Power steering pressure hose o-ring?

First time replacing my power steering pressure hose last night with the Duralast version but I'm unclear about the o-ring that came with the kit.

Does the o-ring go on the flared end of the hose that goes into the steering rack OR is this meant to replace the o-ring on the pressure switch?

I put it on the pressure switch and then it leaked from there so I put the original o-ring back on and just left the o-ring from the kit off the assembly entirely. My auto expert says that flared endings should never need an o-ring but I have no clue.

Directions are clear as mud..



This is the flared end that goes into the steering rack:



The o-ring from the kit:

 

I know Toyota on various models sometimes used flare fittings and sometimes used fittings with o-rings on the steering rack. It's somewhat dependent on where the car and steering rack were manufactured.

Anyway, it's best to check the old part and see if it had an o-ring or not.

 

The old pressure hose did not have an o-ring on it and the exploded view I finally found doesn't show one so I guess it's for after-market racks.

Thanks peeps.

 

Thank god I finally found a thread on this!

2002 4WD Tacoma:

Anyway, I'm also really confused. I'm now installing a SECOND MasterPro rack from O'Reilly (I know, but that's another topic for later, please - plus it's not my vehicle).

The first time around I forgot to install the o-rings where the hi pressure and return lines thread into the rack itself, and no leaks so I figured good enough - happy forgetfulness I guess.

Now I've got the rack out again and about to drop the replacement warranty in place but both times the reman racks have been furnished with o-rings in a little baggie.

It looks like flare fittings to me so I can't fathom why o-rings would be necessary or how they'd do anything but cause problems.

However even the exploded view in Haynes shows the o-rings, although it claims it's for a 2wd T100s, 4x4 Tacos and Runners - I'm wondering if the diagram isn't a bit "universal" and maybe more applicable to T100s (or something).

So, do I try for the o-rings or no? I'm inclined to leave them out.

 

I should say....the only place the o-rings might go would be in the steering box of the rack, where they would then theoretically get squished by the face of the flare on the line, but again this seems unconventional

I'm only asking because once the rack is anchored getting at those lines is kinda a pain -- it's not exactly a 5 minute R&R if the wrong choice is made

 

I think you had it the right way. Did you leak anywhere after first rack replacement?

 

So in looking at this more closely there's really nowhere an o-ring would go. The mating the surface in the rack is purely sloped - I had initially thought it was squared off a bit with a place an o-ring could hang out, but no.

And no, no leaks the first time without o-rings. I was just confused given that they furnish o-rings and even the Haynes manual shows them, and the instructions provided with the reman rack talk about installing them.

Now, I realize a Haynes manual is hardly an authoritative source and I know the instructions thrown in with these reman parts are incredibly generic.

In all my searching I did find one other thread where a board member specifically says the O'Reilly o-rings only caused leaks for him, post #11 in this thread:
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/replacing-steering-rack-advice-needed.131212/

 

Yeah, must be some 'universal' install parts. Those are the good o-rings at least. Aren't the green ones typically made of Viton and okay to use with oil, refrigerant, fuel, etc, so you can save 50 cents for another project

 

Anymore so many parts have very many applications !

It can be confusing when you don`t do this work all the time when you get extra parts you have no idea where they go .

 

The green Orings for automotive are made from Highly saturated Nitrile which are used in automotive air conditioning.

 

The ones in the MasterPro kits are just black.

Anyway thanks for letting me bounce ideas off the forum.

And yeah, this first unit leaked severely in under 18 months - it'd lose a large sauce pan worth of fluid in a day from the right side. ...and of course the accordian boot was holding probably that much still.

Pretty much toasted the pump (also an MP reman) but I just warrantied both. Soo...save your receipts and don't buy reman racks from O'Reilly

My local O'Reilly is actually REALLY good to me and I hate to bash them, but damn....

 

These are the MasterPro kits, just black and a couple chintzy cotter pins for the TRE's

 

Keep spreading the word man. I mean lifetime warranty on that Chinese stuff is cool and all but when you're replacing the steering rack yearly??? Yeah not cool. I try to spread the good word as often as I can, even in the face of doubters as I withstand their ridicule. It's commandment #3: Thou shalt not use non-oem steering racks before me. Spread the good word.

 

I hear ya - unfortunately the older woman who owns this truck just couldn't afford anything more.

I honestly thought she'd get a "few" years out of it.

What's the going rate for OEM? Just curious

 

I dunno. A lot though. There is also Reman OEM but those generally are just okay but definitely better than the parts store stuff. But the folks that rebuild their's(not very easy to do) or go with new OEM report many years of trouble free operation