Power Steering Pump Mounting Bushings
 

The power steering pump starts to vibrate a lot at approx. 1500 RPM. Looks like it is mounted on several rubber bushings. Does this indicate shot bushing mounts? Where do folks get them?

lots of places, you can get them from ipdusa.com, fcpgroton.com, tascavolvoparts.com....is a very long list, they use the same bushings as the gas engines. Another way is make aluminum or delrin replicas.

Thanks, I think I will look into that; I remounted it with 3 new rubber bushings and the PS pump still vibrates, and is noticeably canted downwards and inwards towards the engine, making its pulley appear to be at a different angle in relation to the other pulleys.

The pumps always tend to vibrate. The rubber bushings deform and the belt becomes out of line.
The aluminum brackets have the tendency to break across one of the mounting holes too.

Steve

Ya with the vibration these engines have, i think I would stick with the rubber.

Jason

Steering pump vibration
 

My steering pump vibrates a lot too but, I think, nothing abnormal (yet).
Although there`s a tiny leak very slowly developing in this area. A few thousand miles ago I started seeing the hose getting `shiny`. No steering problems so far and I haven`t had to add fluid (yet), the level is fine but there`s obviously something going on. I always see the hose being wet a little but the source of the leak is somewhere higher on the side where the belt runs (front of car). Then the fluid makes its way down on the assembly and down the hose to the ground, slowly but surely. A few drops a day. The cap seals tight and it`s dry around it.
Before anything else happens, I`d like to sort this out in time. I suspect that the mounting bushings are getting worn out, at least one or especially the top one. I would appreciate it if one of you d24t lovers could take a pic of yours so I will see how it supposed to look like there... The front `edge` of that upper bushing is out of the steering pump bracket 3-4millimeters, the nut on the other side is slightly sunk in and my belt is a bit out of alignment too, a few degrees (belt does not run perfectly straight, its angle is visible). Luckily this setup is quite far from the other pulley the belt runs on so this issue is not (yet) eating up the belt but it does twist on it at some point, I believe. To me it feels like the steering pump is dislocated a bit, tilted some and got closer to the front of the car, resulting the belt being tighter a bit (not crazy tight yet). ((This might* have an effect on the alternator as well which probably runs/works differently now, not in great harmony with other things around it... and maybe it`s to be blamed for making my voltage gauge stay in the upper zones all times.))
I just hate the feeling when something leaks on the car. Since I don`t want my alt bearing get toasted or my belt(s) fly off, plus perfect steering pump adjustments are also somewhat necessary, Please send me your suggestions on this topic. Oh btw I did hear a belt squeaking twice, first appr 4-5 weeks ago for 5sec when the car was cold started after driven through lots of rain and snow for hundreds of miles. Then I heard it only once more, for a second or two again, just a few weeks ago.
How much of a special skill or tools needed to complete this `project` replacing those mounting bushings? (or at least the one on top) What would be the procedure? Must DO-s and DON`T DO-s. Are there any adjustment possibilities on our steering pump brackets?
Thanks for reading. Feel free to see my Album under my name. Have a great day!

Sounds like the P/S pump mounting bushings are just getting worn. Easy to replace! Just don't remove the alternator bracket from the engine, as it is tricky to reinstall correctly.... removing the alternator from the bracket while leaving the bracket attached to the engine still leaves plenty of room to change the bushings.

The fluid leak is probably a separate issue, very often on these old power steering pumps the main O-ring that seals the pump housing to the reservoir gets tired and starts to leak after a while. Fortunately it is quite easy to get parts to fix it since the pump is made by GM (Saginaw) and is shared with many GM vehicles from the '70s and '80s, hence extremely common.... CarQuest sells a pump rebuild kit for under $20 that is applicable for the D24 power steering pump, part # 35039, and replacing the seals is relatively easy especially if you already are going to have the pump removed to replace the mount bushings.

Only tricky part really is dealing with the fluid mess (I usually use a fluid extractor to suck most of it out before disconnecting the hoses), and then getting the pump apart from the reservoir, you have to be sure to get all the bolts out and *also* the fitting that the pressure hose screws into, which doubles as a retaining nut for the reservoir.... once the two halves are separated it's just changing the O-rings and putting it back together. The kit comes with pump shaft bushings, etc as well but the pumps themselves seem to never have any issues at all, only the leaky seals so I have never used the bushings, I just clean it up, reseal it and all is fine. There's the one main O-ring and a few smaller ones around the bolts and pressure fitting, that's it. You could do it or virtually any good Volvo repair shop should be able to as well.

Power steering FLUID
 

Thanks for your instructions! I`ll get to fixing it very soon. I am sure that my belt is not perfectly aligned by now so I`ll have to change the PS Pump mounting bushings. You mentioned alternator bushings as well... I suspect that the steering pump`s front seal is gone too (the pump does leak slowly) so I`ll have to add fluid for now and then find a nice afternoon with 35+ temps... I got confused at the car parts store about the proper power steering fluid. As far as I remember I always used some red/purple looking automatic transmission fluid (ATF) in our d24-s and not the regular power steering fluid. What type (F?) and what brand should I buy? Thanks for confirming.

Power steering FLUID
 

Dexron III.

Sorry, I wrote alternator bushings by mistake, I meant power steering pump bushings -- must have been too tired when I first typed that message, I just went back and corrected it. :o 3 new PS pump bushings should be all you need, job is easy, just make sure you note carefully how all the bolts and nuts and washers are stacked and oriented when you take it apart (or better yet take some pictures beforehand), since the setup is different at each of the 3 attachment points and it's not always immediately obvious how it should go back together.

If the pump is seeping then resealing it at the same time as you do the bushings is a good idea, since a leak from that seal lets fluid run down onto your new rubber bushings and degrade them. (Unless you use the blue poly bushings that IPD sells, which are impervious to oil degradation -- but fixing the leak is still a good idea anyway.) :)