[Dean_Wilson]

Hi, my wife's car currently has started having a problem where her power steering is not working on her 2005 307cc. It does seem to work after a couple of days of not using it but only for a short period of time.

I have checked the two connections that plug into the pump and neither have corrosion. I have also checked the fuse and that is fine.

The fluid is correct, actually it is a tad over max.

One of the two cables plugged into the the pump has two wires, a red one and a yellow/green one. I am guessing that the red one is live and the other is earth, I did check the red cable with the voltage meeting and it was reading 0, is that normal as I was expecting it to read 12v. Also I did get a continuity signal between live on the battery and the red cable. Strangely I also got continuity between the red and green yellow. Maybe my inexperienced fumbling has got me confused.

Can anyone help me....


Dean




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[storeman]

Did you measure continuity while it was plugged in?

If so then it was feeding back through the pump motor. If you got continuity from the battery to the pump then 12 volts is being supplied. The only way to not get a reading would to have measured across the two cables. With the earth side not being switched the two cables would both be at virtually the same potential (12v) hence reading 0v. If you put the positive lead of the meter on the red lead and the black (-) lead of the meter to an earth point on the chassis you should read 12v

 

[Dean_Wilson]

That's exactly what I tried to do. I put the positive lead of the meter to the red lead and put the negative lead of the meter to the negative terminal of the battery and I think it was reading 0 volts. Maybe I will try it again in the week, perhaps i was doing it wrong.


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[storeman]

If you have continuity between the positive terminal of the battery and the red wire on the sterring pump then they are electrically speaking one and the same therefore putting the meter across the battery negative and the red wire would be no different than measuring directly across the battery.

I don't wish to come across as condescending so please don't take this the wrong way but it sounds like you may be using the meter on the wrong scale and the continuity signal may have been a meter error signal.

What did you have thye meter set to when you measured the continuity and when you tried to measure the voltage?

 

[IanML]

I hesitate to ask, but was the ignition on?

 

[Dean_Wilson]

Hi Storeman, it was definitely the continuity that I was using, it is the only setting that beeps when I have continuity. I think what I need to do is check it again, take notes and provide pictures of what I am doing, it may sound like it from my post put I am not totally inept....... honest


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[Dean_Wilson]

I hesitate to ask, but was the ignition on?

Yes the ignition was on, the car was running when I was testing.


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[storeman]

I wasn't suggesting you were inept. But it is difficult to get a full picture from a text based forum when there is no immediate feedback.

The one thing I can't get my head around as it goes against the laws of physics and electronics. Is that if there is continuity with zero or just a few ohms between the red wire in the connector and the battery positive how you can't get a voltage reading between the red wire and a ground point. The only thing I can think of that would produce such a result would be either the point you used as an earth wasn't an earth, you didn't have a good electrical connection to both measuring points or the meter was set to Vac rather than Vdc.

 

[Dean_Wilson]

I wasn't suggesting you were inept. But it is difficult to get a full picture from a text based forum when there is no immediate feedback.

The one thing I can't get my head around as it goes against the laws of physics and electronics. Is that if there is continuity with zero or just a few ohms between the red wire in the connector and the battery positive how you can't get a voltage reading between the red wire and a ground point. The only thing I can think of that would produce such a result would be either the point you used as an earth wasn't an earth, you didn't have a good electrical connection to both measuring points or the meter was set to Vac rather than Vdc.

No problem, I didn't take offence , like I said I will take the front end off again and write down what I did. Should have done that the first time.


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