C4 Tech/Performance L98 Corvette and LT1 Corvette Technical Info, Internal Engine, External Engine

Power Steering Pump

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Old Jun 4, 2010 | 04:04 PM
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Default Power Steering Pump

Any of you guys replace the P/S pump before?

I'm replacing mine and I have a bit of a dilema.. easy exchange right?...NOT!

Rebuilt pump by Cardone
Check this out.
Pump going into bracket


Pulley pressed on


oh yeah its all the way on and no its not backwards either.
Shaft coming through the hole




Bolted back up and it sticks out to far by about a 1/4 inch.


Now heres a pic of the other 84 Power Steering pump


Supposedly this is a direct replacement... right!.. Is it just me or would you also think that the area between the bracket bolt and the snap ring near the shaft is a bit longer than it should be?
Any suggestions?
Thanks
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Old Jun 4, 2010 | 08:23 PM
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I see I'm not alone in this. There's no rhyem or reason why it extends further than the orginal.

I did check several stores Napa,Advanced Auto, Ecklers. Most places carry the p/s by Cardone and list as a 84-91. All have the same measurment from the bracket bolt to the snap ring.
I suppose I'll have to try a different manufacturer of the part to see if that fits.

Of course I can't get my orginal back.. it was used as the core charge and has already been shipped out. I thought for sure that someone from here would have at least replaced there P/S pump as one time or another
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Old Jun 4, 2010 | 09:09 PM
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WOW, that is weird. Give it some time I looked through some older threads, and it appears there have been others asking questions about the pump, and also not many answers.

This is interesting. Nice pics BTW.
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Old Jun 4, 2010 | 10:24 PM
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Guess you can't compare the new pump to the old? Kinda looks like the shaft is too long,,,or is pulling out as you press the pulley back on.
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Old Jun 4, 2010 | 10:29 PM
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I keep my core until I'm done and the replacement part appears to be working.

Cardone rebuilts should be a rebuilt of the OEM part.

But I'd probably just have the store order another one and swap them out, but compare them while you are there.
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Old Jun 4, 2010 | 10:53 PM
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When I brought the core in overall length was the same, as well as shaft length, and I made certain the mounting was the same. One thing I never checked was the distance between mounting holes and end of housing.

I was in the garage playing around some more.

Here's the pic without the pulley


Pulley sitting on ready to get pressed. According to the tape measure I need to go at least 1 in to get the pulleys to align



Where I've pointed the screwdriver end, I measure that and can only press it on an additional 3/4 inch until the backside of the pulley hits the housing.

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Old Jun 4, 2010 | 11:14 PM
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Edit: (Deleted orig post. I was WRONG!) I just went down and looked at my pump. Mine sits exactly as yours does! I also measured from the face of the bracket to the face of the pump. The pump should stick out about 7/8" beyond the brace. Your pic looks close to that. The only thing I can't speak to is the length of the shaft -- of if it's pulling out.

The pulley does wrap backwards OVER the pump so you might have more to go than you think! The pulley should fit flush with the end of the shaft after being pressed on though!

Originally Posted by qws
Here's the pic without the pulley

Last edited by GREGGPENN; Jun 4, 2010 at 11:30 PM. Reason: Had to correct myself!!!
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Old Jun 4, 2010 | 11:26 PM
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Originally Posted by GREGGPENN
Looks like the wrong pump dude. Just sitting there looking at the pic below makes it look like the pulley could never go back far enough to line up with the other pulleys! The PS housing seems to be sitting OUT too far.
Thats exactly what I told them. Looked at me as if I had three heads!... even showed them one of my pics. They still think I'm doing something wrong. They (napa) are ordering another one. However in the mean time I am picking one up tomorrow from Autozone. its a ATSCO brand. So I'll have to wait an see how that one measures up.
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Old Jun 4, 2010 | 11:39 PM
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Originally Posted by qws
Pulley pressed on
That's correct. The pulley SHOULD BE FLUSH!!




[/QUOTE]

WTF? You grindin' on it? Now it's pushed on too far!

Makes me wonder if Cardone left a retainer out of the insides (and the shaft is pulling out)!

Last edited by GREGGPENN; Jun 5, 2010 at 12:05 AM.
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Old Jun 4, 2010 | 11:40 PM
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Originally Posted by qws
Thats exactly what I told them. Looked at me as if I had three heads!... even showed them one of my pics. They still think I'm doing something wrong. They (napa) are ordering another one. However in the mean time I am picking one up tomorrow from Autozone. its a ATSCO brand. So I'll have to wait an see how that one measures up.
RE-READ the post you quoted! I changed it before you posted.
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Old Jun 5, 2010 | 12:03 AM
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Beside the measurement of 7/8" (distance the face sits out from the bracket), I also measured the shaft. Though I had to guesstimate since my pulley is mounted, I'm saying the pulley shaft should be right about 5/8" long.

Consider this +/- 1/16".
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Old Jun 5, 2010 | 12:11 AM
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Do you just tighten down the PS pulley with the installer until you can't turn the wrench anymore? Or do you have to do something special to line it up with the other pulleys?
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Old Jun 5, 2010 | 12:15 AM
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LOL... no i wasn't grinding on it. Thats from a washer I was using when I was pressing on the pulley. Soft metal

Ok, measure mine its 7/8 from the bracket to the end of the housing. 1-3/4from the bracket to the end of the shaft.

Yanked and pulled on the shaft and it doesn't move at all.
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Old Jun 5, 2010 | 12:17 AM
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Originally Posted by joshwilson3
Do you just tighten down the PS pulley with the installer until you can't turn the wrench anymore? Or do you have to do something special to line it up with the other pulleys?
Right or wrong I used a bolt and thick washer and a impact wrench! That pulley is not going on any further than what the impact wrench did.
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Old Jun 5, 2010 | 12:28 AM
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Update yet?I also noticed that you have aftermarket heads & it could be possible that the power steering bracket that mounts to the left side head could be causing the power steering pump to be moved further ahead & the pump you had in the car could've been off a different year vette or different model.Did you put those aftermarket heads on?Also like previously stated the pulley should be installed the same way that the pulley sat on the old pump.If you don't remember make sure its installed flush with the shaft on pump.The shaft could be also coming out due to you seating the pulley against the body of pump,the rebuild on that pump was not done properly,the pump is the wrong part or was boxed wrong from manufacturer,or aftermarket heads causing this issue.I bet your getting pretty good at installing & removing that pulleyKeep us updated
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Old Jun 5, 2010 | 12:35 AM
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Originally Posted by 94vettelover2
Update yet?I also noticed that you have aftermarket heads & it could be possible that the power steering bracket that mounts to the left side head could be causing the power steering pump to be moved further ahead & the pump you had in the car could've been off a different year vette or different model.Did you put those aftermarket heads on?Also like previously stated the pulley should be installed the same way that the pulley sat on the old pump.If you don't remember make sure its installed flush with the shaft on pump.The shaft could be also coming out due to you seating the pulley against the body of pump,the rebuild on that pump was not done properly,the pump is the wrong part or was boxed wrong from manufacturer,or aftermarket heads causing this issue.I bet your getting pretty good at installing & removing that pulleyKeep us updated
All good points however. I removed the power steering pump only two days ago. Those heads have been on for a few months. The pulley is going on the right direction. I also looked at my wifes vette to make certain it was on the right way. This just doesn't make sense to me.

I removed ALT, then the reservoir, then the bracket. Disconnected hoses. bought a reman pump and reversed installation. And it just doesn't line up. Its not rocket science. But I do agree... I think its something with the pump.

And your right.... the pulley removal and pressing on is getting quite easy...lol
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Old Jun 5, 2010 | 12:42 AM
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The only other difference I saw is that mine doesn't have the button-looking nub on top of the PS pump (as seen thru the bracket).

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Old Jun 5, 2010 | 12:48 AM
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To be honest, i think if you can take it back, you probably should if you feel it is not right. You might kick your self later if the part is not to the specs it should be.

I am thinking if you bought a part that is a replacement it should be a direct replacement of the part you gave them, something looks a miss with that thing in there.

Okay, I just looked at mine, and the PS pulley is exactly flush with the water pump pulley. Something is definitely wrong with yours. Even if you get it to fit right, the thing might be defective or have the wrong bearings/shaft, or something in it when it was rebuilt to make it stick out so far. Could be anything, but not worth risking balance issues or anything else IMO.

I would get another one that is the exact replacement part for the part I turned in.

Last edited by pologreen1; Jun 5, 2010 at 12:56 AM.
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Old Jun 5, 2010 | 10:51 AM
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Originally Posted by qws
I see I'm not alone in this. There's no rhyem or reason why it extends further than the orginal.

I did check several stores Napa,Advanced Auto, Ecklers. Most places carry the p/s by Cardone and list as a 84-91. All have the same measurment from the bracket bolt to the snap ring.
I suppose I'll have to try a different manufacturer of the part to see if that fits.

Of course I can't get my orginal back.. it was used as the core charge and has already been shipped out. I thought for sure that someone from here would have at least replaced there P/S pump as one time or another
There have been some other threads that mentioned similar problems regarind reman pumps that don't fit or or the pulley doesn't line up.

One of the things about Cardone (and similar retail-level parts) is that there are usually two grades; A-1 Cardone is the typical retail or parts store stuff and Cardone "Select" is a professional grade. Our shop buys some Cardone parts and every box we get says "Select" on it. Not sure if this means a better grade of parts that went into the reman unit or if tolerances are closer.

Does anyone know if the pump housing is Corvette-specific? Could it be that the housing may have come from another GM vehicle where the attachment points are the same but the housing snout is longer? Could the shaft be from another GM pump but simply has the same diameter but different length?

My 87 pump is starting to whine after about a half-day of autocross events and the last track day I did, it was really loud until it cooled down. I'm thinking of having Turn One do a rebuild for me with me sending my pump to them.
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Old Jun 5, 2010 | 04:51 PM
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Originally Posted by qws
Ok, measure mine its 7/8 from the bracket to the end of the housing. 1-3/4from the bracket to the end of the shaft.
1 3/4" is too far!!! I believe that's your problem. Mine is 1.5". Notice I said 7/8" from face-to-face. And, it was 5/8" for the shaft. Add those two together,,,you get 1.5". CHECK YOUR SHAFT LENGTH!!!

Also, as you pointed out, you needed 1" to get it aligned but only see 3/4". That's your 1/4" difference.

Sounds like your shaft is too long. (Or you have to press it on 'til 1/4" protrudes.) Maybe the plastic cap will still install? Maybe this pump covers more than one model/installation?
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