Power steering fluid leak on my 1989 XJS

Have noticed I am topping up power steering fluid. Spots also on ground as well. I also notice a thin line of fluid when I back out of my driveway. I don’t have a lift but do not see anything wet from the top side, thus it must be leaking from the bottom. Before taking it to my mechanic, are there any common places that they leak I can cheque on?

Thank you in advance.

What year and model? On V12’s, the hoses get cooked from heat and leak, sometimes through the wall of the hoses. They are supposed to have heat shield sleeves over them to protect them, but they are of limited help. The finned fluid cooler can leak, as can multiple hose connections on the cooler and pump. Pump seals can harden and leak, and the rack pinion seal gets hard and leaks on ADWEST steering racks. Rack seals can also leak, and the fluid comes out of the bellows on the rack ends. Lots of places to leak.

In reality there aren’t many places to check. You are simply going to have to get under the car and see what’s going on. I can almost guarantee that if you are topping up the fluid with any sort of frequency, it’s going to be one hell of an oily mess underneath your car. That mess is not going to make it easy to find out where the leak is coming from. You may have to resort to having someone turning the wheel while you or someone else tries to see where the fluid is spewing from. At 31 years old it would be pretty hard to go wrong by replacing all of the power steering hoses on GP

A good plan. At one of my yearly MOT tests, the guy came out with the checklist. I could tell by the look on his face, and all of the red ATF soaked over his clothes, that it was a fail - he didn’t need to say leaking PS hose.

That’s the most usual place of seal failure (under shiny washer). It drips and smears fluid everywhere. To confirm it - degrease it and go for a ride… Poor XJS owners thinks that genuine heat shield will do the trick. Instead - wrapping the exhaust manifolds is the way forward…

OMG, I didn’t know that there was a seal underneath of that cover. Is there any known recommendations of that seal being changed as a maintenance item?
I have my rack out and sitting on the floor as we speak. I’ll have to take closer look at it, but I don’t recall noticing anything abnormal when I brought it down. If ever there was a time to perform preventative maintenance on that piece it would certainly be while it’s out. Although doable, let’s face it, replacing the steering rack is not a cakewalk under normal circumstances.

Seal replacement can be done without steering rack removal (apparently impossible). Photos below:


Obviously - muvh easier with the rack on the bench.

There is a circlip and plastic cup under the steel washer. You will need to seat the seal. Not over-force it…

To each his own. I have that heat shield, and after replacing down pipes I chose to put it back instead of wrapping exhaust. IMO wrapping = fire danger. My 1988, with that heat shield, still has the original power steering hoses. So IMO it works fine. But I am planning on replacing the high pressure/low pressure hoses this winter. 32 years old, it’s time.

On a side note, I did have a bad P/S leak earlier this year. You HAVE to get under car, spray a lot of carb cleaner, drive it a bit, and look for leaks. Luckily mine was just bad hose clamps on the simple hose from pump to cooler. New hose, new clamps and leak is gone.

Greg, unless you’re installing fake/dyed heat wrap - there is no temperature and not enough oxygen in the entire universe of your engine bay - to light it up. That would be one of the thing that will survive after XJS self-arson scenario…

The only ‘drama’ that you may expect from heat wrap - is the risk of cracks in exhaust manifolds. That however - relates to turbocharged racing engines, squeezed to the limit - not old school V12 or straight-six…
It’s ubelievable how cool heat wraps are after hours of ride and how that helps to cool the engine bay.

By itself, sure. And I believe you, that it reduces engine bay temps.

But what about years of oil/grease accumulating on the fabric.

800F+ oil/grease/fabric = spontaneous combustion.

Actually I have tested it believe it or not. That was with something less stable - glycerine :wink: that was a project of smoke generator, failed project…
What goes on the wrap - vapourises straight away, and believe me - you will smell it… Can’t imagine the combustible amount accumulated at short time, however I’m not V12 owner (hey! Where’s that oil and greas coming from :slight_smile:)

What you say might be true for the vast majority of Jaguar owners, but something like that could/would never have a snowball in hells chance of happening to enthusiasts like yourself that properly look after their cars. Could you bring yourself to ignore any meaningful amount of crud buildup on wraps that you took the time to painstakingly put into place? I think not, I damm sure know that I wouldn’t.

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if you havent already go out and buy yourself some metal ramps to drive the car up onto, it will allow you to get under the car. i have the same issue and it came down to a hose leak that i discovered while the front was up on ramps. its needed if you dont have a lift for a car thats this low.

Good morning.

I own a set of sturdy metal tracks but have not figured out how to get them on the racks as the is so low.

How have you accomplished this?

Please advise and thanks in advance.

it really depends on the slope degree of the ramps and the height. i belive mine are a foot tall but three feet long as they are designed for lower cars. if you send me the dimensions of yours im sure i could figure out a trick you could use involving wood.

The way some have done it is to go buy a 2x6 or 2x8, cut two pieces perhaps 3 or 4 feet long, and pound two nails through one end. Set the end with the nails pointing downward on the sloped part of the ramp, so the nails engage one of the bars across the ramp. Hence, you create a ramp for your ramp.

Good morning.

Enclosed is a picture of one of the ramps.

Please advise and again, thank you for your help.

Rick

it looks like it should work, i know for me the ramps look like they are gonna hit the car but dont, if thats the case for you, but if they do hit it could be as simple as a splitter or those pesky fog lights, witch you do have to look out for.

I’m not a big fan of ramps. Often you want to turn or take the wheels off anyway, and reversing on to a set of ramps sounds like a recipe for disaster. Get a decent hydraulic jack, not that crappy scissor thing that sits in the boot, and a solid pair (4, if you want extra room under there) of 2 ton axle stands. Hockey puck on top, optional extra.

Yes, you are correct…will give it a try. Kirby’s idea might work. I would hate to pay for labour if it’s only a hose and I can tighten it.