Power Steering Reservoir Overflows.

[UncleOtis63]

63 power steering reservoir is leaking. I pulled the filter thinking it may be clogged causing the fluid to come out of the overflow but I am still getting leakage. The weird thing (to me) is that when I fill the reservoir up the pump quits whining but still pushes fluid out of the overflow until the fluid level is insufficent and the pump starts whining again. Is it time for a new pump? Or..I'm running it with no filter now. Will replacing the filter make it quit?

Hope to hear soon.

[UncleOtis63]

I replaced the washers and put the filter back in. It slowed the leak but did not stop it. On the reservoir lid there is slightly bigger than a pin hole. I assume for overflow.

I guess I'm going to go with a new p/s pump from Larry's. I hope that works. Like I said the only thing that leads me to believe it isn't the pump is that the pump doesn't whine and the powersteering works fine when the resovoir is full.

If anyone knows anything, please advise.

[Alan H. Tast]

One of the things you need to make sure to do is completely bleed all the air out of the system, meaning you'll need to run the wipers on your '63, and turn the steering lock-to-lock a few times. Air in the system will cause the fluid to froth/foam up, and may be the cause of it coming out of the vent hole in the top of the reservoir. On the bright side, having a good rebuilt pump installed is good insurance.

Regretfully, A/C-equipped cars with the remote-mounted P/S reservoir will always leak over time. This is something I still put up with after almost 23 years, only now the car looks much better than it ever did, so it's even more disconcerting. Leaks are an inherent design problem with the Eaton-designed system. You can minimize this by making sure you have a good, soft, pliable rubber gasket for the lid, as well as a good rubber grommet/seal between the lid and the washer/retaining wing nut. The hose clamps should be checked frequently as well. If the leak is coming from the bottom of the housing, it probably means the stud mounting point has cracked and needs to be brazed/welded to restore the housing's integrity.

[UncleOtis63]

Thanks for the insight Alan. The fluid is always frothy when I pull the top. So I'll bleed the air out. I did double up on the gasket under the wing nut of the lid on the resovoir. It seemed like this created pressure in the tank and it hissed when I opened it.
Very discerning about the perpetual leakage problem. While my power plant is getting rebuilt, I'm having the engine bay detailed including all bolts getting powder coated. It will be dissapointing to open the lid and see a beautifully detailed engine bay with p/s fluid all over the fender. :(

[T-Bird-Art]

I had a 63 with remote resevoir. I too used double rubber under the wing nut. Bleeding air out of the fluid is critical where foam is no longer present.After foaming is cleared up, the level of fluid in resevoir is important. As I recall, the factory mark for "full" was not right. I filled the Resevoir to 1/2" of the top. This stopped the fluid from foaming / pump from squealing. When Bleeding air: Jack up front end and place on heavy wooden blocks--then slowly turn steering wheel to clockwise & counterclockwise limits. Do not hold the wheel at the limits - when you get to the limits, immediately back off. Tremendous pressure builds up at the limits. Once I got the foam cleared up and fluid level just right. no problems after that . Last Point: I used straight Transmission sealer/conditioner for 15 years whenever I added fluid to the resevoir - never used plain Type "A' while I had the car.