Procedure to repair / replace PS Rack on 1999 Taurus

Roscoe Coaltrain

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Jan 28, 2003, 10:10:47 AM1/28/03

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Hi all
My son has a 1999 Taurus which has blown out a seal on the power
steering rack. I have never worked on a PS rack before and was
wondering if anyone knew of any web resources that would be helpful,
or could share their personal experiences and advice with us. Is this
something you can get a kit for and rebuild, or should the whole thing
be replaced? What would make the seal blow (is the new one gonna blow
again)? He said it was low on fluid and he added some and it popped
somewhere and all the fluid ran out the seal.

Do I need special tools to do this? We work on drive trains all the
time on all our junky vehicles, but they're mostly rear wheel drive.

Thanks,
Ros

J. Louis

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Jan 28, 2003, 11:43:46 AM1/28/03

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The rack should be replaced. No you should not rebuild it or even take it
apart since there is a core charge on it. Check your pressure relief valve
to make sure it is working. Make sure the correct fluid was put in. Yes
you need some special tools to do the job, and the job can be a real pain
in the neck.

Steering Gear--Base Taurus/Sable
Removal

1.. Open hood.

2.. Disconnect battery ground cable .

3.. From inside vehicle, remove nuts retaining steering column tube boot
to cowl panel.

4.. Remove bolt retaining steering column intermediate shaft coupling to
steering column lower yoke.

5.. Position steering column tube boot out of the way. Remove pinch bolt
retaining steering column intermediate shaft coupling to power rack and
pinion steering gear and remove steering column intermediate shaft coupling
.

6.. Raise vehicle on a twin post hoist and remove front wheel and tire
assemblies.

7.. Remove exhaust system flex tube-to-dual converter Y-pipe attachment.
Disconnect heated oxygen sensor wiring harness. Remove dual converter Y pipe
from vehicle.

8.. Support vehicle with jack stands under rear edge of front sub-frame .

9.. Remove tie rod cotter pins and nuts, and remove tie rod end (3A130)
from RH front wheel knuckle and LH front wheel knuckle.

10.. Remove tie rod end from front wheel spindle tie rod. Mark position of
jam nut to maintain alignment.

11.. Remove nuts from steering gear-to-front sub-frame retaining bolts.

12.. Remove rear sub-frame-to-body retaining bolts.

13.. Raise twin post hoist carefully until rear sub-frame separates from
body approximately 102 mm (4 inches).

14.. Remove heat shield push-pin retainers from power steering hose
bracket . Remove steering shaft U-joint shield .

15.. Remove screw and power steering left turn pressure hose from power
steering hose bracket . Remove two screws and power steering hose bracket.

16.. Remove LH stabilizer bar link .

17.. Disconnect power steering pressure switch electrical connector.

18.. Rotate power rack and pinion steering gear to clear bolts from front
sub-frame and pull left to ease line fitting removal.

19.. Place a drain pan under vehicle and remove hydraulic power steering
pressure hose and power steering return hose from fittings on power rack and
pinion steering gear.

20.. Remove power rack and pinion steering gear assembly through LH wheel
well.

Installation

1.. Install new Teflon® O-rings on both line connector assemblies as
described under Quick Connect Power Steering Fitting-Seal Replacement.

2.. Place steering gear retaining bolts in steering gear housing .

3.. Install power rack and pinion steering gear through LH wheel well.

4.. Install power steering hose bracket and two screws. Tighten to 9-12 Nm
(80-106 lb-in).

5.. Install hydraulic power steering pressure hose and power steering
return hose to fittings on power rack and pinion steering gear. Tighten
hoses to 33-41 Nm (25-30 lb-ft).

6.. Install power steering pressure hose and and screw. Tighten to 9-12 Nm
(80-106 lb-in).

7.. Connect power steering pressure switch electrical connector.

8.. Position power rack and pinion steering gear into front sub-frame.

9.. Install tie rod ends onto front wheel spindle tie rods .

10.. Install push-pin retainers at top of heat shield.

11.. Install tie rod end to RHfront wheel knuckle and LH front wheel
knuckle. Install nuts and tighten to 47-63 Nm (35-46 lb-ft). Install new
cotter pins.

12.. Install LH stabilizer bar link. Tighten to 76.5-103.5 Nm (57-76
lb-ft).

13.. Lower hoist until rear sub-frame contacts body.

14.. Install rear sub-frame retaining bolts. Tighten to 135-195 Nm
(100-143 lb-ft).

15.. Install power rack and pinion steering gear-to-sub-frame nuts and
tighten to 97-132 Nm (72-97 lb-ft).

16.. Install exhaust system flex tube to dual converter Y pipe . Connect
heated oxygen sensor wiring harness.

17.. Install tire and wheel assemblies. Tighten lug nuts (1012) to 115-142
Nm (85-104 lb-ft).

18.. Remove jack stands and lower vehicle.

19.. From inside vehicle, push steering column tube boot end out of
vehicle and install over steering gear housing.

20.. Install steering column intermediate shaft coupling to power rack and
pinion steering gear. Tighten bolt to 41-51 Nm (31-37 lb-ft).

21.. Install inner steering column tube boot to cowl panel.

22.. Install steering column intermediate shaft coupling to steering
column lower yoke .

23.. Fill power steering system with Motorcraft MERCON Multi-Purpose (ATF)
Transmission Fluid XT-2-QDX or equivalent meeting Ford MERCON specification.

24.. Reconnect battery ground cable.

25.. Bleed power steering system.

26.. Check system for leaks and proper operation.

27.. Adjust toe setting.

"Roscoe Coaltrain" <Rosco...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:78d74908.03012...@posting.google.com...

Stan Kasperski

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Jan 28, 2003, 12:18:44 PM1/28/03

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I did this lousy job on my old '87 Taurus. One of the reasons I don't buy any
FWD cars anymore. I waited to do the job until I rebuilt the transaxle and it
was still out of the car. Even then, it was a bitch because of the tight spaces
between the firewall and engine. On the other hand, I had to replace the rack on
my '86 Lincoln Mark VII and the job was done merely by jacking the car up.
Everything was out front and in the open.
Stan K.

John Merrifield

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Jan 28, 2003, 1:02:36 PM1/28/03

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Roscoe,
One more thing to pay close attention to is that the steering wheel is
locked in place before you disconect the coupler at the bottom. If the wheel
is allowed to spin freely it will damage the clockspring in the column and
you will loose cruise/horn/airbag continuity.

"Stan Kasperski" <skasp...@ev1.net> wrote in message
news:3E36BB74...@ev1.net...

mcgilly

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Jan 28, 2003, 6:43:31 PM1/28/03

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The Ford Tore ass requires a special tool. Place in Car Crusher and push green button. For any previous years of the Taurus, see above procedure.

Chris Krohn

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Jan 28, 2003, 7:27:19 PM1/28/03

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On 28 Jan 2003 07:10:47 -0800, Rosco...@yahoo.com (Roscoe
Coaltrain) wrote:

After being quoted $900.00 to do our Gen 3 Wagon last Christmas I was
essentially forced to do it myself. At the time I used the procedure
in the Chilton manual-I have a Factory CD now.

J. Louis pretty much outlined the correct procedure and the other
poster mentioned the steering wheel issue-ie my kids love getting in
our cars and "driving".

Other stuff:

-you will need 2 sets of jackstands as you will have to lower the
subframe
-get some crowfoot wrenches to remove/attach the supply/return hose(I
think they are 18mm)
-don't buy the cheapest rack you can find (I bought a remanned A1
Cardone for around $170.00 and I have after around 15,000 miles center
wear etc) get a TRW or NAPA etc
-carefully install the white PTFE rings on the supply return hose-use
a seal expander or suitable drift
-use a Torque wrench as there are some super critical values for the
rack and subframe etc

This job is a real bitch-I mean it can be done but if you have the $'s
I would honestly let someone else do it.

BTW, if you do it check the rear block (freeze plug) while you are
back there.

Chris

Johnny Johnson

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Jan 28, 2003, 8:25:42 PM1/28/03

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Roscoe Coaltrain wrote:

> Hi all
> My son has a 1999 Taurus which has blown out a seal on the power
> steering rack. I have never worked on a PS rack before and was
> wondering if anyone knew of any web resources that would be helpful,
> or could share their personal experiences and advice with us. Is this
> something you can get a kit for and rebuild, or should the whole thing
> be replaced?

Ford offers no repair parts to rebuild these units (except to Ford's
AER) and service the racks as assemblies only.

Moreover; changing out the rack assembly is no job for the faint of
heart, as you have to drop the front subframe down for clearance to
remove/replace the unit.

Also; count on replacing the power steering pump at the same time.

BTW: my '99 goes into the shop this week for the very same thing. :-(

mcgilly

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Feb 4, 2003, 7:35:57 PM2/4/03

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The yerrr whine is called cavitation, since the pump was damaged being run
low on fluid.

liliana...@gmail.com

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Aug 27, 2020, 7:01:42 AM8/27/20

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