No steering control. Steering wheel spins freely. Internal power steering gear problem.
Pontiac Trans Sport power steering loss problems
16 of the 971 owner complaints about the Pontiac Trans Sport describe loss of power steering, most of them for the 1997 model year.
- owner complaints
- 16
- worst model year
- 1997
Is there a fix? There is 1 recall for this area of the car. See below
By model year
- 19981
- 19979
- 19951
- 19942
- 19922
- 19911
Often reported together
What owners say
Since having the rack/pinion steering replaced twice (once before the recall and once after), I have again noticed difficulty pulling out of parking spaces turning left or right (hard to turn the wheel/loss of power steering?), especially, in cold weather. As you straighten wheel and start driving, problem seems to resolve itself. Went to dealer who thought it could not possibly be the rack so therefore replaced the power steering pump in early november. The failure happened again today.
While pulling out of the driveway steering unit failed, causing the consumer to lose steering power, and vehicle fell into a ditch. Two major bolts holding the front end of the chassis broke loose, causing the steering to collapse. Vehicle was totaled. Manufacturer and the dealer were notified.
The power steering failed.
Engine mount bolts rusted, and broke causing loss of steering while driving.*ak
The rear subframe attaching bolt and washer kit rusted in half. This caused the rear of the subframe to separate from the body , pulling the steering shaft off of the rack and pinion . This causing complete loss of steering, and vehicle veered into oncoming traffic almost hitting another vehicle head on!
While driving between 10mph and 35 MPH engine shuts down. Not able to restart from neutral. Have to completely stop turn key off and then restart. I have been almost hit many times. I have no power steering or anything. Happens alot on slight hills and turns.
Rack and pinion power steering mechanism disintegrated without warning, failure of power steering pump. Causing loss of steering. Dealer has repaired vehicle. *ak
Upon turning into a parking lot traveling 10-15 MPH, steering wheel locked up, causing loss of steering control. Consumer contacted t dealer, delaer replaced the entire steering wheel and column. Please provide any further details.
Loss of power steering during wet conditions. Other conditions noise for belt and battery light on.
Related recalls
Steering: rack and pinion
- What is wrong
- Certain passenger vehicles and mini vans have lower pinion bearings in the power rack and pinion assembly in which the retainer tabs were not crimped properly. These and some other retainers used in vehicles assembled between january 1, 1996 and october 31, 1997, could fail and permit the ball bearings to escape.
- Risk
- If this occurs, the pinion shaft can be forced upward during left turns and back down as the steering wheel is moved back and to the right. If the pinion shaft moves further, the driver will need to exert more effort to turn the steering wheel, similar to a vehicle without power assisted steering. If the pinion shaft moves even further, the driver will require much higher effort to turn left and may not be able to turn the wheel as much as intended. With the maximum pinion shaft movement, which requires internal gear component damage, the driver can encounter high resistance to turning left, followed by unintended power assist to the right. In any of these conditions, a crash could occur.
- Remedy
- Dealers will install a new lower pinion bearing unless inspect of the existing bearing indicates that replacement of the gear assembly is necessary. Owner notification began january 24, 2003. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact chevrolet at 1‑800‑222‑1020, pontiac at 1‑800‑762‑2737, or oldsmobile at 1‑800‑442‑6537.
Recall number 02V286000 · Recall details
Questions about the Pontiac Trans Sport power steering loss
Which Pontiac Trans Sport years have loss of power steering problems?
The model years with the most reports are 1997 (9 complaints), 1992 (2 complaints) and 1994 (2 complaints).
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