HOW TO: Change power steering high-pressure and return hoses

[AVR2]

Please note these instructions are for a 2005 KJ 3.7L with the heavy-duty cooling package (which means a mechanical clutch fan in addition to the electric fan). There may be fewer steps necessary in other KJ model years, e.g. I believe that removing the radiator crossmember may not be necessary in some other KJs.

Main tools needed:

Standard sockets - full set but especially 10mm, 13mm, 15mm
Crowsfoot sockets (or flare nut wrenches) - 18mm and 19mm
Wrench - 16mm
Spanner wrench or fan clutch wrench, plus 36mm wrench (all needed ONLY if you need to remove a mechanical fan clutch)
Drill (for removing rivets)
Plastic rivet setter (for replacing rivets)
Approx. 14 plastic rivets

Disconnect the negative terminal of the battery.

Remove the grille.

Remove the hood latch and disconnect the hood release cable from the latch.

Remove the radiator crossmember - this involves removing several bolts and drilling out a rivet holding the washer bottle filler neck to the crossmember. The FSM says that you have to drill out the two large silver rivets holding the hood latch mounting bracket to the crossmember, but this is unnecessary; simply remove the two bolts at the bottom of the mounting bracket and then remove the crossmember with the bracket attached as a single piece.

Removed crossmember with bracket attached:

You must be registered for see images

Remove the front fascia (bumper) - this involves removing the turn signal lamps, drilling out 3 plastic rivets in each wheelarch, approx. 3 rivets underneath the bumper facing downwards, and 2 rivets on the top edge of the bumper facing forward. The exact number and location of the rivets varies with model year.

Removed fascia (stored in my ZJ because I have no garage):

You must be registered for see images

Now you have to remove the grille reinforcement. Behind the driver's side headlamp you will find the large power connector that feeds the electrical devices mounted on the reinforcement; slide the red locking tab to unlock the connector and pull the two sections apart. Remove the bolts securing the grille reinforcement and then remove the pushpins holding the rubber flaps to the reinforcement. The reinforcement should then lift off:

You must be registered for see images

Remove the fan and serpentine belt.

By now, the front of the Jeep should look like this:

You must be registered for see images

If you look in the space behind the driver's headlamp, you can see the high-pressure hose bracket:

You must be registered for see images

Remove the two bolts to release the bracket. Then follow the hose to disconnect it at the power steering pump; the connector is behind the pump pulley and uses a 16mm wrench (see arrow - photo taken before belt was removed):

You must be registered for see images

Have a drain pan ready under the Jeep to catch the power steering fluid that will be released.

Disconnect the hose at the steering gear using an 18mm crowsfoot or flare nut wrench. The high-pressure hose is the upper one circled in yellow:

You must be registered for see images

Remove the high-pressure hose assembly from the Jeep and transfer the bracket onto the new hose. A fair amount of brute force is required to bend the bracket clamps open and then closed again.

Disconnect the return hose from the steering gear (it's the hose beneath the high-pressure one) and then disconnect it from the oil cooler. It's the lower hose:

You must be registered for see images

If you still have an OEM return hose you will probably need to use pliers or side-cutters (or both) to remove a pinch-clamp securing it to the cooler. Once the clamp is removed the hose should slide off easily.

As a side-note, this is one of the reasons why it's necessary to go to such lengths to remove the grille reinforcement (which requires removing the bumper first). It is near-impossible to access the return hose at the cooler while the reinforcement is in place. The other reason is that the high-pressure hose mounting bracket bolts are directly beneath the driver's side headlamp, and removing the lamp by itself doesn't provide access - the reinforcement has to come out too.

From here on in, it's essentially just reversing everything - fit the new hoses, put everything back together, and refill and bleed the power steering system.

But here's a warning...

When I fitted the new hoses, I found that they didn't screw in flush with the steering gear housing, there were still threads visible:

You must be registered for see images

I thought I may have cross-threaded them, but I hadn't. I refilled and bled the system and there were no leaks (what looks like a leak from the lower hose in the above photo is just a bit of stray fluid trapped between the hose and the screw fitting).

I should have just left it there but I thought I needed to get both hoses flush with the housing. I applied too much force to the pressure hose and cracked a chunk out of the steering gear housing - an expensive mistake. I have since learned, from someone who has replaced numerous PS hoses on KJ's, that it is actually very unusual for the hoses to screw flush to the housing. Hey ho.

 

[Nooby]

Good write up, I will need to due this spring,

one nooby question, how do I tell if I have the mechanical clutch fan and or the electric fan
is there 2 fans? if you could take a pic of yours then I can compare(that sounds bad)

I just never thought about the type of fan I have

also did you end up buying the dealer parts or aftermarket?

 

[AVR2]

one nooby question, how do I tell if I have the mechanical clutch fan and or the electric fan is there 2 fans?

If your fan is physically connected to the water pump pulley, you have the mechanical clutch. In fact you have both fans; standard cooling is just the electric fan (which is not connected to the water pump pulley), heavy-duty cooling is electric fan plus the mechanical fan.

also did you end up buying the dealer parts or aftermarket?

Aftermarket. The cost difference was pretty huge - aftermarket high-pressure hose was $39 (Edelmann, which is a reputable brand), cheapest OEM I could find online was $123, with dealer price probably being nearer $180.

 

[tjkj2002]

Nice write up but almost all of that is not needed to replace that line.I have replaced that same pressure line on many KJ's from '02-'07,with and without HD cooling and all I use is a 1/4" ratchet,15" long extension,10mm swivel socket,16mm wrench,and a 18mm wrench.Nothing removed from the KJ besides that one line and takes less then 20mins not counting the time to bleed the system.

Now it does require some part removal for the low pressure line if you have the PS cooler but only the grill.

 

[AVR2]

..

 

[AVR2]

Nothing removed from the KJ besides that one line and takes less then 20mins not counting the time to bleed the system

Then you need to do a full write-up, or better still a real-time video if it really does take less than 20 minutes and doesn't require removing anything at all. I was going by the FSM procedure.

I'd be genuinely fascinated to see how you unbolt and replace the bracket under the headlamp so quickly with so little room to work, and also how you remove and replace the low-pressure line with the grille reinforcement in place.

I really really wanted to avoid having to take the reinforcement off, so it's a shame you didn't say anything when I was asking for help with the job in this thread.

 

[tjkj2002]

Then you need to do a full write-up, or better still a real-time video if it really does take less than 20 minutes and doesn't require removing anything at all. I was going by the FSM procedure.

I'd be genuinely fascinated to see how you unbolt and replace the bracket under the headlamp so quickly with so little room to work, and also how you remove and replace the low-pressure line with the grille reinforcement in place.

I really really wanted to avoid having to take the reinforcement off, so it's a shame you didn't say anything when I was asking for help with the job in this thread.

Well I think my boss would have a issue with someone taping me work at work,kinda against company policy and sadly I need to keep the job.

To get those 2 10mm bolts under the drivers side headlamp is where the 15" long extension and 10mm swivel socket comes into play.I removed my PS cooler without removing the grill support,it can be done.I just cut the hoses in the engine bay and pulled it out,put it back in the the new hoses attached(and tightened).I've had my KJ apart so many times I have learned many shortcuts.

 

[AVR2]

Well I think my boss would have a issue with someone taping me work at work

If it's really a 20-minute job, couldn't you do it at home? Seriously dude, given that your method is way WAY faster than the FSM or Haynes (actually Haynes doesn't cover replacing the hoses, it only covers removing the PS pump completely), you need to make a real-time video so that people don't have to waste so much time doing it by the book.

Would you be willing to give 20 minutes of your leisure time to make a video that would help so many people in the KJ community? And could you do it in December last year before I started the job?

I removed my PS cooler without removing the grill support,it can be done

Can you explain exactly how? I did wonder if I could remove the cooler with the hose attached, but the FSM said that you needed to remove the grille reinforcement first.

 

[tjkj2002]

If it's really a 20-minute job, couldn't you do it at home? Seriously dude, given that your method is way WAY faster than the FSM or Haynes (actually Haynes doesn't cover replacing the hoses, it only covers removing the PS pump completely), you need to make a real-time video so that people don't have to waste so much time doing it by the book.

Would you be willing to give 20 minutes of your leisure time to make a video that would help so many people in the KJ community? And could you do it in December last year before I started the job?


Can you explain exactly how? I did wonder if I could remove the cooler with the hose attached, but the FSM said that you needed to remove the grille reinforcement first.

Well can't use my KJ to change the PS hose,been modified to adapted to a Ford box,takes about 5mins to change as it's about 16" long but a day to have custom made.Oh and the fact it's 2 degrees outside now and snowing is not ideal weather for working outside.


For the cooler yes I pulled it out with the hoses attached,I just cut hoses off in the engine bay.When I re-installed it I put the new hoses on and clamped them then fished the lines through and bolted the cooler back on.

 

[Nooby]

standard cooling is just the electric fan (which is not connected to the water pump pulley), .

thats what I have, thanks again,


also for the low pressure hose, what total length did you end up buying then cutting to size,
did you just use the screw type clamps to hold it on instead of those hard to remove pinch clamps?

 

[ptsb5a]

OK, so I managed to change my power steering pressure hose in about an hour. Got to the bracket under the headlight with a 10mm swivel socket, a 12 extension and some gumption. Didn't want to pull my bumper off. That would have been no fun.

I didn't bend the bracket to transfer it from one assembly to the next. I drilled out the rivets, moved the bracket over and popped two new rivets in.

Made the Jeep kneel to get to it a wee bit easier.

You must be registered for see images attach

Took out the battery, tray and junction box to get to the bracket under the light.

You must be registered for see images attach

Did all that because of this...

You must be registered for see images attach

I'm no ASE mechanic but still, 20 min might have been a stretch. It took longer because I cleaned the mess up too. Snap-on's ShopKey software gives a 1.5hr for shop time to swap the hose.

 

[jnw010]

You must be registered for see images attach

I found the easiest way to get to those two bolts out was to pop the front fascia off, remove the headlight and foglight (three 10mm bolts, disconnect cables), and then drill two 15mm holes through the plastic.
Easy access with a 10mm socket.

You must be registered for see images attach

I tried going in via the battery tray (which does provide a much better view of things), but it's was still really tight to the one under the foglight. So the drill came out :icon_twisted:

 

[Nooby]

well changed out the high pressure hose yesterday, not to bad, took 1hr 15mins, hardest parts were fishing the old hose out from around the other hoses under the headlight with out making to bidg a mess,

and getting the new line hooked back up under the resevoir, after about 10mins I got on the ground and looked up, then it went right on
Hint for others, very easy to get it started if you lay on your back and look up

I was easily able to unscrew the mounting brackets from above with out removing the battery and battery tray, but remvoing and reinstalling the new hose I did pull the tray and had plenty of room


taking out mounting bracket screws

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[blazeemay]

how do i chang the high pressure steering hose in he 2002 jeep liberty limited

 

[tjkj2002]

how do i chang the high pressure steering hose in he 2002 jeep liberty limited

Didn't read any of the stuff in here did you?

It's basically the same for a '02 as any year of KJ.

 

[03jeep]

so its possible to chaged the high pressure hose with out removing bumper cover and grill im doing this, this weekend i hope it goes smooth

 

[LI_KJ]

Changing out mine too this weekend. I DO NOT want to pull the ARB to replace a 35 dollar hose. Post back with your job.

 

[Nooby]

so its possible to chaged the high pressure hose with out removing bumper cover and grill im doing this, this weekend i hope it goes smooth

Changing out mine too this weekend. I DO NOT want to pull the ARB to replace a 35 dollar hose. Post back with your job.

when I changed mine all I did was pull the battery and battery tray, then I had plenty of access

make sure you have the flare nut wrenches for the connections

 

[Stephen11560]

I'm about to try this as well. I am able to access the two 10mm bolts without removing anything. I put a few extensions and a universal on my ratchet. How hard is it to take off the hose behind the pulley (and the quick connect on that line) and the hose at the steering gear? How much fluid will come out? Do I need to remove anything else to do this job? Is it necessary to remove the line below the steering gear (return hose)? Thanks - Stephen

 

[Stephen11560]

I did the job last week. I did not remove the front clip. I was able to access the two bolts that hold the hose down with a universal and some extensions. The hoses went in pretty well but I found it much easier to remove the oil filter to turn the nut on the bottom. The nut behind the pulley went in pretty well by hand and from underneath the car looking upwards. After completing the job the car whined like a pig for a while and it also took some time to get all the air out of the system. If anyone wants more details just pm me!