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I am very greatful to edmunds for this message board.. I appear to be one more of many people that have had headaches with power steering in later model Caravans and T'C's... I have a 2005 LX. For a little History.. we bought the car used (an ex-rental car) for a decent price w/ 30K miles on the clock.. at 40K my p/s issues began.. first symptom was when I exited the fwy the p/s would be howling as if not enough fliud were present.. after about 10 minutes on the street the howl would go away.. dealer flushed 2x over the next 40K miles, but howl would return after 1K or so of driving.. since I had an extended warranty, I waited until p/s was making noise nearly all the time and then took the car in.. dealer replaced hoses and cooler, said all were badly deteriorated.. this fixes issue for appx 6K miles.. at 88K took car back and pump/rack were replaced - thankfully my extended warranty went until 90K so cost was minimal..but... 2K after rack and pump.. car again would howl after exiting the freeway for a short period of time.. after 10K miles noise was again constant.. and pump was again replaced (dealer said pump failed and fixed for free as there was a dealer warranty of 12K/12mo that was still in effect).. all fine and well for next 2K miles.. until we went to visit my son at Christmas.. traveled appx 90 miles on fwy at 65mph going to his house (1st time on fwy since 2nd pump).. we were relieved that when we exited, there was no noise from the p/s system.. on the way home we pushed the speed up to 70 mph.. guess what.. when we exited the fwy the p/s was howling again.. so I asked, why was the pump howling at 70 and not 65.. answer could only be that something in the system was starving the pump at engine speeds above 2000 rpm.. so I called the dealer (truthfully, they have been good to me) and explained what was happening again, and asked if there was a filter or something similar in the p/s sytem.. they answered no there was not??!!.. then I started reading the posts here at edmunds and found many other people having nearly identical issues with their late model T/C's and Caravans.. I Called the dealer back and asked if there was a filter screen in the p/s fluid reservoir.. they checked with the parts counter and said yes.. thinking I could save a little money, I took a small screwdriver and poked about 5 holes in the screen membrane thinking to increase the flow thru the reservoir.. BIG MISTAKE.. now the noise began within 1-2 minutes of starting the car AND the reservoir was filling with pink foam.. obviously something had changed and air was being held in the fluid.. so I bought the new reservoir ($34 after taxes) and installed it.. as I inspected the old reservoir, I could see the filter screen was nearly clogged with debris.. I also figured out that the reservoir has a second function.. it works as an air/oil separator.. (air mixes into the oil as it is churned up by the pumping action.. even if there is no seal leak the air can rapidly build in the oil to a point where the oil loses it's ability to support pressure and won't lubricated effectively.. apparantly the reservoir also functions as an air/oil separator.. when I punched the holes into the filter screen I destroyed this separation function).. upon replacing the reservoir, and filling about 1/4 inch above the full line (dealer parts guys suggested this) my problem seems to be solved.. have driven the car for 2 weeks including trips on the fwy at speeds up to 75mph with no more noise from the p/s system..
Not sure what Chrysler recommends for interval between p/s system flushes.. but it might be wise to replace the reservoir regularly..
I have had the whinning noise for about a year only when it's cold for about a minute and then it stops and everything is fine.
We are finally out of the artic cold and now as of last night, the quick winning noise went away as usual at start up but when Im in park now there is a noise and when I turn the wheel either direction the noise??
Could it be the reservior and is it still driveable?
Of course Im going out of town today so I hope it's still ok to drive.
I have a 2001 GC sport and I noticed alot of you have 2003.
Is changing the reservior the same on all models?
Thanks so much for your help!
PS Im going to check the fluid level this morning
I live in Russia and have a TC 3.3/2003. I tried to buy a new original reservoire here but didn't find it right away. So I decided to clean my old reservoire...
Then I thought about a reservoire with replaceable paper filter element and found it in a Russian car "Volga" (about $20). It is almost of the same size but with different ports. I installed it and was happy. Whinning have gone. I replaced the element ($1) after 1500 miles to remove all old dirt, the fluid is very clean after that.
Please visit my page. It is in Russian but you can look at the photos at least. There are the necessary parts on my table and the instaled reservoire.
http://yegorus.narod.ru/Car/PS-Chrysler.html
I don't know many cars with paper filter in power steering, probably Mercedes, Volga, but many trucks.
Gparkman
Any thoughts or suggestions Please!
Seem to do the trick, stop that whinning noises and I have had no leaks.
It cost about $10 a bottle.
Rich
The OBD system uses a heuristic to infer if the cat is working correctly. This algorithm looks for expected outputs from the rear and front O2 sensors. If the front sensors look good, but the rear is marginal, then it may decide the cat is bad/marginal even though it could be the rear sensor.
You didn't say how many miles are on the van.
I had the same problem with my 06 Town & Country (37,000 miles) back in Dec 08 and my mechanic replaced the resevoir as well. By the time I hit 39,000 miles the noise was back and just below 40,000 miles we started leaking fluid.
Called Chrysler and had to bring it to an authorized dealer for verification. $648.00 later (after the dealership picked up nearly $500.00 in labor only) the rack has been replaced--along with a front end alignment.
I'd love to find out how you do in the long run............hope you have better luck than I did.
BillS8
Thanks to the information I received from everyone here, my power steering noise is gone. I purchased the reservoir from the dealer ($26) and replaced it and it corrected the problem. The cut the old reservoir open and the filter was 75% plugged. Thanks for the information
:shades:
One more thing, a while ago I had a strange squeaking noise coming from my engine and though it was the belt tensioner. After replacing it the noise was still there. I then thought it was then the alternator pulley but I didn't want to go that route yet so I decided to buy a new belt to replace my old cracked and worn out belt. Changing the belt solve my squeaking and found out that my old pulley was just fine.
Change the reservoir and it just might fix your problem.
If it does, I would go back to the dealership and ask for a refund on the pump. These guys know it's the reservoir and don't fix the simple fix but nail you for a new pump and rack and pinion.
Good luck,
Tim
:shades:
This vehicle is driving me crazy. Only 68000 miles on it.
Here are my problems:
1) Power Steering: Squeals like crazy and is difficult to make turns most of time. Forget parking in a spot where you would need to back out of. It is too difficult to turn wheel. I checked fluid level and it is full.
2) When driving my battery light comes on from time to time (related to power steering?)
3) Heat: Front fan will only turn on if I turn it all the way on. First three settings will not work.
Any suggestions? I have spent so much money the last two years at the dealer, I don't want to take it there. I want to keep this vehicle for a while because I can't afford a new car payment right now.
As for the air only working on high...removed the glove compartment door so you can see the blower motor cover. To the left you can see where the blower motor plugs into the "resistor". The resistor is bad when this happens. Replaced that last week. Takes about 5 minutes. Could only get it from Auto Zone. Costed $23. Only 2 screws hold it in. The new one I ordered didn't look anything like the one I pulled out but it worked.
And if so how do I do it?
Like I said, may sound crazy but I have owned enough of these to know better. Good luck.
Just thought I should add for clarification, in case anyone was wondering, that when the bearings were going in the A/C pully, it was definitely isolated to the main bearings and not the clutch, because it makes the noises and vibrations without the A/C or defroster turned on. Also, my comments on the LUCAS Power Steering STOP LEAK ADDITIVE: when you get momentary stiffness or steering loss in the power steering racks on most cars, you may also get a popping feeling and/or sound as well. This is usually from wear on the seals inside the rack. While I do NOT believe that any "leak stoppers" actually stop leaks, I will say this for the LUCAS, I use it as a lubricating additive, not a leak stopper, but it does appear to stop or slow down these internal seal leaks in the rack enough to avoid replacement of it for several years, or all together. This is of course based on my personal use and results of it in my own vehicles, both Chrysler and GM.
I went with the Amsoil fluid for two reasons: first, it has much better cold weather characteristics than ATF +4; second, it was easier to acquire and less expensive (the local dealer must think ATF +4 is refined from gold) at my location (Fairbanks, AK).
The only major problem I had with it the first winter was just trying to get it to move during the very cold days. Even with a heater on the transmission pan, it was terribly sluggish. So, when I was ready to change the fluid at 185K, I looked at alternate fluids. Amsoil, which I use for all my vehicles' engines and change once per year, makes a "universal" ATF that claims to be compatible. I contacted them to inquire for assurance purposes and they supported their claim. I figured if I changed the fluid and the transmission immediately failed then it would be their liability. I took the chance and came up smelling like roses. And, it behaves much better in frigid temperatures.
Anybody got step by step directions? :confuse:
I noticed on my '98 Caravan that the steering hydraulics underneath the van are leaking. I suspect that is probably where yours is leaking as well, even though mine is not yet as bad as you report. I do not have the details for the full repair as I have not performed it, but access on my van is relatively simple, requiring only the removal of a massive skid plate that is mounted under the steering and transfer case. Once removed, the area containing those hydraulics is very easy to access.
Thanks,
Bill
thanks again all
As others have mentioned, the rear (large) hose was a pain in the butt.
Since I was having trouble I unhooked everything (top bolts, back bolt, small hose, so I could twist the reservoir and the hose in opposite directions...still no luck.
mine was frozen until I spritzed some WD40 around the seam at the end of the hose where it butted up against the reservoir. Then I sipped on a beer for 2 mins, and after light-medium twisting, it broke free.