! I own a 2001 Chrysler Intrepid, 6 cilinders.

Tiny
ANONYMOUS
  • MEMBER
  • 2001 CHRYSLER INTREPID
  • 60,000 MILES
Hi! I own a 2001 chrysler intrepid, 6 cilinders, engine 2.7L, I live in chicago so weather is very cold at this time of the year (5f to 15f degrees) 4 days ago in the morning I turn the car on and let it warm for 30 minutes, when I start driving the steering wheell was very hard to turn, like the was off, but when I push the gas pedal the steering wheell is easy to turn, does anybody knows what the problem is?
Saturday, January 26th, 2013 AT 11:53 PM

1 Reply

Tiny
CARADIODOC
  • MECHANIC
  • 34,330 POSTS
The dandy clue you included is the power assist comes back when you raise engine speed. Needs a new power steering pump. This is the "ZF" style pump, and it has had the same problem since the mid '90s.

One note: Chrysler has built a real lot of tough, amazing engines. The 2.7L is not one of them. Letting it idle for a long time can reduce the amount of oil that sprays onto the cylinder walls and gets pumped through the bearings. This engine already has a higher than normal bearing failure rate. What you're doing can aggravate that.

Sorry to hear you're so far north. I'm four hours north of you, and I really hate winter.
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Sunday, January 27th, 2013 AT 12:57 AM

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