAL: Eddiek
My 2001 Deville did the same thing. It was the steering rack.
Eddiek
assuming the pump is going as it should, that would be my guess also. the hydraulics,
the valves that guide the fluid when you turn the wheel. probably an orifice blocked or
a seal that let go.
We used to work on aircraft hydraulics and those were the usual culprits, contamination,
seals and lines.
usually, hydraulics are pretty simple systems, but messy.
Katzmans Caddy
9/16/2007 8:43:47 PM
I did some web surfing tonight on this and you don't have to dig too deep. Apparently this is a common fault in Cadillacs of all models, so surprised we have not really heard about it. Always steering to left at very slow to near stop conditions or first thing in the mornings when the car is cold. Turning right is fine. The problem is the rack, a valve in the rack fails and causes the power assist to go away. One owner reported driving like this for 6 months then finally snapping the steering column, very dangerous. Rack replacement is the cure. I also checked on-line for aftermarket rack assemblies and I saw them from as low as $180 up to $385. Most suppliers will give a core refund of $80 to $150 for the old unit all depending on the retail cost of the new one. I did not check the amount of labour needed but would think it is in the two to three hour range. All totalled it would be at least a $500 job.
