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Power steering pump delete
Has anyone had any luck with a power steering pump delete?
I'm kicking the idea around but want to hear your opinion on the matter. |
I've done it; I like to think it helped but lacking instrumentation I can't say if it did or by how much.
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been there done that
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I removed mine last summer. Nothing spectacular, but I was able to hit 40+mpg for the first time shortly afterward (in normal driving; I wasn't hypermiling at the time. Also, no aerodynamic mods to the car at the time).
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Unless you swap to a manual rack the power(less) steering rack needs fluid or you'll ruin the bearings. If you just loop the hoses it'll eventually run dry and emit a high pitched squeaking noise. So it needs a small reservoir where you can add PS fluid to keep the rack happy.
Just some info I gleaned. |
Worth the effort
A worthwhile mod, especially for HWY miles or lighter vehicles. After I pulled the pump, the belt was able to re-route and let me also delete an idler pulley. No huge friction losses there, but it still felt good to throw that thing over the fence. IIRC, had to locate a dremel tool and grind away a bit of the aluminum timing cover [1st gen saturn dohc] to allow for the new path of the belt. Took some trial and error to find the correct length serpentine belt to get acceptable tension with the reworked geometry. Has held together with no weird belt wear for at least 35k mi.
Still to do: find a better option for fluid reservior or a manual rack out of the junkyard, ATM original PS hoses tee onto a length of hose with a vent on the end to keep dirt out. Best of luck - M.David |
My girlfriend had never done so much as an oil change on her own, but last year she removed her power steering pump all on her own in preparation for a trip across the country (CA to VA). As Slowtec said, it took some trial and error to find the right length belt to bypass the pump entirely (which would have been running dry).
Steering effort in her Matrix is noticeably higher, but still pretty easy, and definitely not enough to warrant a manual steering rack. We haven't been topping off the fluid (never thought to check) - hopefully we aren't going to burn up the rack anytime soon! Maybe I better check on that... |
Smaller crank drive pulley (10% reduction) Small but measurable improvement.
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I've never added fluid to a rack (3 of my own cars) after deleting the PS pump. I loop the hoses, and leave whatever fluid is in there, then forget about it. I've also removed the hoses and plugged the ports before.
Many power racks can be de-powered by elminiating the hydraulic seals in them, which cause drag. I've never heard nor read about bearing wear due to removing the PS pump and not adding fluid until now. Do you have a source that we, as a community, can evaluate? |
I have only removed my power steering belt and have been running it for quite some time. I just went and reviewed my fuel logs and the power steering delete and an upper grille block were responsible for a 10.3% increase in MPG.
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