p/s problem

[i4g3t]

I was out driving pretty hard on some back roads and the power steering stopped working... no whining no leacking.. no power steering. No idea what's going. Anyone have any ideas where to start?

[sleepyalero]

Well, if you turned to sharp to long, you probably starved the pump, so you might have to replace the pump....

Is there still fluid in it?

[Redog]

Did you go thru a puddle? Sometimes the belt gets wet and slips

[zzyzzx]

How many miles are on the car?

Did you check the belt and tensioner?

Did you check the fluid level?

[03glgold]

which motor is it, at least the ecotec is driven by the camshaft, i think the 2.4l is as well...also what kind of back road...rural paved, gravel, dirt...did you somehow kick something into a line, I was going about 55 down a gravel road once and ended up kicking up a piece of rebar that flew about 20 ft into the air, thankfully not damaging anything,but depending on speed there is a lot of force on anything that is thrown off the tires

[i4g3t]

Its the 2.4. About 150k it was a curvy paved road. And the fluids full . There was some snow on the ground but its been 4 days and still doing it

[zzyzzx]

OK, so you now have manual steering, without having to do all the work, correct?

It's going to be warmer today, so report back if it's the same today after the car warms up. If I had to guess, I'd say it's the PS pump, but with it being so cold lately, I also have to wonder if that was affecting it (hint: It often does).

I have no idea if there is a place (meaning port) to test power steering pump pressure (with a gauge), since I personally have never had to do it. But that is the first place I would look.

Did you check fro looseness in front end components?

[RalphP]

One more thing - the Alero comes with Variable Effort Power Steering. There's a chance that the actuator stuck shut - so it's keeping the power steering fluid from actually getting to the rack!

Also, double check the connector - the VEPS actuator is at the power steering pump, if it's come loose somehow, you won't get any power boost.

There's a set of pinpoint tests in the service manual - I'd check on eBay for a copy and walk through that.

But if it's up on fluid, I'd be looking hard at the pump seals blowing out (which would keep it from pumping!) or the actuator sticking (which, again, would keep it from pumping.)

So my first thing would be to drain the power steering fluid, pull the pump, clean the actuator, reinstall the pump, put fresh fluid in, and seeing if that helped any. If not, another drain, then swapping the pump.

Be sure to flush it while you're doing it. I'll lay even odds that's the factory charge, and it's always possible that the fluid has failed in such a way it's damaged the pump.

So a full flush to get rid of any of the pump crap (from its self-destruction) out of the current rack, plus new fluid, would be highly indicated. I'd also CONSIDER a power steering fluid filter on the return line. Actually, two or three of them - install one, run it about a month, pull that filter and replace it.

One more possibility - if the hoses have started flaking off inside, they may have plugged the lines. This isn't a MAJOR or high risk possibility, but it's not impossible either. If it has, there's a chance you may have to swap the rack out to fix it (if the rack is where it's plugged up.)

RwP

[03glgold]

One more thing - the Alero comes with Variable Effort Power Steering. There's a chance that the actuator stuck shut - so it's keeping the power steering fluid from actually getting to the rack!

Also, double check the connector - the VEPS actuator is at the power steering pump, if it's come loose somehow, you won't get any power boost.

There's a set of pinpoint tests in the service manual - I'd check on eBay for a copy and walk through that.

But if it's up on fluid, I'd be looking hard at the pump seals blowing out (which would keep it from pumping!) or the actuator sticking (which, again, would keep it from pumping.)

So my first thing would be to drain the power steering fluid, pull the pump, clean the actuator, reinstall the pump, put fresh fluid in, and seeing if that helped any. If not, another drain, then swapping the pump.

Be sure to flush it while you're doing it. I'll lay even odds that's the factory charge, and it's always possible that the fluid has failed in such a way it's damaged the pump.

So a full flush to get rid of any of the pump crap (from its self-destruction) out of the current rack, plus new fluid, would be highly indicated. I'd also CONSIDER a power steering fluid filter on the return line. Actually, two or three of them - install one, run it about a month, pull that filter and replace it.

One more possibility - if the hoses have started flaking off inside, they may have plugged the lines. This isn't a MAJOR or high risk possibility, but it's not impossible either. If it has, there's a chance you may have to swap the rack out to fix it (if the rack is where it's plugged up.)

RwP

While this isn't specifically for an alero, it tells you how the 2.4l pump is attached. I wasn't completely sure how simple it would be being that it is camshaft driven, but doesn't look to be bad at all

http://www.justanswer.com/pontiac/2jnvv-97-pontiac-sunfire-gt-removing-power-steering-pump-2-4-auto-cyl.html