SPLITRAY

What in the world is with these power steering valves and constant leaking??? This valve has less that 100 feet of road miles on it and I've had it out three times to fix the leaking.

Now I moved it (Pushed) from my garage to my new shop (40') where it sat on my car lift for one week. I find a one foot diameter puddle of oil under the valve???

Did I mention this valve was brand new with a complete power steering conversion kit! I've had the kit in place for four years but have only run the car to get it on a transporter to get to AZ.

JohnZ

Did you grease the zerk fitting on the valve? Hope not, 'cuz that will blow the seal adjacent to the ball stud and result in a leak. Most new or rebuilt valves include a card or tag warning NOT to grease that fitting, or simply have a screwed-in plug instead of a fitting. That hole is only used with a zerk fitting (at low pressure) during detail assembly of the valve.

Procrastination Racing

My dad had a 1971 Chevy truck. He kept taking it in to a mechanic as it ran bad. Finally, the mechanic told him to quit bringing it in and DRIVE THE DARN THING! He had only put like 250 miles on it in a year.

These cars were never designed to sit around forever, and it is worse now that they are old. Drive them and many of the ills go away.

tbarb

Was the valve new or a overhauled part. It's been a while since I had one apart, there is a good overhaul procedure in the 1963 service manual.

If that valve is leaking when the pump is not running I suspect you either have something in backwards or possibly a seat is wore where the hose attaches etc.

SPLITRAY

Valve was new with entire power steering kit.
It's not leaking from the lines/fittings, though that was a significant issue when installing the system.

Also, Haven't greased anything yet. All the leakage seems to be coming from the valve body where the halves split. Despite recommendations to the contrary, I did apply a silicone sealer to the halves this time as they would not stop leaking.

The confusing thing is, After the last fix about two years ago I never had an issue. In May of 2014 I retired then three months later I shipped my car to AZ via Reliable Carriers. Car ran and loaded onto the truck with no issues. Car was driven off the truck and stored for another six months with no issues. Six months after that the car was loaded onto a trailer to transport to it's new digs. Four months after that pushed the car onto the autolift because the (new) fuel sending unit leaked all the fuel out. So the only thing out of the ordinary was that I had to manually steer the car to get it onto the lift. One week later it's leaking everything in two days just sitting there.

tbarb

I feel your pain, you should not have any leaking problems after all that work. I would be suspect of the pump pressure and maybe even the slave cylinder if it's one of those welded rebuilt units.

Where did you buy this system?

SPLITRAY

System was purchased at VanSeel Corvette. The pump had not been runnng for 4-5 months before this thing started leaking on its own again???

tbarb

Have you called them to discuss the issue. I think something is not right inside the valve body. It's time to find out, you should not experience any consistent problems with the power assist system, it works very well.

SPLITRAY

No, I haven't spoke with them as I figured they wouldn't deal with it since the unit was purchased sometime in 2007 or 2008. I've had a lot of details in life that either slowed or stopped the progress on my car over the years.

It has been running but not going anywhere. It's pretty much done except for trim work now but this PS valve keeps rearing it ugly head! It's just the leak too, when I ran it around my cul-de-sac it works great. The PS is awsome!

0Willcox Corvette

I did a video on how to rebuild the valves a few years back. If you tear it apart it'll give you a very good idea how to rebuild it.

SPLITRAY

Well, I took that valve apart again and there's absolutely nothing wrong with the hard or soft parts.

Don't think I want to take a chance on another rebuilt one. I first thought this was a new one but realized that for $700 for the entire PS steering kit it was probably a rebuilt. So, Mr. Wilcox What's the correct P/N for a new one for my converted PS steering system on a 63? and how much of a break for the core..which is apparently just fine?

I just got the new fuel sender from LIC and it's the real deal...screw nuts for the terminals rather than push nuts. That was another "New" part that came apart with no wear and tear on it. Just started leaking gas on my garage floor. Back when I bought it I didn't realize that just because it came from a "Corvette supplier" didn't necessarily mean it was a U.S. made part for corvette. I've always tried to buy the best stuff but some of it just gets by me.

Thanks for all the help guys!

0Willcox Corvette

Here is the link for the new valve, you can use the sale code "new15" to save 15 percent off too.

Willcox

https://willcoxcorvette.com/corvette...alve-new-63-82

71scgc

I rebuilt mine using a full kit (not all of them are) and an instructional from CSSB. It has never leaked.

The rebuild is easy, just watch the Willcox video first and use the CSSB tutorial and its photos as you do the rebuild. It can be done in an hour, easy.

Seriously, give it a try. Can't be any worse than where you are now. If you do it, you learn something plus, you know it's done right.

Carter