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Thread: The mystery Power Steering warning light! Please guys, what could I really be in for?

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    Default The mystery Power Steering warning light! Please guys, what could I really be in for?

    Hello again everyone!

    I'm feeling like a bit of a leech around here at the moment but can I just say again a thanks to this forum and it's members, as you have basically enabled a mechanical novice to service my Vec and change my banjaxed suspension for nice new B4s and Eibachs!

    I'm out about £300-£350 quid in all (MOT in just over a week!) but without your help I'd be out 3 times that I'd imagine!

    Now, a real bugbear (and something which I hope will not fail me the MOT) is my dash warning light with the steering wheel symbol and exclamation mark. I have read every post related to this and I understand that it may give reference to issues in other areas, not just the pump/reservoir.

    My drivers wing was crumpled at the beginning of the year, and the pump housing bent, with wires cut. The body shop spliced the wires when doing the repairs and straightened the housing. The power steering light has been on since that bump, though the steering has been fine apart from a faint humming/whirring when on full lock and a tiny bit of sluggishness when steering very fast.

    The reason I need help is that I am going to take the bumper off and check the level, fill it if required. But am now not holding out hope that the level of fluid is the problem as I have been informed by a consultation of a Haynes manual that there may no level sensor on my 2002 2.0dti pump/reservoir (no sensor for level means that it can't be that which has generated the dash warning!).. am I right or wrong here?

    Given that the I took a hefty knock on my drivers wing and pump housing, and this warning light since.. can anyone give me an insight as to what extent this could actually run to? Rack issues, pump issues, any other related sensors somewhere (angle sensor?), recalibration of something or other???

    I had my local mechanic put it on his (non tech2) reader months ago, he wiped several things, but light returned. Will Tech2 give me a definitive answer?

    As the cars only worth about 2-3 grand I would be willing to attempt a repair myself if I could nail down what this damned light is trying to tell me! I'm a joiner and money's severely restricted in these "crunchy" days, so even £50 quid on a code reading will break my heart if I don't get anywhere!

    Sorry for being so long winded guys, hope some of you can shed a light on the full range of possibilities for me to weigh up before I decide to go in grimacing waiting for a Tech2 code!

    Thanks in advance!

    Nick :-)

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    Forum Moderator soulman's Avatar
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    thought the power steering was the triangle with the skidding car in it...if i,m at least this has bumped it up for you and maybe someone can shed some light on it

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    Quote Originally Posted by soulman View Post
    thought the power steering was the triangle with the skidding car in it..
    Nope, that's the traction control warning light.

    Best thing to do if you're unsure what warning lights are what is to RTFM

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    Forum Moderator soulman's Avatar
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    oh yeah silly me,,,,,,,,,,,at least its bumped it up lol

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    lol! Yea it's defo power assisted steering related, but I'm hoping someone will have an idea about the entirety of what this light could mean.

    I didn't get checking the level today, but as I say, am not holding out much hope for that being the cause as some have said the unit on a 2.0dti prob doesn't have any level sensor, thus I would hear the pump straining followed by some sort of shutdown, rather than being given this light to indicate fluid is low.

    Anyone spell out all the things that would otherwise give rise to this light please?

    Here's my best stab (and I know next to nothing!!):

    Fluid level (apparently not though, see above!)
    Steering angle sensor or recalibration of this (do I even have one?!
    Some sort of rack malfunction
    Checking and cleaning of all contacts/wiring!!

    Any other things to look out for? Iv'e never dealt with tech2 before, but if I could be 100% guaranteed my £50 would net me a cast iron answer as to what the issue is, I would go for it!

    Would it be as simple as even just having a tech2 reset done by vauxhall (a local mechanic tried on a non tech2 to wipe some stuff, but the lilght rerurned immediately).. Come to think of it, after the body shop was done they did reconnect the battery and I had to reset radio code etc..

    Sorry for warbling.. would love to get to the bottom of this with some money still left with which to keep me and my family alive!!

    Cheers! Nick :-)

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    Regular Member john_k_sri's Avatar
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    My guess would be that the power steering light would indicate either:-

    1. Low power steering fluid level, which would need to be investigated, not just topped up. Surely a level sensor would be needed to monitor this.
    2. Problem with the power steering pump, which is by no means unusual on the Vectra 'C', which would be triggered if the pump was not working at optimum efficiency.

    I do not believe that a problem with the steering rack per se would trigger the warning light, and it would be signposted by either a noise or some other indication when steering that something was amiss.

    Just my thoughts - I'm no expert - and I'm sure someone will put me right if I am wrong

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    Cheers for the input mate. Low efficiency of the pump.. that is a very useful idea you've brought to my attention! :-)

    As the pump bracket was bent in a collision, that may be worth exploring!

    Would a tech2 reading be so sophisticated as to be able to diagnose a lower efficiency of the pump?

    Personally, If it did turn out to be that, I would drive it on (whilst continually scouting for an ebay/breakers replacement for as cheap as I could manage!) until bad noises and heavier steering tell me it's time to change it out!

    Anyone else have any knowledge on how far ranging the symptoms of a steering dash warning light could be? I would love it if it was only the pump area to be concerned with, as I'm sure I could give that a bash myself and get any gremlins in the software ironed out at vx after!

    Thanks again!

    Nick :-)

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    TECH2 will give you quite a detailed 'explanation' of what the pumps doing, or at least a description of the error codes it's generating.. which you really need before shelling out money if it turns out to not be the pump..

    personally, my money is on the pump thou, as they don't like being bashed about....but a 2nd hand pump is only about £80 from a breakers against £500 from VX..all you need to do then is swap it out and let it bleed..also, check their loom repairs.... it could be as simple as a cr4p repair on the loom..

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    Try also http://www.bba-reman.com/content.asp...power_steering to see how much a new pump is.

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    Hi there, I bought my veccy few years back, but when i picked it up i had this same light on, took in to where i bought it who sorted it for me. All i can tell you is that mine was the steering fluid sensor, but god knows where or how to change it, but i know the part wasn't expensive and the garage only had my car for a few hours!

    Hope this helps.

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