when i first start my car after it's been sat overnight or all day the power steering is very heavy (not completely broken just not as light as it should be)

 

a hundred yards or so down the road it suddenly fixes itself and if i'm trying to turn at the time it becomes obviously lighter.

 

it doesn't seem to matter how fast i acelerate or what speed i'm doing at the point it starts working properly

 

once it starts working it seems to work fine for the rest of the journey (including short stops) at whatever speed just as it should.

 

 

any ideas?

 

thanks

 

ian

Does your speedo work in the first 100 metres when your power steering isn't?

 

If it doesn't your problem is in the speed sensor / cabling.

 

If it does, your problem is in the speedo and / or the power steering control box.

 

Try doing a search as this is a common problem

might be an idea to check your power steering fluid level

when i first start my car after it's been sat overnight or all day the power steering is very heavy (not completely broken just not as light as it should be)

 

a hundred yards or so down the road it suddenly fixes itself and if i'm trying to turn at the time it becomes obviously lighter.

 

it doesn't seem to matter how fast i acelerate or what speed i'm doing at the point it starts working properly

 

once it starts working it seems to work fine for the rest of the journey (including short stops) at whatever speed just as it should.

 

 

any ideas?

 

thanks

 

ian

 

Ian,

Have you got a speedo converter chip fitted? Does your speedo needle jump when you start the engine?

Mine started doing the same thing after I fitted an E-bay chip in mine. I'm hoping replacing the chip will corect the problem.

 

Keith

thanks for the replies, i investigated a bit more:

 

got up this morning, started the car, speedo needle didn't move, reversed off the drive and drove off down the road, power steering heavy the whole time

 

i noticed driving slowlyish that the speedo was still reading zero, about a hundred yards down the road things happened:

1. speedo suddenly jumped to 20mph and from then on worked fine at all speeds including below 20mph

2. noise of pump / motor werring from back right of car (possible the ABS???)

3. the steering started working properly

 

all worked fine for a while until i was sat in a queue for a car park half an hour latter, the steering suddenly went heavy and the idle revs jumped to 2000 (coincidence??) didn't go above a crawl so no idea if the speedo was working.

 

came back to car, started car, speedo jumps to 20mph and back to zero, steering works properly. exactly the same happened the next 3 times i stopped and started.

 

 

power steering fluid looks ok to me and about the right level

 

i asume i have a converter chip as its an import, the speedo dial has a sticker added saying mph and the dial reeds up to 180

thanks for the replies, i investigated a bit more:

 

got up this morning, started the car, speedo needle didn't move, reversed off the drive and drove off down the road, power steering heavy the whole time

 

i noticed driving slowlyish that the speedo was still reading zero, about a hundred yards down the road things happened:

1. speedo suddenly jumped to 20mph and from then on worked fine at all speeds including below 20mph

2. noise of pump / motor werring from back right of car (possible the ABS???)

3. the steering started working properly

 

all worked fine for a while until i was sat in a queue for a car park half an hour latter, the steering suddenly went heavy and the idle revs jumped to 2000 (coincidence??) didn't go above a crawl so no idea if the speedo was working.

 

came back to car, started car, speedo jumps to 20mph and back to zero, steering works properly. exactly the same happened the next 3 times i stopped and started.

 

 

power steering fluid looks ok to me and about the right level

 

i asume i have a converter chip as its an import, the speedo dial has a sticker added saying mph and the dial reeds up to 180

Speed Sensor Related :cool:

Speed Sensor Related :cool:

 

where would i find the speed sensor then? is it easy to change? or are there some connectors to wiggle or plug in properly?

where would i find the speed sensor then? is it easy to change? or are there some connectors to wiggle or plug in properly?

It is located under the car attached to the gearbox

I had this same problem and it was kph to mph converter badly wired in behind the clocks. I just rewired it in properly and it's been fine for ages.