1994 Cavalier LSi C20NE (was C18NZ) Work-horse

[Robsey]

It depends on how the system works...

The pipe from the pump is officially called a suction pipe, so should mean that pressures should not blow a joint apart.

They are all screwed / threaded joints, so I am looking for someone who makes up similar hoses.

[Mk3alan]

Nylon could be used with adapter's then?!

Alan

[Robsey]

I would say not really. Not based on fact, just my lack of knowledge.

It is a long time since I looked at materials technology in college, but I am sure that nylon would be affected by the heat of the fluid, bearing in mind that it has to be cooled via a short network of pipes at the front of the car just below the radiator.
I know we are not talking mega-degrees C here, but even so, I prefer to err on the side of caution.

I am sure that there are various nylon-based composites out there that "may" work, but my rule of thumb is
"If in doubt..................."

[ilovedmymantas]

And the end of the tether has been reached...
.....A replacement pump would have been easy... but as it is me, the god of Cavalier land decided that he would make the challenge a bit more challenging.

I suppose we should have paid attention to the model name when we signed-up for a lifetime of servitude to our favourite car , according to Collins. https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dicti ... h/cavalier
Describes my cars attitude!

So now I need to find a place that can make up new pipes as they appear to be obsolete and unobtainable.

Sorry to hear those pipes for power steering have finally gone, mines are looking the same way and I am trying to find a solution before they breach. I can't imagine it's beyond the realms of possibility to get ones made up. However one of the problems is many places can only make them up with reference to the old pipe, which might be a bit tricky to get off, with all the bends going round up down and under things

I think you're right about it being a low pressure side. My searches (I can get a bit obsessed) show it's attached by jubilee clips so should be fairly easy to remove intact.

-There's dick turpin in the 21st century on ebay ( this guy's seriously broken the car!)........
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Power-steeri ... 0005.m1851
.............unfortunately his prices are a too futuristic for me.

Or this

I've read on a couple of unrelated forums that if you take your old part to Pirtek you can get them made-up in most cases.
I see from their website they have a branch in your area, got to be worth a visit. This would be my choice as a starting point.

matt

[Robsey]

Hi Matt,
I fear for your mental well being -
Purely because you sound like you are working on exactly the same wavelength as me. Ha ha.

I have made exactly the same searches and made exactly the same conclusions as yourself.

The issue I have is, that I am 'glued' to my clinic room all day, every day this week, so no chance of doing any of my needed errands.
So whatever happens, it has to wait until next week at the earliest.

[ilovedmymantas]

Thanks Rob, I knew this was a caring community !

Pity about the delay but at least you've got it sorted out 'on paper'
- and it did take your mind off the fuelling problem for a bit

[Robsey]

Looked at the power steering pipes on the Cavalier today expecting the worst.
Just to recap -
About 10 days ago, I had discovered a rasping noise from the engine with a small oil patch below the power steering hose, close to the pump.
Opening up the cap on the fluid header told me that the steering fluid had drained out of the car.

First job was to unscrew a jubilee clip on the hose adjacent to the pump. As soon as the screwdriver blade touched the clip, the clip spun round the hose. The jubilee clip was very loose on the rubber hose that sits inside a corrugated metal sheath.
How odd - nobody has touched this clip since it left the factory.

I dropped the hose off the stub to see that it was full of filthy oil.
Blacky-brown cack that has been in there since August 1994.
So I re-attached the hose and tightened the jubilee clip.

Amazingly, when starting the engine briefly, the raspiness had gone.

So it looks like I will need to refill the header tank, and see if there is any long lasting damage, and to see if the fluid loss is all due to a slack jubilee clip.

My fingers are crossed for tomorrow - hoping that the clip was the only issue.
After a long period of challenging times, I am not getting my hopes up just yet.

It would be my guess that the mechanic was going to look at the source of the damp hose mentioned on the mot.
Perhaps he had unscrewed the hose looking for splits or cracks in the rubber.

I looked today to see that the hose looked free of cracks or splits. Just a very deep clear indentation from where the clip had been fitted.

Regardless of all this, the pipework is very scabby and in need of replacement.
Hopefully this will just buy me a bit more time to arrange for a new replacement to be made up and fitted when the warm weather arrives.

[Robsey]

The other job for today was to fit a replacement lambda sensor.

The old sensor (well only about 12 months old) was removed and the new Bosch sensor was fitted.

Inspecting the old sensor revealed that it too was a Bosch original part.
As it happened I also had the sensor fitted with the engine some 6 years ago.
Yup it too was a Bosch original part.

So three identical sensors...

I have an OpelScanner on order so hopefully it will give me live data when it arrives in a few weeks.

[Robsey]

Ah well - I knew it wouldn't be a quick fix.
Pah!

Still leaking after the jubilee clip was secured and the resevoir topped up.







Ah well - back to the Vectra for the next month or so.

[cavalier1990]

Too good to be true Robsey that clip, your pipes look much like mine, and going by the age of your car and mine, about the same I should be expecting a similar fate in the not too distant future!

I was looking at some pipes on german opel sites, there are ones that look very similar but are listed for 16v and other models. I wonder if they could be persuaded to fit.

That's when I decide to empty my bank some more hoping I will make it to next month's pay pack!

[Robsey]

Aye - these pesky cars have a habit of raping our bank accounts senseless.

I know that the only way to do this properly is to take the front bumper and radiator out to give access to all the pipework.
Then remove all the pipework forward of the resevoir.

It is bit odd that all power steering repair companies only refurbish the pumps.
Nobody advertises that they make up pipework.
Pirtek mention some links to motor racing, but I understand that most of this is high pressure brake lines.

[cavalier1990]

Robsey

I inadvertently ordered the wrong power steering pipe for mine, but I think it will still fit with a bit of jiggery pokery, in fact not much jiggery pokery as I offered it up last night and it seemed fine.

If you look at diagram below your pressure pipe should be no 6 ident KD.

If you look then at no 1 pipe this is the one I ordered. I intitally thought that was the right one, offered it up last night and it seems to fit in place. The only thing is the aluminiumy bit/pipe would be coming up then down into the radiator area, instead of a sharp bend down and along the bottom as the original does.

There is a pipe similar in opel classic parts but it's 146 beans so....! But the one I got on ebay was about 70 quid. Still quite pricey but worth it for a one off pipe that will probably last another 25 years. I do need a return pipe still but my pressure pipe is the worst nick.

[Robsey]

Ouch - very expensive, but it does keep the old jalopy going.

I have had two people advise me to go to a hydraulics company near me. (Not Pirtek)
The company specialises in plant machinery, but have been known to do some car pipework.

Some of the bends may be a challenge for them to get tight enough, but there are ways and means.

I am still awaiting chance to get the front off the car, and then strip all pipework forward of the resevoir.

Time will tell.

As for pipe compatability, I am sure many of the Vectra-B pipework will be similar, as most systems are configured similarly, although a potential thing for me to avoid is "with air con" as this will probably affect cooling rates or have un-necessary additional pipework.

[Robsey]

Well I spent another 2 hrs fussing and farting about trying to get the power steering pipes off.

It appears that it is the high pressure pipe that is leaking from a crimped connection at the bottom of the vertical run as it bends to run across the back of the front body frame.

The pipe and the crimped joint are mega rusted, scaley and generally in need of total replacement.

The pump connection will undo nicely with a 5/8" across flat spanner.

The other end of the pipe where it joins onto the cooler section (below the radiator) is seized on solid.
A 5/8" spanner is too big / slack and a 15mm spanner is too small.
(5/8" is approx 15.88mm from memory).
So there is no size between these two dimensions.

So it looks like the bumper will need to come off afterall to remove all the pipework forward of the resevoir.

I am beginning to seriously hate this car.
It is only the thought that I have already blown a huge wedge of money on this car that prevents me from just giving up and letting go of it.

And I still have the tyres, alloys and emissions to sort. Grrrrrrr!!

[Robsey]

The only positive thing that I did achieve, is that I re-seated the rubber strip that sits below the right headlamp.

Sadly this reminded me of what a rubbish fit DEPO halo indicators are - protruding forward at the bottom and rubbing against the outer edge of the headlamp.

Prior to the restoration, I had fitted the original indicators as they fitted perfectly.
I am tempted to do the same again.

In fact I have a few jobs to do with the bumper off.
1 - fit near-side fog lamp bulb.
2 - fit replacement fanfare horns
3 - re-fit original indicators.
4 - strip out and replace power steering pipes.
5 - give the front area a good clean and rust treat a few scabby areas
6 - fit missing centre screw from radiator grille.

Then other front end jobs include fitting the missing screw from near-side wing and possibly fit bonnet lifter gas struts.

[Mk3alan]

Just a thought but might one of the old whitworth sizes fit?

Alan

[Robsey]

I suspect it shouldn't as that is more a British series 1,2 or 3 Landrover specification thread.
Being an Opel collaboration it should either be a M12 fine thread hence 15mm spanner or if for plumbing specification it could be a British Standard Pipe thread hence 5/8" spanner.

[Robsey]

Finally got the high pressure line off...
Still joined to the cooler pipes that run in front of the radiator...

Check out my scabby pipe baby!!

[Mk3alan]

Agreed! That's some serious corrosion!

Alan

[Robsey]

That scabby joint is the one that simply refused to undo.

I will take it into work tomorrow and clamp the seized nut in a vice.

The black pieces look and feel like plastic, but they appear to be much harder.

[Mk3alan]

I changed my power steering fluid a few years back and drained it from the rubber hose connected to the pump, can't say I've squeezed the hoses lately but found them very soft then, definitely rubber.

Alan

[Robsey]

Ah - I know what you are saying.

Yes there are rubber hoses to allow for the engine movement.
Many apologies - I was referring to the cooler pipes and the joints on the high pressure line.

If you look at the super scabby pipe in the third photo - you will see it goes to a shiny perfect condition black joint and then an equally clean, perfect condition rigid black pipe (cooling pipe that loops across the front of the car at the base of / in front of the radiator.

I am assuming a very tough plastic or a well protected / anodised alloy tube.

All I can say, is that it still looks brand new.

[Robsey]

Just wondering if I should fit a new power steering pump whilst the pipes are off?

The existing 23 1/2 year old pump is working fine, but sods law says that it will fail one week after I refit the repaired pipework.

[Robsey]

One thing I did notice, is that the front end of the car hidden by the headlamps, radiator grille and indicators is as crusty as hell.

I will need to give it a wire brushing, then treat it with some Por15 or Vactan, before giving it a top coat of truck bed paint or something.

[Mk3alan]

You've got me wondering now! I waxed covered my pipes years ago and while I can see the accessible ones, which still look ok, I think I will take a look at the not so accessible pipes!

Alan