Power Steering Pressure gauge

[gatorman21218]

In my quest to have more gauges than a Cessna, and the fact that I have the two most important safety components (brakes and steering) driven by one pump, I would like to keep an eye on the systems health. All other systems are commonplace to have a gauge such as water temp (the health of the cooling system) and oil temp (the blood of the engine). But never have I heard of having a P/S pump gauge. Is this possible? What psi ranges are we talking about here?

Also is this worth doing? Will a pump die a slow death such that I can register as loss of psi but still working, or will it be running strong and simply quit, in a manner that I will notice the lack of steering assist at the same time the gauge shows it, making a gauge unnecessary

 

[Alex S]

A gauge wont tell you much, the pump only makes pressure on the system only when your braking or steering and the amount of pressure is in relation to how much your steering or braking.

The best thing you can do is have clean fluid, check your hoses for cracks, check for leaks, and listen for unusual noises like PS pump whine

 

[bghnkinf350]

Honestly, I would hold off on the gauge. The way I see it, it is one more place for a potential leak. The pumps I have seen go bad let you know they are failing through the sounds. If you are that concerned about the pump, you might want to consider a Saginaw pump (this is slightly controversial).

 

[gatorman21218]

ok yeah I wont do it then. Thanks for the answers

 

[Simp5782]

Anyone know how much pressure the basic power steering pump for an IDI puts out?