You are driving when you suddenly hear a disturbing and distinctive noise every time you hit and turn a corner. Or one day you just suddenly found a mini puddle of water under your car while it was parked in your garage.
You know that there is something wrong. Would you guess that the failure has something to do with your power steering pump or fluid? If yes, then you guessed it correctly.
So now the big questions are: What needs to be done to fix this problem? And how much does a power steering pump cost?
On average, the power steering pump price is quite expensive, if we are only talking about the parts. The amount runs from around $160 to $650. As for the labor fees, since it will only take less than an hour or so to do the repair or replacement, the repair men may only charge from around $100 to $300.
The difference in prices is due to different factors such as the age and type of the vehicle owned, the difficulty level of the work to be done or the extent of damage, the location of the owner (which then adds transportation or home service costs), and some promos or discounts being offered by the auto repair shops.
The first step in fixing this problem is paying a visit to your trusted mechanic and having him inspect the power steering pump and fluid to double check the breakage. His assessment will determine the repair plan and the final quotation of costs.
Doing it yourself versus visiting a repair shop
If you have experienced this before, most probably you have a solution to the problem. On the other hand, if you are browsing this because you are wondering what treatment you could use, then you have to decide on one thing.
Are you going to do the repair on your own? Or will you let a professional deal with the problem?
There is a significant difference between the two. If you want to do this on your own, you must have the necessary tools on hand. If you are not fully aware of how to do the replacement, you may ask a friend’s help, or you can always search for instructions on the web, such as this downloadable article from instructables.com.
With this, your first step is to purchase the parts separately. As mentioned above, the power steering pump price on average will only cost you around $150 as a starting rate. But in some retail stores, you can easily purchase them for $50 or even less. They can also be ready for orders in online stores like Amazon or all-around specialty stores like Walmart.
On the other hand, if you think that the work will be too much for you in terms of time and effort, or if you are just a busy person generally, you can always opt to hire an expert on this task. Call your most trusted mechanic for a quick home service.
If you do not have one, there are on-call mechanics from famous auto repair shops that you can hire or call via their hotline. If you are a bit more meticulous, you can check for accredited and certified mechanics from ASE or Automotive Service Excellence; just key in the names on their search engine.
Where to go for repair or replacement
There are a number of highly acclaimed service stores that can help you wherever you may be. The following are just a few of these stores that have branches all over the different US states. If you want to make sure of the shop’s performance, you can check whether they are Blue Seal recognized which means they pass high-quality standards.
Your Mechanic offers a 12-month and 12,000-mile warranty for their repair services. On average, including the labor fees and the parts, the cost to repair power steering pump ranges from a safe $250 to around $650. The exact price is commonly determined by the specific vehicle model or type.
For instance, for a Chevrolet Tahoe 2008 model, Your Mechanic charges only $404 which will save you a total of 9% compared to the car dealer’s basic price of $447.61. Meanwhile, the cost to repair power steering pump of a Toyota Camry is $379 which will get you a total saving of 8% compared to the car dealer’s price of $414.81.
Midas auto repair shop also gives out a 12-month warranty for the power steering pump repair. They charge from around $210 to around $550 for the parts and labor cost combined. They currently offer their trademark maintenance check for all vehicle types. They call it the Courtesy Check.
If you want to have a complete inspection of not only your power steering and wheels system but all auto parts, then you may avail of the Courtesy Check. When you sign up on their website, you may be able to get special offers as well.
Lastly, there are always specialty stores like Walmart that charges only $150 to $550 (for the parts only) with a limited warranty.
How to identify a broken power steering pump
There is a very distinctive noise that comes with a broken pump. Although the other important auto parts make noise and vibrations too, you can still easily identify the one made by the power steering. It is a just a matter of gut feel while you drive. It may do squeaking, humming, or even strong whining sounds.
Do these noises necessarily follow a need for repair or replacement? Not really. The problem is not always that intense. In some instances, the power steering fluid tends to wear out causing the failure and the appearance of small air bubbles or foam material. The fluid can lose its additives or physical properties that complete its make-up which will lead to drying up; thus the noise.
So, how much does a power steering pump cost? Try figuring out with the help of these options.