Hi all,

I have recently purchased a 2004 Punto as my first car (mid-October) and for the last few weeks have been having problems with it.
The power steering had been going intermittently when driving and so my mechanic fitted a replacement second hand steering column for me.
He explained that a new one costs around £550 plus fitting, and so as my car only cost around £1500, it probably wasn't worth it. I am also only 19 and so this is probably more than I can afford.
He fitted the new (second hand) steering column and yet the light came on again a day or so after and the power steering went again. It seems to usually be okay again once the car has been turned off and back on again.
Due to having problems with it again, the mechanic fitted another second hand steering column, and yet again, a couple of days afterwards (today) it has gone off again.
The mechanic has said that when he fitted both of the replacement columns, they came up as fine on the computer.
I have so far not been able to find any threads that talk about this problem reoccurring despite having a new steering column fitted, and certainly not after having it replaced twice.
I was wondering if anyone would be able to give me any information or advice as to why this keeps happening.

I am getting fed up and upset with this now as I know little about cars and just want to be able to drive mine

Thank you in advance to anyone that replies.

Hi Emily

the big issue with these cars is not the steering column but the car battery, the symptoms you describe of being ok again after turning off and on again are very much in keeping with the battery of the car being weak.

basically an electric motor in the column assist the driver when steering the car, this motor draws a huge amount of power from the battery, and if the battery isn't up to the job the computer detects this and turns off the steering motor to prevent damage to the motor or the battery

in cold weather we put on screen heaters fans lights etc which all drain the battery which means this is the time of year these faults develop.

basically you need to either give the battery a good service and charge
or buy a new one

Video here on how to service the battery


if you can borrow a charger from a friend or family members do so, and be warned the battery is very heavy and can be hard to lift out so get some help if you need it

AndyRKett said:

Hi Emily

the big issue with these cars is not the steering column but the car battery, the symptoms you describe of being ok again after turning off and on again are very much in keeping with the battery of the car being weak.

basically an electric motor in the column assist the driver when steering the car, this motor draws a huge amount of power from the battery, and if the battery isn't up to the job the computer detects this and turns off the steering motor to prevent damage to the motor or the battery

in cold weather we put on screen heaters fans lights etc which all drain the battery which means this is the time of year these faults develop.

basically you need to either give the battery a good service and charge
or buy a new one

Video here on how to service the battery
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1bFUnOq8D38

if you can borrow a charger from a friend or family members do so, and be warned the battery is very heavy and can be hard to lift out so get some help if you need it

Click to expand...

Hi,

Thank you so much for getting back to me and so quickly too!

I had a new battery fitted before I purchased the car, as it was flat when we went to look at it.

Could it still be the battery?

Emily

its very likely the battery, needs a good charge, especially if the car isn't used very often or only does short journeys round town

Equally it could be low output from the alternator not fully charging the battery. May be time to find another mechanic.

changing steering column when pas stops working, why would he do that

See the sticky thread at the top of this forum for battery checks. As said above, it's most likely that.


How did your mechanic diagnose the fault exactly? Time to get a new one I would say. And point your existing one at this forum....


As for servicing your battery, some (many) are sealed for life and can't be serviced. They only cost about £50 or so new (if it does turn out to be the battery).

Read the sticky first to do the diagnosis.

maggers said:

Equally it could be low output from the alternator not fully charging the battery. May be time to find another mechanic.

Click to expand...

the mechanics "computer" should list the faulty electrical component,
there are 3.. in the steering..,why change the WHOLE column

as said - it's most likely a power supply issue,

there could well be a drain on the battery - why it was flat upon purchase,

the PAS will cut out if the alternator charge drops too,
our 1.2 punto does this occasionally,

Charlie

Thank you everyone for your help.

I think he said he's seen it happen a lot and it's a common problem for this car. He also mentioned something about plugging it into the computer and it failing. I know so little about cars though so it means nothing to me

With regards to there being a drain on the battery, what could be causing this and how could it be fixed?

Read the sticky first

https://www.fiatforum.com/punto-ii/342594-help-my-power-steering-light-start-here.html

Order of business is covered there.

Then worry about second tier like drains on battery, often caused by aftermarket stereo.

Steering column fails are not all that common, most of the posts I've seen on here are caused by duff batteries, especially at this time of year when cold takes its toll.

Thank you everyone for your advice and suggestions.
I'm planning to get the battery checked on Friday, hopefully this will be the problem and I can get it sorted as soon as possible.

Hi all.

Took the car to have it's battery tested today and the battery and alternator are working well.

Took it to a garage that specialises in Italian cars and have been told I need to get a reconditioned steering column put in and not a second hand one. So it's going to cost around £500 including labour.

Not what I wanted to hear ?

That sounds a bit too expensive to me. Reconditioned columns can be bought with warranty for about £160 last time I checked and it shouldn't be more than an hour or so to replace.

I was told that it costs £350 and comes with a lifetime guarantee and then costs around two hours to fit (at £45 per hour) plus VAT??

Not sure which punto you actually have so here are a few links:

Punto '99-'03 1.2 8v
https://www.shop4parts.co.uk/?name=store&op=Details&ProdID=1187&sku=35093

Punto '99-'03 1.2 16v
https://www.shop4parts.co.uk/?name=store&op=Details&ProdID=1187&sku=35094


I think the 8v and 16v both have the same steering column but it is wise to double check

And another.............

http://www.ecutesting.com/catalogue..._eps_-_electric_power_steering_eps006670.html

Brendan W said:

And another.............



http://www.ecutesting.com/catalogue..._eps_-_electric_power_steering_eps006670.html

Click to expand...

Thank you so much for your help Brendan! So do you think that the price I've been quoted is quite high? Considering that from the links you've sent me, it seems you can get the reconditioned part at a cheaper price?

I think you need to go shopping and ask around a few garages. Unfortunately the world being what it is some owners are taken for a ride especially women who are seen as a soft touch because they say they know little and trust garages too much.
Say for example you asked a garage to put in a new column that you had seen on the web for 'x' pounds. That gets a completely different answer to ' please help me I know nothing'

Thank you for all of your help! Will let you know how it goes