Had Anyone Ran A Belt To Bypass The Power Steering Pump?

Nd4SpdSe

Nd4SpdSe

First Fill-Up (of many)
Location
Quebec, QC
I'm looking at going with an electric-hydraulic pump to resolve some reliability issues and gain some power steering performance at low speeds. Would be nice, but I'm not going it nor expecting any gains in MPG. I was wondering if anyone had every bypassed the PS pump and still retained use of the tentioner for a shorter belt to run the waterpump.

(pic stolen from a post from NissanPathfinder.net)
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Nissan3161

Nissan3161

Bought an X
Location
Ohio
You might need to change the tensioner also I believe the flat or outside part of the belt rides on the tensioner and the ribbed part of the belt rides on the crank, ps pump, and water pump. I'm not sure if the ribbed part of the belt will like the smooth tensioner pulley. I think the ac tensioner is grooved for the ribbed side of the belt maybe you could use one of those? I think the diameter is different though but it might work
 
Muadeeb

Muadeeb

Nissan al Gaib
Admin
Location
Dallas
AC tensioner is ribbed, so swapping the PS/Fan pulley for a ribbed one is a great start. Beyond that, grab a piece of string and run it in your planned route to figure out length. I can't quite visualize if the water inlet will interfere or not.
 
Nd4SpdSe

Nd4SpdSe

First Fill-Up (of many)
Location
Quebec, QC
I checked this morning and it's not ribbed. All the idlers and tensioners are running on the back/smooth side of the belt. Apparently it's a faux-pas to run a ribbed belt on a smooth pulley. So I guess the next question would be to ask if anyone has a pulley they they can measure the ID so I can source a ribbed idler.
 
Silver dude

Silver dude

Sliders
Founding Member
Location
machesney park IL
17mm

You may be able to use the A/C tensioner pulley which is ribbed. But, would need a fewer ribbed belt as it is narrower.

Should be pretty common to locate. Maybe something small like a Volkwagon Passat belt tensioner. I've seen them used in hybrid vehicles to retrofit pulley setups. Just a pulley with ribs on a bearing.

Unsure of the ID bearing size but the pulley is small in diameter which may help you clear that thermostat housing.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Audi-A8-VW-...10-/191792385822?_trksid=p2141725.m3641.l6368
 
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Mirage

Mirage

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Greenville SC
I did it on my old B13 SE-R in a slightly ghetto way with a similar setup. I removed the PS (and the tensioner) and jumped a belt on the crank and water pump pulleys using a pry bar and bumping the starter. Ran for 6+ months plus with no squealing or tension issues. Hard part is getting the right size belt that will fit and have the correct belt deflection
 
jg8992

jg8992

Hi, my name is Brandon
Location
Spotsylvania, VA
Could you just unhook the lines from the pump and put plug the outlets? Save some hassle but have a unused pump lol
 
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Nd4SpdSe

Nd4SpdSe

First Fill-Up (of many)
Location
Quebec, QC
I haven't really had the time to focus on this project, but I should with summer winding down...

I started a bit on the long weekend and starting at least to fab up the brackets to mount it. I took out idea and went for up front. There's a fair amount of room in there to make this work. I've so far got 2 of the 3 mounts done. They're soft mounts, so I was using the twine rope that was laying around to help with giving me a 3rd hand so I don't ruin the mounts since it is quite heavy.

I started with the right bracket
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Test fitted then worked on the left bracket
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And 2 of 3 done so far
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With a test fit
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And I had a friend over for a bit and we were talking about it, and he was wondering what a banjo bolt was, so I took out my spare one to show him, and then decided to try to see if it threads into the Astra pump....it does! It's not deep enough for the OEM connection, and I still need to make an extension for it anyway, but it was still a very interesting revelation.

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So that's what I've gotten to so far.
 
akuria

akuria

Wheeling
Location
San Francisco, CA
Sweet. What car did you pull it out of? Also how do you plan to wire it up? I can't wait to see the results of this.


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Nd4SpdSe

Nd4SpdSe

First Fill-Up (of many)
Location
Quebec, QC
akuria said:
Sweet. What car did you pull it out of? Also how do you plan to wire it up? I can't wait to see the results of this.
Click to expand...

Pump is listed or an "MK5 VAUXHALL ASTRA H ELECTRIC PAS POWER STEERING PUMP / 2004 - 2010". Wiring will be easy...it just needs 12v, ignition and ground. The hard part left is the hydraulic plumbing/extension, and I just need the 3rd bracket made before I can test it.
 
Nd4SpdSe

Nd4SpdSe

First Fill-Up (of many)
Location
Quebec, QC
jg8992 said:
Could you just unhook the lines from the pump and put plug the outlets? Save some hassle but have a unused pump lol
Click to expand...

akuria said:
Also what are you doing about the old pump and the belt that runs it?
Click to expand...

I've in theory picked up a shorter belt....question is if it's too long or short, but I'll adjust from there when I try. The idler pulley will have to be swapped out from the smooth to a ribbed one, which will be the A/C tensioner pulley from an N/A Xterra. Because of the S/C belt, on the S/C, it's a smooth pulley as well.


I don't think it'll go well to just plug the pump. I would worry about the lack of internal lubrication, which would cause it to fail, and when that goes, you have no more water pump since it's on the same belt. I plan on removing it entirely.
 
Nd4SpdSe

Nd4SpdSe

First Fill-Up (of many)
Location
Quebec, QC
Got a chance to work on it on Saturday, finished up the 3rd bracket. So now all they need is some primer and paint. I also didn't forget and brought the pump back with me, so when I get a chance, I'll hit the hydraulics shop to get a custom hose done. I did do a quick test on the pump and she does run, but of course I didn't want to try too long to burn out the pump (if possible)


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