Technical Leaking Steering Rack

[stephenriley]

Our Qubo went into the dealer today as it was losing power steering fluid from the rack gaiter. They phoned me at 3pm to tell me it needs a new rack It should be covered under the warranty (in the 3rd year now) but they were waiting for Fiat to authorise it. Had a look on ePER and a rack is £800. Only downside is that we will need to keep the courtesy car for another day or so; it's free but the insurance is £12.50 per day, what a rip off! Keep an eye on your power steering reservoir... Stephen

 

[Qube O]

Morning Stephen,

I had the same problem a few months ago................the dealer replaced my assy', with Fiat footing 100% of the bill. Apparently a seal fails in the ram, which is part of the rack, the oil then seeps into the rack under pressure, and will eventually when the racks full force its way out past the end gaiter. First sign I had of any problem was oil on the drive, though I had reported, and had checked by my dealer a dropping of power steering fluid level for quite a while, the dealer could'nt find a leak, which is fair comment, because it was leaking inside the rack, only became traceable when it started squirting out.

Hope you get it all sorted, mine's fine now, same age as yours.

Cheers Qube O.

 

[stephenriley]

The rack will take 4-5 days to arrive from Italy apparently. In the meantime we have a 500 twin air which is okay but small after the qubo and the engine sounds like a bag of spanners! I hope this isn't a sign of things to come. Insurance for the courtesy car is only £12 no matter how long we have it so not as bad as I thought.

 

[Peter Pick-Up]

I use this product to prevent and seal existing leaks in my powersteering.

http://www.leaklock.com/

 

[Qube O]

I use this product to prevent and seal existing leaks in my powersteering.

http://www.leaklock.com/

Tried that in mine, when the fluid kept dropping and before the dealer found the problem............did'nt work for me.
If its got a leak, its got a leak, and best really to get to the heart of the problem and sort it.
Still, whatever floats your vote..........always worth a try !!!!

Cheers Qube O.

 

[stephenriley]

Maybe worth a try if you are short on cash but many people do not recommend this type of fix. Still waiting for the new rack by the way...

 

[Qube O]

Maybe worth a try if you are short on cash but many people do not recommend this type of fix. Still waiting for the new rack by the way...

I agree, this type of additive is a poor way around a problem, and will not solve it.............much better have it sorted properly.

My rack had to be obtained from Fiat as well, took about 3 weeks for it to make it into the country, then another week until the dealer could get my car in to the workshop to do the business..............

Worth the wait though, no problem at all since..........I suspect they use a different supplier now as the new rack looks totally different to the old one, so no more problems...............we hope.......

Cheers Qube O.

 

[Peter Pick-Up]

In some cases it WILL solve the leaking problem, if the seals are shot it doesn't do anything, but if a seal leaks because of age, in most cases it will cure the problem for a long time.
So here you have a car of let's say 10-15 years old with a leaking steering rack.
Is it worth it to replace it with a new or reconditioned rack,( both more expensive than the car), or do you put a bottle Leak Lock in....???

Again , I use it in a few older cars, to prevent leaks, works great.

 

[red diesel]

In some cases it WILL solve the leaking problem, if the seals are shot it doesn't do anything, but if a seal leaks because of age, in most cases it will cure the problem for a long time.
So here you have a car of let's say 10-15 years old with a leaking steering rack.
Is it worth it to replace it with a new or reconditioned rack,( both more expensive than the car), or do you put a bottle Leak Lock in....???

Again , I use it in a few older cars, to prevent leaks, works great.

leak lock Will not cure a leak,its a preventive before a leak occur es.

 

[Peter Pick-Up]

It will cure and it will prevent.
It will cure if the seal has shrunk and/or became stiff due to age.
Of course it's always best to put a new rack in, but it's not always the best economical solution.

 

[Qube O]

In some cases it WILL solve the leaking problem, if the seals are shot it doesn't do anything, but if a seal leaks because of age, in most cases it will cure the problem for a long time.
So here you have a car of let's say 10-15 years old with a leaking steering rack.
Is it worth it to replace it with a new or reconditioned rack,( both more expensive than the car), or do you put a bottle Leak Lock in....???

Again , I use it in a few older cars, to prevent leaks, works great.

Again, Did'nt work for me..........I used a couple of bottles, (not cheap), over a few months while I had ongoing slow fluid loss.........and for me it made no difference at all.........a waste of money.
I take the point about a older car, the cost of the rack/labour is about £1000, way to much to spend on a car thats perhaps only worth half that.
But I still reckon, best to FIX problems, not just cover them up and hope it goes away...............

Cheers Qube O.

 

[stephenriley]

It's back now anyway and seems fine. I wasn't too happy about having to pay to have the tracking checked as the dealer said it wasn't covered under warranty. I even checked with Fiat head office who confirmed that it was correct; seems stupid that they would consider changing a rack without checking the tracking is acceptable.

 

[T14086]

Insurance for the courtesy car is only £12 no matter how long we have it so not as bad as I thought.

seems stupid that they would consider changing a rack without checking the tracking is acceptable.

Was your car washed inside and out as well?

 

[Qube O]

It's back now anyway and seems fine. I wasn't too happy about having to pay to have the tracking checked as the dealer said it wasn't covered under warranty. I even checked with Fiat head office who confirmed that it was correct; seems stupid that they would consider changing a rack without checking the tracking is acceptable.

Seems a bit petty that.........my dealer did the tracking, washed the car, provided coffee & biccies.............though Platts at Stafford are rather good.

Hope it behaves itself...............

Cheers Qube O.

 

[stephenriley]

It was washed but I would have preferred it dirty with the tracking checked for free! My Toyota Avensis needed 3 new alloys under warranty due to the paint peeling; my local Toyota dealer didn't charge me for air and balancing!

 

[Mal126]

It's back now anyway and seems fine. I wasn't too happy about having to pay to have the tracking checked as the dealer said it wasn't covered under warranty. I even checked with Fiat head office who confirmed that it was correct; seems stupid that they would consider changing a rack without checking the tracking is acceptable.

As the repair was a warranty issue, replacing the steering rack and resetting wheel alignment is part of the repair is covered by warranty, if was just wheel alighnment check because of potholes etc, not coverd by warranty, so you should not pay for tracking for that repair. I would question that most definately.

regards

Mal

 

[stephenriley]

I spoke to FIAT UK on the telephone and got the brush off. Maybe I'll try a letter; nothing to lose. I think FIAT need to look at their warranties; doesn't really say much for them when the third year has to be arranged via a third party.

 

[Qube O]

As the repair was a warranty issue, replacing the steering rack and resetting wheel alignment is part of the repair is covered by warranty, if was just wheel alighnment check because of potholes etc, not coverd by warranty, so you should not pay for tracking for that repair. I would question that most definately.

regards

Mal

Quite agree with what is said above...........follow it up, always worth a shot.
Perhaps I'm wrong on this but after reading lots & lots of posts on here I really get the impression that so often its down to the dealer as per the quality of service received. A good dealer would take care of his customers.....maybe its to do with size, big groups are less bothered, whereas the smaller dealer is more 'personal'.
Let us know how you get on.......
Cheers Qube O.

 

[mikbak]

Looks like my 09 Qubo is going to bite the dust steering rack leaking, car only worth £1800 , paintwork has sun damage too, was going to keep as a run around.

 

[Peter Pick-Up]

http://www.ebay.nl/itm/LeakLock-150...981126?hash=item2840fc7e86:g:11UAAOSwyQtVoAWb