Has anyone here rebuilt their power steering pump? I'm wondering how hard this is and if there are any tricks I should know before I take mine apart. My hydroboost system has always had the common seeping problem, but lately it seems to have gotten a little worse. I ordered a new set of AC Delco hoses from Rockauto and figured I'd get a pump rebuild kit while I was at it.
I got lucky and found a spare power steering pump at Pick-n-Pull to rebuild back around Thanksgiving off my perfect parts truck ('85 C20 6.2L/Th400, a/c, dual tanks, and what looked like a class V tow hitch that they decided to use to support the back of the truck) Disassembly: Step 1: Remove the pulley - requires a specific puller because it's pressed on, but it only cost me $25 from Harbor Freight. Step 2: Remove the brackets Step 3: Remove the bolts/studs and pressure union from the back of the reservoir - I clamped the pump in a wood vise to do this Step 4: Remove the reservoir - couple hits along the edge with a rubber mallet did the trick Step 5: Remove the end cover - this is held in by a retaining ring, there is a hole in the housing you can stick a punch through to pop an end of this out. Behind the end cover is a spring. Step 6: Place the pump on a solid surface and tap on the shaft to remove the thrust plate and cam ring, the vanes will likely fall out of the rotor as well. Step 7: Remove the Shaft/Rotor assembly - I used a small sledge and a soft piece of wood. Step 8: Remove the Shaft seal - a seal puller makes this a breeze Got the entire pump disassembled and found out I needed a new shaft bushing that wasn't included in the kit I bought. So I had to wait a few weeks to get the bushing and find some more time to work on the pump. The bushing also needs its own remover/installer, but I was able to use some bolts to persuade it out (3/4" hex head) and press the new one in (old leaf spring bolt and a shorter 5/8" grade 8 bolt) without damaging the pump housing. Reassembly was pretty straightfoward, used a block of wood and a sledge to reinstall the shaft seal and shaft assembly, and a socket and the wood vise to compress the endcover back into place so I could install the retaining ring. Still waiting to put this in the truck due to weather, but overall this was a pretty easy project; the hardest part being the bushing.
PS Pump Service I usually just exchange them . The # 1 thing to remember is ; never , EVER bang the pulley back on ! this will cause an internal crack that ruins your new pump ~ use a bit of All Thread and some washers & nuts , it's very easy to install the pulley this way , it just takes a moment longer .
