bradmartin
Recruit
- Joined
- Jul 15, 2018
- Messages
- 1
I have a 2004 Volvo Penta 5.7 SX. It's got about 340 hours on it. A couple of weeks ago we spent the whole day on the lake tubing and skiing, and the boat ran fine. However, at the end of the day as I was about to trailer it, I noticed a strong vibration, or more like a regular thumping sound at the stern. It was windy so at first I thought it might be small waves breaking on the starboard side. But, it only occurred at low RPM's, and became worse when I steered. I lifted the sun deck and could see the power steering actuator moving back and forth quickly, out of sync with how much I was turning the steering wheel. It was getting dark so I quickly trailered it.
Later I checked the power steering fluid and found it to be completely empty. I inspected all around the lines coming from the pump and where they feed the actuator, and underneath the cylinder, but did not notice any obvious leaks. There was a small amount of oil under the cylinder but it wasn't dripping. The hoses were all dry. I added about a half quart of power steering fluid.
I had the U-joints and gimble bearing repaired about 18 months ago, so I don't think that is the problem. I remember distinctly how those sounded as they were about to go out and this is a different sound. Today I connected the water hose and ran the motor for about 10 minutes while I zoomed in with my iPhone and recorded video. If someone out there could watch it and give their opinion I would be very appreciative. It's only about 5 minutes long.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSO1JmXXTmI
Thanks
Later I checked the power steering fluid and found it to be completely empty. I inspected all around the lines coming from the pump and where they feed the actuator, and underneath the cylinder, but did not notice any obvious leaks. There was a small amount of oil under the cylinder but it wasn't dripping. The hoses were all dry. I added about a half quart of power steering fluid.
I had the U-joints and gimble bearing repaired about 18 months ago, so I don't think that is the problem. I remember distinctly how those sounded as they were about to go out and this is a different sound. Today I connected the water hose and ran the motor for about 10 minutes while I zoomed in with my iPhone and recorded video. If someone out there could watch it and give their opinion I would be very appreciative. It's only about 5 minutes long.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSO1JmXXTmI
Thanks
