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Power Steering Fluid Low? Check your rack and pinion for weeping

20K views 30 replies 19 participants last post by  imaz 
#1 ·
As a FYI to anyone with a 2011, check your power steering fluid. It seems between May 2010-August 2010 they had a rack and pinion issue, as a TSB was released DEC 2010. Supposedly anything built after August 18th (I think) 2010 had the new rack and pinion. My vehicle has a 9/03/10 build date but I noticed the rack and pinion is "weeping" as the TSB calls it and has a slight moan when turning at slow speeds. The fluid level was just refilled from way below "min" to now max. I am going to bring it into the dealer Monday and have them check the rack and pinion and repair/replace if necessary as I assume its leaking just very very very slowly as it shouldn't be wet at all by either boot.

The dealers never seem to want to "work". When I brought it in for a MIL light (EVAP system set it off) I told them to check my power steering, as the level is low. They claimed no leaks and topped off. I get home, drive up my ramps and look at the rack and pinion (after browsing TSB's after the fact...) and noticed the weeping rack & pinion. So much for the dealers being able to do anything without asking? Now I'll print the TSB, and tell them specific to check the passenger boot on the rack and pinion as its weeping.
 
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#3 ·
Your Welcome. I'd definitely check if your between those dates but also check even if your outside of those dates if you notice your power steering low or doing down. Its a closed system and shouldn't fluctuate if your always checking it at a specific time, IE- Cold in the morning.
 
#4 ·
I checked the level today and it's right at the MIN level. I tried my best to have a look at the rack and pinion from above and could not see weeping. I didn't go underneath though. I guess I'll schedule an appointment with the dealer/

I've had my Jeep for 1 year now, never checked this out before LOL. I'm glad it's just at MIN and not empty

Thanks for the heads up!
 
#5 ·
Yea its nearly impossible from the top, if you slide under you'll see the two bellows (rubber boots) they show in the TSB, my passenger side is weeping and the driver side has a touch of fluid.
 
#6 · (Edited)
Update: rack and pinion is being replaced at the dealer today.

Benefit? Free alignment :lol:
 
#8 ·
TSB isn't a recall so it not mandatory. I don't believe it falls under power train warranty you'll have to inquire. Unfortunately its about a 1000 dollar fix I'd say. I believe the msrp on the pinion is about 500 and I believe it calls for 3.5 hrs labor plus an alignment after.
 
#9 ·
As a FYI to anyone with a 2011, check your power steering fluid. It seems between May 2010-August 2010 they had a rack and pinion issue, as a TSB was released DEC 2010. Supposedly anything built after August 18th (I think) 2010 had the new rack and pinion. My vehicle has a 9/03/10 build date but I noticed the rack and pinion is "weeping" as the TSB calls it and has a slight moan when turning at slow speeds. The fluid level was just refilled from way below "min" to now max. I am going to bring it into the dealer Monday and have them check the rack and pinion and repair/replace if necessary as I assume its leaking just very very very slowly as it shouldn't be wet at all by either boot.

The dealers never seem to want to "work". When I brought it in for a MIL light (EVAP system set it off) I told them to check my power steering, as the level is low. They claimed no leaks and topped off. I get home, drive up my ramps and look at the rack and pinion (after browsing TSB's after the fact...) and noticed the weeping rack & pinion. So much for the dealers being able to do anything without asking? Now I'll print the TSB, and tell them specific to check the passenger boot on the rack and pinion as its weeping.
Thanks for bringing this up. My wifes Jeep was built between that time and today I checked and it's weeping on the passenger side bellow. I will bring it in tomorrow to the dealer.

We are within 50 miles of the bumper to bumper running out.
 
#10 ·
Bumping this up because I want to say thanks.

I just got this done, and I am happy to say my Maxcare warranty saved me a Grand on this...

The normal warranty expired in October 2013. I noticed my power steering reservoir was below min, so I slid underneath and had a very wet bellow on the steering rack.

NB
 
#12 ·
My 2011 GC is at the dealer right now having the rack replaced. I had the power steering growl for a week or two and the driver side is showing a fluid leak. I'm at just over 40k miles, but purchased the extended warranty so it should be covered.

Oddly enough, the warranty under writer has to send an inspector to look at my Jeep before authorizing the repair. The service advisor told me they do this for the more expensive repairs. It seems like a needless delay if you ask me.
 
#13 · (Edited)
Well i just had my steering rack replaced as well. Im a '14 with only 354 miles on the ODO. :mad: I did not have any moaning symptoms like on the 2011's, rather just fluid leaking on to my driveway, few drops every day causing the fluid level to drop below min on me. According to the dealer it was a "bad fitting on the rack that cannot be serviced, and the entire rack will need to be ordered and then installed."

Im besides myself that something this major had to be replaced with only 354 miles. My '08 WK didnt have a single problem until 63k when the water pump went on me, other than that nothing, it was smooth sailing the past 6 years.

Guess well see what happens over the next 354 miles, lol
 
#14 ·
Bought my 2011 GC in September 2010. Couple months later complained that I had to keep adding power steering fluid every week. Dealer looked at it and told me they needed to replace the rack and pinion. Only had a few thousand miles on it. Recommend keeping track of the fluid level. It should not ever go down unless there is a problem.
 
#15 ·
My 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee has a leak on the power steering rack. When changing my oil I noticed an oily residue on the bottom of the vehicle. I thought it may have been brake fluid or A/C oil since I had it in for the brake booster recall and an A/C compressor replacement for the awful noise that I get upon start up. Upon further investigation I noticed my power steering reservoir was on the min mark and I noticed the cap was just setting on top and not tightened down. I thoroughly inspected to make sure it did not splash out of the reservoir and then filled it to the max since it was on the min mark and put the lid on correctly. I am not sure how the cap got loose unless the dealer did it when it was last in. When investigating I noticed the leak is somewhere around where the steering column attaches. Not sure if it could be a line leaking or if it is a seal. So, I took it into the dealer to have it looked at. So far all they did was clean it and give it back saying they did not notice the leak. I have to take it back in again once the H Block comes in to fix the awful A/C noise since the compressor did not fix the issue and they are going to inspect the rack again. I am starting to get a little worried since I am almost to the end of my bumper to bumper warranty. I will post a follow up once I take it in again.
 
#17 ·
Not to bump this post again but felt no need to create a new thread on it. Noticed on my 2013 Overland the loss of power steering fluid. Had to fill it up this past summer. It was at Max and now is almost half gone. Going in to the Dealer on Feb 1st, seems it may have the same problem as the rest. Anyone else been having issues with it? I thought about if it is true to put a complaint in with the NHTSA. Looking on the net seems to show others with MY11 to MY13 are having the same issues and having to replace the whole steering rack (my assumptions is a poor vendor and manufacturing process).
 
#18 · (Edited)
I just went through this issue with my 2014 GC Summit. I was having to fill my PS reservoir about every 3 weeks , with no signs of leakage under the jeep on the floor. After reading this post I crawled under the jeep and took off the plastic skid plate for a better look around. I was also losing my coolant in the reservoir the same amount where every couple of weeks I had to fill it again , and also with no sign of leaks under the jeep.
When I took a good look under there with the plastic skid plate off I found both sides of the rack were leaking with the fluid going into the boots then slowly weeping out so they were just a little wet. This told me that the rack was bad and I took the jeep in while it is still under warranty for that and the issue of missing coolant.
The jeep dealer which I have been dealing with for 6 years and 3 different jeeps called me and said yes the rack was definitely bad and would need to be replaced , but they could find no issues to explain where the coolant was going. Then they hit me with a bombshell which really pissed me off. They came out and told me because I had a couple aftermarket parts on my jeep my warranty was void and nothing would be covered. They said ANY aftermarket part voids the jeep warranty. I was like what ?!?!?!
So I called FCA right away and asked them about this and there reply word for word was this 'An aftermarket part could void the warranty (on that part not the full warranty) IF it was PROVEN that the aftermarket part caused the failure'. This was their exact words to me and they even said they didn't know why the dealer was saying my warranty was now void. So after they filed a case number for me, they talked to the dealer and TOLD them it was warranty work so they rushed the part over and had it done by the next morning of course at no cost , and also customer care said they would follow up with me to verify everything was done correctly.
Needless to say , this kind of made me rethink my relationship with this dealer and it is time to find a new one.

So to anyone that is losing any amount of PS fluid , take the plastic skid plate off and look around under there at the rubber boots of your rack and if it is wet take it in and get it replaced while you have warranty.

Almost forgot they replaced the full rack , and did the alignment after also warranty covered. The job took 5 hours as per the book, although I thought it was 3 but maybe that was the older set up with the pulley.
 
#20 ·
I was just outside with the jeep running for a while to get it up to temp and put a load on it , with white paper under the front end. I found no traces of leakage anywhere , no drips on the paper , no wet spots anywhere to be found. I can smell coolant though but no sign. The only trace I found , but not 100% sure it was coolant was when the skid plate was off , on the corner of the radiator passenger side had a slight wet spot. But that could have been from driving on wet roads and it was still wet in that spot. Right now it is still at the full mark after I filled it up again 2 days ago. It seems to be about every 3 weeks or so it gets back down to the min mark , but the radiator itself is still full when I check it.

I have checked for discolored oil, and white smoke but nothing there either so no signs of a headgasket. Right now I have 59,000 KM on the jeep so still have warranty , plus they said the coolant part is still on file since they found no signs of problems yet. I don't know if they just looked for leaks or if they did a pressure test as I wasn't around to monitor what they did.

The jeep is being driven local around town a couple days a week and into the city twice a month , so not a lot of miles being put on it yet the coolant is still dropping.I am thinking a possible slight crack in either the reservoir or the rad itself , or maybe even the slight possibility of the rad cap seal going and it is going out that way and then the reservoir is dropping?
 
#21 ·
my money is on the water pump lol. maybe a very small leak and no leak under normal driving but when pushed and the RPMs get up there it starts to dump a little each time it hits a certain pressure point. That's how the seals on these water pumps go they usually start out a small leak that continues to grow, which is good so it allows us to get them in with out being stranded. Just seen way way too may reports of water pump failures on the 5.7 and very few other cooling system issues. Good luck hope you can figure it out.
 
#22 ·
Funny enough I today just noticed how low my Power Steering Fluid was and accidentally stumbled upon this thread just now. I have verified that my Jeep was unfortunately made between May - August. Additionally my Jeep is no longer covered under the original warranty.

Considering how expensive this fix is, est $1200, I figure it would be just cheaper to buy a couple of $8 bottles of steering fluid and just keep on refilling. Not the preferred option but the cheaper of the two.

I guess my question would be if there is any actual damage that PSF can do to the components of the car?
 
#23 ·
Looks like something I will have to check this coming weekend. I noticed that my PS fluid was extremely low this past weekend while doing maintenance.

Hopefully the rack is ok as I have a 2014 and 1300 miles past warranty. Power steering would not fall under the powertrain warranty, would it?
 
#25 ·
I am willing to bet that my rack is going. I serviced the diffs this past weekend so I had to drop the front skid plate. It was completely covered in oil yet no leaks from the engine or anywhere else. Should have looked at the rack while I had the skid plate off. I just figured I got some oil on the skid plate before I got the fumoto valve and just had a bunch of dirt stick to it.

A leaky rack makes much more sense now with the really low reservoir and the huge amount of oil/dirt on top of the skip plate. Looks like I have two claims to try and submit to chrysler for out of warranty goodwill. Bad discoveries to make while being 1300 miles past warranty.
 
#28 ·
Got some good and bad news today from the dealer, the steering rack isn't leaking and they topped off the fluid for me. Going to keep an eye on to make sure I am not losing fluid faster than I should. Either way, good to have this on record in case something does come up in the future.

Bad news is that both my front shocks are blown but that is a whole other topic.
 
#29 ·
Well the steering fluid is good now , but still losing coolant. Looks like I will be taking the jeep back in. It is just above the add mark now and it was right full after I took it in for the steering rack. It has only been driven 7 short drives since the new rack so no idea where the coolant is going with no signs visible yet.I think they didn't do a pressure test and just did a visual check for signs of leaking.
 
#30 ·
I'm in the same boat. Took the Jeep in for state inspection and trans/diff fluid changes. I stated it made a whining sound when turning hard right/left at low speed. Also had a smell of coolant after driving on occasion. They stated the rack was leaking and would need to be replaced at some point. They said to watch the level and top it off for now. As far as the coolant leak, they said it looks like the hoses. They advised replacement of all the hoses for ~$340. He said the rack replacement would be around $1350. AFter some googling it seems this is a common issue with this vehicle. This will be my first and last Chrysler product. Between the constant recalls and garbage reliability, it's just not worth it to me.
 
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