bighands

Just replaced the power steering pump - actually not too bad. Looked around on this site for info before I replaced it and didn't see too much. There is no need to put the lock carrier into the service position. It took about 2 hrs and I was taking my time. The story starts out with the typical steering whining noise a few weeks back - I didn't attend to it right away (lesson learned), and once I did I realized that the pump intake hose was not fitting tightly anymore. So an air leak situation exists which of course produced the cavitation, bubbles in the reservoir, etc. Once I got around to replacing the hose though, the damage was pretty much done. I ordered a rebuilt ZF pump thru germanautoparts, which, by the way was the only supplier I could find, besides the stealer. As far as replacement, you'll need a 7/8" open end wrench to get on the serpentine belt tensioner, then push it down. While pushing it done, take the belt off of the pump pulley, and I used a bungee cord to keep tension on the rest of the belt so it wouldn't fall off, thereby creating a lot of extra work. Once you get the belt off and loosened the three pulley bolts (and siphoned off the fluid from the reservoir), it's just three 6mm hex bolts that hold the pump carrier onto the block. Relatively easy to access them and get them out. Disconnet the input hose and the high pressure banjo fitting. I placed rags underneath both so not to get fluid on the belt. I also used a flexible magnet to grab the bolt as I made the final turns to reduce the risk of falling down to the engine pan. Just be careful of the vacuum lines nearby when you lift the pump out. It really was that straightforward. Make sure to prime the new pump before you put it in. I reinstalled the plastic shipping seals on both the inlet and outlet fittings once I primed it, and left them on until I had the pump installed. That helped to keep the fluid inside. Remember to follow the standard Bentley bleeding procedure aftewards and you should be good to go.
Jim

SloopJohnB@mac.com

Mo bettah than gear-driven pump on 4.2 engines....

Truewit

Did you take any pics while you were working on this job?

bighands

I did not. Was too excited to get my steering back to think about it!

Orangecounty

How do you prime the pump?

MrChubba

Hi Bighands,

I have a 2008 A6 C6 3.0 TDI. Do you think the procedure is the same as there doesn't seem to be that much room to get it out through the top