A technical question for you all. I'm leaking power steering fluid from one of the "power steering cooler" hardline. The actual part name from Mazda is Power Steering Pressure Line #1. If you're facing the front of the car, the power steering mess is on the right. 2 big flex hoses go from the pump to the steering rack. On the right side of the rack, near the driver side wheel well wall, there will be 2 steel(?) 1/4" hard lines that come out toward you / the front of the car and makes a 45 degree turn to the left, towards the passenger side of the car. The 2 lines create a loop basically and goes to about the length of the oil cooler (I have a T2) and makes an about face and heads back to the pump. Apparently it's high pressure because my fix isn't holding.

Why do you need to cool power steering fluid? Can I shorten it or make my own thing? If it needs to cool the fluid then why didn't the engineers send the fluid to something like a heatsink type of solution? Maybe a bigger pipe with fins on it to bleed off the heat? Similar to a CPU heatsink/fan. I'm assuming that the distance the fluid has to travel lets off enough heat. Can I shorten the length, perhaps put a heatsink type of catch-can and then send the fluid back? I can then mount the "power steering cooling reservoir" somewhere else and not have it leak again.

Thanks.

 

I didn't think those were cooler lines, per se. They may cool a little due to location, but it's obvious in their physical design that there main function is not to cool the fluid. I always thought they acted more as "reservoir" lines due to the fluid displacement quantities coming out of/going in to the rack itself during wheel-towheel turns.

 

They are not cooling lines, there is not a p/s cooler on FC's. Some cars do have p/s coolers but not ours. They are just the reservoir lines, pushing fluid into the rack. Unless your car is going to do some real serious track work there is no reason to have a p/s cooler and even if you were going to track the car you'd want the manual rack from a S4.

 

YA those lines are a fluid displacement thing, Was explained to me by a friend in a shop, equal the volume of a full turn or something to get equal pressure when turning wheel...hehehe..sorry not a technical explanation from me. Either way makes system operate correctly, not a good idea to cut or shorten.

 

ah ok. Now i know. thanks.

These lines are high pressure right? what level of pressure are we talking about? I was thinking about replacing the right-angle portion of both pipes steel braided and keep the straight parts original. Mazda only sells the entire thing. In reality, it's actually 3 seperate pieces: top pipe to the hook/loop, the rubber hose part and the return back up to the pump. They want almost 300$ for it. I'm running out of junkyards with good usable pieces left.

steel braided? yes/no? you guys wouldn't happen to know the fitting sizes would you?

thanks again.

 

https://www.rx7club.com/showthread.p...+steering+line

I don't know if we can believe the info in here or not, but a couple members seem to think it's not even that important. What I really would like to know is how much pressure that line actually sees. I'm thinking a short piece of steel braided line in place of the leaking section would work fine.

 

there's no way to get a rubber hose to "just fix" the problem. the only way to slip a hose over the hole in question is to completely remove the entire thing or just remove the 2nd lower tube.

the lines are actually multiple pieces so if people are willing to take it apart and slip a hose over the hole, clamp the leaking area, why not just ditch it totally or fix it or upgrade it? different strokes for different folks i suppose.

my ghetto attempt didn't work. :hangs head: i know that guy who did my exhaust, so i had him tap some solder into the hole, i wrapped it in electrical tape and then wrapped the entire thing in duct tape.

i'm willing to bet that i probably have another hole somewhere. i guess depending on model year but the lines i have the bends are all rusted while everywehre else is pretty new. so i'm guessing that when it rains or when i wash the car or whatever .. the lowest point where the water should drip off is the bend - which is why i had rubber "covers" on the corners only and not a rubber cover around the entire line.

 

<--- blocked s5 p/s and loves it. No more road tracking!