first problems power steering - hope i didnt buy a 64 galaxie lemon

and so it begins. of course the car drove fine when i was test driving it - there was a slight whine from the power steering but now its pretty bad. as soon as i touch the gas the whine begins. there is no whine at idle tho. so obv something with the a pulley is causing an issue.

i9 topped off the pow steering fluid and there are no leaks. i looked over the belt but i am going to replace it regardless and hope that solves it. the car tracks dead straight even when i take hands off wheel and jam on brakes. id ***ume thats more an alignment thing than power steering but thought id mention it.

already the key switch has broken and so has 1 of the window cranks. now the taillights dont work and the o9nly light working on the dash is the hi/low beam indicator - tho of course the lights themselves just stopped working. going to get all new fuses and once again pray!!

any ideas on the whine sound?

 

have you tried taking the belt off to see if the whine goes away. You may need to replace the pwr pump....you don't have to get all new fuses just look to see if you have any blown ones...and replace the blown ones.

 

ah good idea about the belt. i looked at the number on the belt and it is a "drive rite" advance auto brand "spun cog" style that according to their ****py website says it is not for the car. i'll try the suggestion to pull the belt and see if that does it. as for the fuses they were all pretty well kaput so might as well see if the new ones will do it.
according to the website the belt is 46 inches or so outside diam while the range from whats on napa's site is from 38 3/4 inches to 40 or so without an AC. i cant imagine a belt 6 inches longer than stock would even fit on the pulleys and be close to tight but this one is.

does anyone know the stock length for a power steering belt non-AC 64 galaxie 500?

 

If the power steering whines and you take the belt off, of course it is going to stop whining - It is no longer operating. It won't tell you anything. You need to isolate whether it is a slipping belt (usually more of a Squeal) or a bad pump (more of a whine)

 

If you rub a bar of plain white soap against the belt while the engine is running and the whine goes away its the belt. If while driving the car the pump makes a rubber band noise it is the pump.

 

Squirt the belt with some belt dressing to see if that solves the whine. If it does, it's the belt. Make sure it fits the v-groove properly too. Length isn't the only issue. Geez, that didn't sound right.

 

Someone probably put type F transmission fluid in it at one time. That will make them whine like the devil and it would have been what was in the trunk when the oump was low. The f doesn't stand for ford it stands for friction and it will caue a little problem with the bushuings causing the whine.

 

Don't these also have a filter or screen between the reservoir and the pump?

 

a 64 lemon ?
Yea pretty much anything 40 yrs old is bound to have problems.

If by some chance its ****ing air into the system it will whine.
Extended storage then sudden use can break stuff.
Excessive maneuvering can make them hot, break down the fluid and make them whine.
Old moisture saturated fluid can make them whine.

Then it could just be worn out

 

well i did pull the belt off and started the car - sound was the same. then i9 tried to take the alternator belt off to check that and the 2nd battery is dead for the second time in 2 days. i have no idea if the one the seller had in the car was any good. went to start it yesterday and it died so i put a brand new battery i got 3 months ago and know is good, now that one is dead. i have just under 12v to the key switch but when i turn the switch on it has a HUGE voltage drop. it was working fine before i pulled the belts off.

ugh i am really stressed. i know these are old cars and thats fine. but i thought i was getting something i could get in and go - at least for the season anyway - and now i am stressing about more money on yet another project. i probably should have listened to my gut and stayed away. damn it. trying to not overreact.

 

No belts and still whining is either something really small and stupid or major problem.

Drainage of battery is usually easy to find.
Pull all the fuses and while measuring the draw, replace them one at a time.

However the two problems could be related

 

PnB beat me to it. Check and see if it has red fluid rather than power steering fluid that is usually clear or slightly amber.

I lost track of the noisy power steering pumps that I flushed trans fluid out of and replaced with proper power steering fluid in the 70's when I worked in a dealership.

If that doesn't fix it then replace the pump.

This is one time I would suggest going to the dealer and paying for the factory supplied power steering fluid too rather than off the shelf at the parts house.

 

If you toook the belt off and it still makes noise,It's not the power steering,once you took the belt off the pump is not moving.
Try this
Take a long screw driver and put your thum on the end of it(handle) now put it up to your ere and touch the blade end to the water pump and then the altenater,and you can tell if one of them is bad. be carefull doing this as the motor is running when you do this test.
Remember the belts have to be on so everything is spinning.
Good luck and let us know.
Russ

 

I'm running a 70's Mustg II pwr steering pump that calls for Type F automatic transmission fluid (reddish). The early 60's Mustangs I had called for Type A automatic transmission fluid. May want to drain the ps fluid and fill with Type A.

 

Sounds like u need a newer car

 

ok went and tried again. i swapped out 2 more key switches just to be sure. same huge voltage drop on both. then unhooked the alternator - same voltage drop. yet when i dont connect the wire that goes to the starter relay i get 12.2 volts across all 3 terminals on the switch (power, access, ignition). is the starter relay possibly the culprit? i will see if i can get a neighbor to turn the key while i check the volts on the non-battery side of the relay with the key on. i also have all the fuses out. would this be causing an issue? sorry for idiot questions.

 

It could be, it could also be a problem in the starter.
Any chance your starter is dragging and causing the whining noise you are hearing?

 

Ps whine....Ditto air in the system..... I'd flush it out, and follow the factory method to bleed it. Use the factory recommended fluid, of course...... Belt noise diagnosis...we just squirt a bit of plain ol' water on the belt...noise goes away for a few seconds......And we know which belt it is.......

Happy Roddin'........... 4TTRUK

 

Voltage drop "downstream of the keyswitch,..... Maybe you have a system that has the ballast resistor built into the switch..... I know that Ford used a resistor wire on pickups after 1970....but Not sure about p*** cars before then.....

4TTRUK

 

Low fluid? Well we checked for that. Wrong fluid? Like PnB said, check for that.

If it's not that, your 48 year old car needs the pump rebuilt in all probability.

 

The huge voltage drop could be from the starter hung in the flywheel. Try to turn the engine by the fan if the belt is tight enough. If the starter is hung it should release.

A bad solenoid on an early Ford can be determined by jumping across its large outer poles where the battery/starter cables attach.

 

He's pulled the belts off and the sound is still there so it's NOT the power steering pump at all. If the car is a automatic trans it might be the front pump.

 

Exactly and if , if his starter is hung up in the flywheel its going to whine.

Belts are off noise stayed.
Two problems - whine and dead batteries, at the same time

 

ok well just tried replacing the solenoid - all that did was cost me 15 bucks and half an hour lol. i triple checked all connections, cleaned the battery, put the original dead battery in my truck and it fired right up. so have the new battery in the car showing 11.9 volts (i know thats low but i have to charge it). installed the new solenoid and same ******** issue!

i took a video of the sound: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tf6H3-6S8Fk&feature=g-upl

i tapped the starter too but nothing. when i run the voltmeter over the ignition terminal with the key on i get 5.8 volts!! not good. i will try jumping the car tomorrow and after that i am at a complete loss unless i need to yank the starter. going to try and spin it by hand now.

 

It is hard to fix on line. would have to listen to it, in order to have an idea ! If you have a local gear head around, let him listen to it. could be a number of things.

 

Old Dude - i posted a vid of the sound here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tf6H3...&feature=g-upl

i just tried rotating the engine using the fan. the belts were tight and that didnt unbind the starter. i then loosened the belts and tried - stlll nada.

i give. i am seriously becoming pissed off. i wanted a driver and thought that was what i was getting. i have no lights, no turn signals, the ******** thing wont start, the oil and GEN lights stay on no matter if i disconnect the battery, the only thing the fuses did was to get a wiper to work.

i know this can all be fixed but thats not the point. damn it.

 

i did add more trans fluid as there was none in it - i made sure to keep checking the dipstick with the car running. could i have added too much?

 

You know, instead of sending you down another wild goose chase how about some old fashioned trouble shooting.

Battery drain is a pain in the *** to figure out. But use a process of elimination. Separate out all the electrical items as discussed before and slowly start adding them back in. An OHM meter is a much better tool to use than a Volt meter for trouble shooting. Once each circuit is separated, look for one that has resistance. If everything is in good working order you should see zero to little resistance in each line.

Things that make a power steering like growl; well how about the gaskets under the carb fluttering, crutch tip on the carb or manifold worn out and acting like a reed instrument, timing chain, dampener isolastic rubber gone and the weight ring rubbing against something. What kind of condition is the water pump in?

 

thanks ElPolacko.

at this point id trade the power steering whine for a ******** car that runs lol. how the hell does it go from starting instantly to now its completely fubard? do i try to pull the starter too and see if it is stuck or dead?

did the video i took offer any insight?

 

Video no workie.

Starter Bendix could be **** and not returning the gear. Pull the starter, three bolts (2 bolts? ) and your electrical cable and have a look. The gear should be retracted, look for obvious signs of wear.