hey everyone..this post continues the ongoing saga entitled "what's busted on Nate's car this week"

i'd like to open the evening with a noise. yes, a noise. a "rubbing" noise if you will. said noise reveals its presense when the steering wheel is in anyway moved. the noise will become louder if turned to the left more so than to the right. said noise does seems to be coming from/near the power steering area under the hood....(didn't take too long to figure that out).

things i have checked:

- Tires are not rubbing on wheelwells or anything else.
- Tires have correct air pressure.
- Power steering fluid is at spec'd levels.
- Belts are in good condition.
- No wear or tear has been spotted on wheels.
- Steering wheel is not rubbing against anything.
- Not just happening when first started...happens all throughout driving experience.

i hate non-normal noises...please help me rid myself of this unpleasent noise.

thanks a bunch - nate

Could be the pump on it's way out? Or maybe some sort of residual buildup inside the pump that's making it strain during operation.

you didn't mention belt tension. also, I'd look at if the two peice pulleys are possibly separating.

I don't know if this really qualifies as a problem though since V8 guys pay thousands to get that blower-whine. Just tell people the car is twin-charged and have a coke and a smile.

haha

yes the tension is good. how much would a new pump put me back?

Ive got 3 of em laying around the garage now, make an offer

Call Mitsubishi.

oh yes turbohcar....i just love paying "brokeback mountain" style by going to the dealership

I buy 99% of my car parts straight from Mitsubishi. Yes, they're expensive. And, yes there is a difference between Autozone/Napa brand versus OE Mitsubishi parts. When buying parts for a car that's 10+ years old, they're going to be expensive anywhere. Just be happy that those parts are still available. After working in the used/new parts industry, you get to see just how expensive dealerships are. Honestly, when it comes to quality parts, they're really not that expensive and in some cases, very cheap. Everyone always seems to be afraid to call the dealership because they're afraid to find out what the price is. Most people just go buy Autozone's cheapest part, put it on their car and expect it to last without ever calling the dealership to get a price.

Sorry for the rant, I just feel that dealerships (Mitsubishi mainly) are really underrated. I just bought a pair of U-joints for my car today. I called Jeff @ O'brien's here in town on Tuesday. He had them for me today. I paid $64/per joint so about $130 after tax. That's a pretty good discount since they retail for about $80/per joint. I called Napa, AZ, and Advance just to compare prices as well. Napa didn't even list the U-joints as a part and AZ and Advance were $110/per joint. So Mitsubishi isn't always the most expensive.

I guess my point is, be nice to your parts guys and they'll be nice to you.

Well thats not actually true in all cases. I work at Advance Auto Parts in granite city and just about all the heavy parts (Alternator, starter, water pumps, power steering pumps ect.) are almost always remanned or new OEM parts. For instance, we have a power steering pump in stock so I checked and it has NEBCO punched into the housing. And besides, even if its not, you can get one with a lifetime warranty for far less than one from a dealership.

i can see your point...i've just had bad experiences with the local mitsu shop

I tend to lean towards OEM pieces as well. The throwout bearing is the best example of the woes of aftermarket manufacturers. Also, I've yet to get ahold of a slave cylinder that was the correct orentation for my car. I just pull the guts out and swap em with the old stock unit.

Furthermore, the rebuild kits I've purchased at parts stores for the slave cylinder require a huge overbore. What's the need for that crap?

the noise is getting worse... is there some sort of "piston"/actuator that's being used in the Eclipse power steering setup? if so...i think it's going bad

pm sent.

has anyone had any problems with Power Steering Resivour (sp) leaks? and would that lack of pressure possibly have a large connection with that noise i'm hearing?