Power steering hose removal - urgent help!

[KitsonRis]

Car is leaking power steering fluid at an alarming rate. Think I have found the issue - the high pressure hose (towards the bulk head it is in some insulation stuff and goes into the pressure switch thing by the alternator) is leaking. Well everything else is bone dry and around the crimped joint to the meal pipe that goes under the battery was weeping and all wet patches under the car are around this join.

I have ordered the hose (both hoses just in case and just going to return if not needed) and should be here tomorrow morning. But doing some searching I have come to the conclusion it is a right pig to swap, mainly due to access.

Has anyone done this and is there any tricks to do it? I have seen something that says you need a certain tool or a ground down open ended spanner. Pictures would be even better!!

This is especially annoying as I have two cars but the daily is being sold and currently not taxed or insured!! So that can't be used. I have little help this weekend from my brother and or step dad. If it gets to it I could drop it at a grage tomorrow and take Monday off work as well, as I have all the parts just need the labour and knowledge. I also hope I haven't damaged the pump as it was empty a few times getting it home.

 

[Ads29]

Is that the one that goes over the gearbox and around? If so you may need to remove the gearbox mount to change the pipe??

This had been on my plans when running cup alternator, but I went for epas as it looked easier.

As for getting the pipes off the rack, mine were a pig but I managed in the end with some stubby spanners and plenty of swearing/cut knuckles. Think I may have undone the exhaust manifold to to gain a little more room

I did have to change one of the pipes when I first bought mine as it was leaking, found it more difficult getting the pipes lined up correctly for the unions to do back up than anything else.

 

[KitsonRis]

Gear box moubt off...oh god this is looking more of a nightmare! It goes near the gear box mount but can't see anything

 

[NorthloopCup]

Gear box moubt off...oh god this is looking more of a nightmare! It goes near the gear box mount but can't see anything

If you are careful, you can replace the hose without dismantling anything. You just need to move things out of the way, but the g/box mount can remain untouched. Granted though, it's an absolute ball ache of a job to do.

 

[Budgie]

Yep, fiddly fucker tbh

 

[KitsonRis]

Why??!!?? I hate these kinds of jobs.

I have removed the bumper, battery and induction kit to open up the engine bay a bit and that has made a difference.

 

[Budgie]

Can you not fix the leak with the pipe in place?

 

[KitsonRis]

Can you not fix the leak with the pipe in place?

The pipe appears to be leaking from the crimped join between the metal section (to the pump) and the hose section (to the pressure switch by the alternator). The metal section is quite corroded so probably worth a change.

Going to speak to my step dad when he gets home from work and take it from there. He helps me with car work and he now works weekends but Monday he needs to sort out the BMW as its only two weeks until it is needed for our Nurburging trip me it still doesn't start. I can't ask for too much time from him you see.

 

[Chris_Beer]

I had the same problem a couple years back, and like your current situation, needed it fixed asap!

Mine rubbed on the join you mention and started weeping which got worse. My solution was:


Drain system
Cut the crimped leaking bit out
CLEAN metal section, and also sand it so it's nice and grippy
Jubliee clip the rubber hose onto the metal pipe


It was leak free until I replaced it a year later. Just make sure its clean


You can see it here in all it's glory! All those years ago

Not pretty but it will get you on the road again

 

[KitsonRis]

Like the bodge, if it works then who cares!!!. But I've bought the right parts and want it done properly. But the metal pipe is quite corroded on the outside so not sure if it's able to do this simple fix.

 

[Chris_Beer]

I just seen the word urgent and assumed you needed it fixed today ha.

Maybe worth changing the ps sensor by the alternator pal. Mine started leaking through the top of the sensor not long after I put a new pipe on and into the wiring plug!

I would get the car up in the air and start removing the old one asap and you'll soon see what bits need moving for access. With help on hand you should have it done in no time... lol

 

[KitsonRis]

I just seen the word urgent and assumed you needed it fixed today ha.

Maybe worth changing the ps sensor by the alternator pal. Mine started leaking through the top of the sensor not long after I put a new pipe on and into the wiring plug!

I would get the car up in the air and start removing the old one asap and you'll soon see what bits need moving for access. With help on hand you should have it done in no time... lol

It was urgent until I saw the effort needed! I've taken it on the chin and going to take another day off work. Car is now the daily again. Needed urgent help and advice if I was going to do it tomorrow. But that plan has changed

That plug looks ok, all bone dry. But I'll ask the garage tomorrow, might take it to the old Renault dealership in Gloucester.

I remember when I used this forum for fun things and not fixing things

 

[Chris_Beer]

Hang on so your taking it to a garage anyway lol?

 

[KitsonRis]

Hang on so your taking it to a garage anyway lol?

The original plan this morning was to do it myself tomorrow after taking it apart and assessing it today. However it has changed after looking how it is done and I don't have any help from my step dad as he is at working.

 

[KitsonRis]

Car is now in the garage getting this sorted. Got the pipes from Renault this morning (well it was the Ford dealership as that is apparently where you order Renault parts from....logic). Feels weird giving my car to a garage, first time in 10 years of driving I am not doing the work!

Thanks for the advice, even if it was basically "you are going to have a bad time!" But that advice was probably worth it in the long run not to get stressed out and hate the damn thing. Oh and it's raining so I really cba to sit outside under a car all day. The intention was there to do it myself with help.

 

[Chris_Beer]

No fun working in the rain, done it so many times and can understand your decision!

Soon be fixed again

 

[KitsonRis]

Ok small update...this is hilarious tbh.
Borrowed mother's car to get to work this week, that broke on the way to work Monday - wipers stopped working (motor is nakard) during the pouring rain. Had to stop. Nothing I could do so got recovered. When I was rescued it had stopped raining and hasn't rained since! Great. So had to put the old daily back on the road for a short time.

Just had a phone call from the garage the 172 is at. He was slightly annoyed as it was leaking fluid all over his garage so he started it a day early than when it was booked in, whoops! But he says the pipe is leaking and to get to it the subframe has to come off. But he has tried all day to get to it and the bolts holding the subframe on are captive (are they? no idea myself as I have never looked) and are spinning! Exactly what happened when I dropped the rear beam to get my RARB on. So the phone call was basically about how much do I want to spend on it....as it has had 4 hours work on it and it isn't anywhere near fixed. Asked when the subframe is off how difficult is it - easy he said! Told him to crack on as I need the car and it fixed as it is likely to be sold and I doubt no one will want a car which doesn't hold power steering fluid.
So glad I didn't actually start this job, and so is my step dad!

This garage isn't a Renault specalist but they have done a drive shaft on my step dad's old Focus ST, the clutch on my mum's Mini and another drivershaft for my brother's BMW. Only went back to them as they consistently did a good job so I thought why not. Plus the Renault specalist in Gloucester wasn't open on a Saturday to drop the car off (turns out I could have dropped the car off Monday as I had to take that day off work too). But this surely can't be a specalist job??

 

[Chris_Beer]

Heard about the captive nuts spinning before on the subframe, nightmare but I remember people overcoming it with limited access to the nuts

As for removing the subframe to change the pipe, must of been a different pipe to the one I changed then

 

[KitsonRis]

As for removing the subframe to change the pipe, must of been a different pipe to the one I changed then

I have got the low and high pressure pipes, and I think it is the high pressure pipe that has failed. He said there are three on the rack or pump (can't remeber what he said) and it is the middle one. I am hoping that it is one of the pipes I have bought! If not and if they have taken them out of the bags then I am going to go mad as I can't return them.

 

[bloke]

i'd ask them if they've ever heard of a swan neck spanner? spinning captive nuts doesn't add much time to the job, also whay are the even trying to take the subframe off?

 

[jamesycc]

just had my local garage do an entire rack swap. Didn't take the sub frame off. Said it was 'an arse' of a job but got done.

 

[KitsonRis]

i'd ask them if they've ever heard of a swan neck spanner? spinning captive nuts doesn't add much time to the job, also whay are the even trying to take the subframe off?

When this happened to the rear beam bolts me and my brother instantly got the grinder out and cut them off, this didn't add much time you are right. It was getting a replacment that took time as we dodn't have anything long enough in the shed.

Not sure why they are removing it, I wouldn't know where to start with chaging the hoses tbh. But from digging about on here and online there were several methods on how to do it, each one was a pig of a job! I am thinking they want access from underneath the car to it??? No idea. When I pick it up I will ask why and how it was done to make sure they werent wasting time.

 

[bloke]

drivers hub, strut and shaft off and that gives you loads of room.

 

[KitsonRis]

I have had all of those off at some point.....and I am not the most practically minded person in the world. And I also don't own a ramp either, which is a big thing to gain access/ease of working.

 

[bloke]

it's not like it's that bad a job, just fiddly.

 

[KitsonRis]

Isn't it technically only two nuts - one on each end of the hose plus a few clips?
It is more of the thinking and ability to do fiddling things I lack, and how to get around things in non-ideal situations without breaking or damaging it. If it were on a bench where I could easily get a spanner on the fixings I could definately fix anything on a car! I just had no help this weekend or week to do it

 

[bloke]

you don't need to worry about breaking the old ones, i was doing pipes for someone while they were watching with a worried look as i was just snapping and chopping the old ones off, told them how much time it saved and got the reply of 'oh aye, can you get the new ones on as quick?'

 

[iamjoel]

My pipe blew up going into bombhole at 80mph at Snetterton evening a few weeks back, next morning got hold of a pipe and changed it on my drive. I have had my engine out a few times so I'm pretty familiar with the Clio engine bay now however no expert. I felt like moving the most amount of s**t out the way would make my life easier, so I had bumper, battery, ECU and gearbox mount all out. After unbolting it pump side, you follow it round to a few different fiddly bolts going over and around the gearbox that you need to undo, once those are undone the pipe is just attached to the rack, which I heard was the hardest part and although it was a bit fiddly, I found it alright. There's 4 pipes coming out of the rack in a very tight format so I used a spanner to undo the 2 in front of the high pressure line that I was after and it freed up space to get the 17mm spanner on the end of the high pressure line, after about 10 mins of undoing it (you only have space for about 1/8 of a turn at a time) it comes free, reverse the procedure, fill with fluid, bleeding it by doing full locks and adding fluid until its at max and you're good to go.

 

[KitsonRis]

Car is sorted now :up:
Apparently it took 8 hours to fix, I would like to know why it took so long seeing as most of the comments here don't mention to remove the sub frame
However they only charged me for 5 hours. Unless this is a marketing ploy so I say they are that good they didn't charge me full price.
The guys in the garage we're glad to see the back of it apparently as it caused so many issues, of course it does, the car is a little bi**h!!