Power steering is heavy

jbatista

HI, help needed on this one please, my son passed his test on tues,:j he bought a secong hand car on thurs with a month guarantee, its a 1997 renault megane, my son says when he first drove the steering was light but today has gone "heavy", my hubby has also drove it and says the same.
Has anyone got any ideas what could be wrong with it?
Many thanks

goldspanners

firstly check the power steering fluid,then check front tyres are properly inflated (usually 30 psi) if these are all ok have a look under the front for any fluid leaks,it may be the steering rack leaking.

this is all asuming it has power steering of course.

chaseside

Hi,

Just a thought......

I seem to remember someone telling me that if it is cold outside this can affect your power steering.It's something to do with the temperature of the fluid in the the power steering.

goldspanners

chaseside wrote: »

Hi,

Just a thought......

I seem to remember someone telling me that if it is cold outside this can affect your power steering.It's something to do with the temperature of the fluid in the the power steering.

i think they were lying to you then.
oil has a much lower freezing point than water so it would have to be as cold as the arctic before there was any real differance,i doubt we have gone below -3 this week.

i forgot to say it could be the power steering pump about to fail or the belt that drive it could be loose.

chaseside

goldspanners wrote: »

i think they were lying to you then.
oil has a much lower freezing point than water so it would have to be as cold as the arctic before there was any real differance,i doubt we have gone below -3 this week.

i forgot to say it could be the power steering pump about to fail or the belt that drive it could be loose.

The freezing point is irrelevant.I was referring to the viscosity of the oil which as with all oils varies significantly with temperature.(this is why for example you should not over-rev a cold engine).If a power steering pump is not a particularly powerful one it can be affected by the viscosity of the oil.
It's unlikely this is the problem but it is worth a THOUGHT before being dismissed.;)

jeannieblue

Agree with all Goldspanner said - if it has a guarantee, recommend you take it to a garage asap and ask them to do a report/diagnosis for you. Then approach where you bought it from. It may be a good idea to let the dealer/seller know that there is a problem with the vehicle.

Very cold here - but my PAS is fine........

h901

could be the power steering has failed
get it checked out

jbatista

Thanks for all your help, I will get it straight back to the garage in the morning!

jeannieblue

jbatista wrote: »

Thanks for all your help, I will get it straight back to the garage in the morning!

Good luck - and be firm!

goldspanners

chaseside wrote: »

The freezing point is irrelevant.I was referring to the viscosity of the oil which as with all oils varies significantly with temperature.(this is why for example you should not over-rev a cold engine).If a power steering pump is not a particularly powerful one it can be affected by the viscosity of the oil.
It's unlikely this is the problem but it is worth a THOUGHT before being dismissed.;)

these pumps and oils are designed to work at temperatures much lower than any temperature this country has seen in the past month.

jbatista

It was the power steering pump, its gonna be mended on monday.