PONTIAC STEERING PROBLEM

i have a '94 pontiac bonneville that had the engine cradle drop out in Dec.
05. ever since then the steering wheel pulls a little to the right and
"hisses" whenever you are making a 90 degree turn (either right or left). the
power steering fluid level is fine. any idea what could be causing this?

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Message posted via CarKB.com
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"frustratedOH via CarKB.com" <u23921@uwe> wrote in message
news:635afc4e80827@uwe...
>i have a '94 pontiac bonneville that had the engine cradle drop out in Dec.
> 05. ever since then the steering wheel pulls a little to the right and
> "hisses" whenever you are making a 90 degree turn (either right or left).
> the
> power steering fluid level is fine. any idea what could be causing this?
>
> --
> Message posted via CarKB.com
> http://www.carkb.com/Uwe/Forums.aspx...nance/200607/1

Well, did you have the front end aligned after the repair to the cradle? It
may just need an alignment to correct the steering pull. It is hard to
diagnose a hissing sound through e-mail, but you might check to make sure
none of the power steering hoses are routed incorrectly and touching the
body. The noise of the hydraulic system can be transmitted into the body if
the hoses are touching any sheet metal or maybe even other components. It
might be that the hissing sound is actually a belt noise. Also check the
power steering belt tension and condition. Of course, the power steering
pump itself might be making a noise even if it is full of fluid. A mechanics
stethoscope would come in handy for finding the exact source of the noise.
--
Kevin Mouton
Automotive Technology Instructor
"If women don't find you handsome, they should at least find you handy"
Red Green

frustratedOH via CarKB.com wrote:
> i have a '94 pontiac bonneville that had the engine cradle drop out in Dec.
> 05. ever since then the steering wheel pulls a little to the right and
> "hisses" whenever you are making a 90 degree turn (either right or left). the
> power steering fluid level is fine. any idea what could be causing this?
>

Kevin's response is on the money. I just wanted to ask if it seems
that the steering wheel is being "assisted" to the right even when you
aren't attempting to turn the steering wheel? IOW, does it seem that
the PS assist is helping more to the right than the left? You could
eliminate asymetrical P/S pressure assist as the culprit by driving
safely and slowly down a deserted road and turning the ign key off to
kill the engine, then turning it back to run so that the steering wheel
unlocks, then compare the pull sensation to driving with the engine
running.

If there *is* an uneven assist situation, then I submit that the rack
input shaft was hit hard somehow during cradle removal, thus springing
the torsion valve in the rack valve assembly.

Also, the hissing noise could be normal P/S sound made worse by an
insulating shell missing from around the steering column ujoint area
(right where the column shaft and rack input shaft meet through the
floorboard).

These are just additional thoughts to add to the previous reply.

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