Power Steering Cutoff

[focusedintentions]

Ok...so the other night i'm on my way home with a couple friends in the car. Just so happens the road to my house has an awesome set of S curves that go down and then S back up. Very fun, especially if you know the road like i do. I drive it every day Anywho, i decide to show off the handlin of my SVTF through the curves and get on it. So i set a new personal best in speed through the twisties with no problems. I leave my friends breathless and scared for their lives b/c they have never been that fast through those curves...hehe....I get about another 1/4 mile up to my street and go to make the right and bam....i can barely turn the steering wheel....my power steering is gone! At first i think my car stalled (i had the clutched pushed in as i getting ready to turn and downshift) but a quick look at the tac and a blip of the throttle say it's running. So i turn off the radio and roll down my windows and listen...no weird sounds. I think to myself maybe it my imagination. I get to my driveway and nope....no power steering again....so i get my car into my driveway and stop at the top...wiggle the steering wheel and struggle to turn it with the car not rolling. I think to myselft, crap there goes the pump. So I turn the car off, pop the hood and see absolutely nothing. No smell of burning fluid, nothing. Got a flashlight and looked under the car, everything looks fine. The reseviour for the power steering still full. So i go and start the car back up and vioala, it works fine. No noises or anything. So i go out for a drive the next day and the car is fine like nothing happened. As far as i can tell there aren't any problems. If it happens again the car will be at the dealer gettin checked out. Anybody else experience anything like this?

ps...sorry to be so long, but i felt everything needed to be included about the twisties, after all who doesn't like to talk about a new personal best on a fav stretch of road?

[jpickles]

Wow that sucks. Never had anything like that happen to me, and I've gone through the paces with my car. Let us know what happens.

[ModemJunki]

It almost sounds like you got air in the rack. I would think if it was heat related, someone else would have reported this. After all, you can't be the first to go chasing after twisties in an SVT...

[BLKEUROSVTZX5]

You know I thought I was smokin crack a few months ago..........I was making a left turn shifting from 1st to 2nd when I noticed I had no power steering........and it wouldnt come out of 1st gear like the engine died but was still in gear turning over the motor...ofcourse my stereo was cranking so I couldnt hear my motor but I reved it up with the clutch in and I watched my tach climb so knew it was still running......by this time I already had pulled it to the edge of the road and shut my stereo off. It was still running but still stuck in 1st gear and tried turning the steering wheel and no power steering at all.....by this time Im wondering what the hell these two things have in common to fail together. So I shut it down....take a gander under the hood and find nothing! So I got back in...got on my cell phone, dialed the dealership I bought it from so I could ask them what kinda of $&(* they were selling and decide to start it back up again....... when I realize it was back to normal again!!!!!!!!!!!! havent had a problem with it since so I dont really have a clue if our problems are the same but Ill never forget that little experience.

[focusedintentions]

Well after i started it back up i had no problems..but today..just driving down the road..it just quit...turned off the car and it wouldn't come back one...finally while driving down the road..it just kicked on...weird shit..it's goin in tomar

[ModemJunki]

Please let us know what happens!

[focusedintentions]

Hmmm....anybody know if our power steering is speed sensetive or rpm related?

[phlame0ne]

Well, I have experienced that same issue with the power steering. It just went out in the middle of the turn, then was back on right after that.

I wonder if the fluid is all going to one side of the reservoir during the turn, starving the pump, making it go out???

[nitrous231]

food for thought.. maybe the engine/clutch/gear part has something to do with cruise control... i've heard of cc messing up before.

[natedog_1959]

Right before my power steering pump took a dump, it died like described above a few times. It only occurred when it was worked hard with elevated rpms. Probably a case of cavatating fluid, and poor pump internals. Ford replaced the pump for free and I now run Redline power steering fluid. Nate.