Hi all. I'm new to this forum and a first time corvette owner too. Anyway this is my first (of many, I'm sure) issues in getting it back to tip-top shape.

I have a '79 w/ power steering and when I got it, the control valve was leaking but the owner had a rebuilt (and balanced) valve he gave me that he just hadn't installed yet. Before doing that I noticed the power steering was horrible at low speeds and bearly adequate at higher rpms. Basically it was whinig when turning at idling and low speeds and turning like a manual steering.

Anyway, after changing the control valve the leaks are gone (for now) but the rough turning and noise is still there. One curious thing when bleeding the air after first changing the valve.. When I was first turning the wheel side to side with the tires raised off the ground, it turned like butter for the first couple.. but after that it got stiffer and got "choppy" when I tried to turn it fast.. like the wheels would turn very choppy if I tried to turn them fast.

Couple notes.. the fluid I drained out of the old system looked pretty dirty. I'm thinking the pump may have had a lot of dirt and grime in it that took a few minutes to filter thier why through the system after I put in the new valve. If so, how do I flush this out of the system? .. and if the dirt got into the valve or cylinder, are those toast? Other note, the power steering pump "looked" pretty new but I'm going to check with the previous owner to find out for sure.

Any help or tips on what to do next.. short of replacing the whole dang system.. would be GREATLY appreciated. And maybe this a stupid question.. but if I put in a Steeroid rack and pinion system, would I still have this same issue with the power assist? I'm assuming so since they're seperate components, right? Thanks in advance.

 

Just a follow up.. I found out the PS pump has not been replaced in the recent past. I'm now leaning toward this as to the problem. Question is if it isn't pumping properly, am I doing damage to other components in the meantime.. like the valve and ram??

 

Not sure on your stock system but I can tell you about the steroids system. It works great I drive my vette everyday and haven't had a problem yet. Its about a year old. good luck

 

Sounds like some air got into the system or a bad PS pump. I'd change the pump and add fresh PS fluid.