Looking for help with oil leak power steering to rac

[Joe Schiavone]

I am trying to stop an oil leak of power steering fluid coming out of the steering rac where the two units mount together any suggestions appreciated. Racer Joe

[Philip Lochner]

Joe, not sure what you mean with "where the two units come together".

I had steering fluid come out the rack boots. I got a service kit from Appleyards and did the work, simply following the instructions in the Jensen workshop manual. It turned out to be an easier job than I anticipated.

Tips I can give are:
1) to leave that valve body alone, except for the seal at the very top (where the steering shaft clamps to the pinion). Note kit had different size seals. Be sure to install the correct one.
2) Cover the rack teeth with thin shim stock sheet (roll it over the rack) and push it through the seals with the rack to prevent the rack teeth from damaging the newly installed seals.
3) Afterwards centre the rack by sliding a 3.5mm drill backwards THROUGH the grease nipple on the large adjusting nut to find the centering notch in the rack. Look for this notch when the rack is out. Your steering wheel should be in the dead ahead position with the drill in position. If not the STEERING wheel is not mounted to the correct splines and the STEERING WHEEL should be removed and re-positioned. REMEMBER TO REMOVE the DRILL BIT AFTERWARDS!!!

[Joe Schiavone]

The leak is where the alum power steering unit meets the unit that comes up from the horizontal rack. Three bolts hold the two pieces together Thanks Joe

[rolando38]

I did the job on my XJ6 Jag from 1970 and Ibelieve it's a similar if not identical one
didn't find it as easy as Philip, as :
. dismantling at the level of the steering column took me an hour or so
. some of the nuts are very difficult to unscrew, and the bar cannot easily be clamped in a vice
. refitting to the steering column was even more difficult than removing, but that maybe easier on the Interceptor
however it was a success after roughly a 6 hours job

there are some magic liquid products that you pour into the power steering fluid that kind of "feed" the seals and decrease - if not suppress - leaks
worth a try (at 30€) but will never completely eliminate the issue

[Philip Lochner]

The leak is where the alum power steering unit meets the unit that comes up from the horizontal rack. Three bolts hold the two units together. Thank you

Joe, first thing to do is to fasten those three bolts. It may just be that they have come loose over the years.

Otherwise, you MIGHT be able to remove the valve body from the rack in situ. I did so on an FF, but I'm not sure that it can be done in situ on Interceptor. There is a simple gasket between the valve body and the rack that needs replacing.

Last resort is to remove the steering rack to replace the gasket.

[Joe Schiavone]

Philip. Did what you said. Was able to get more tightness especially the lower nut. Also found the the fitting high pressure going into the pump resivoir also was leaking. Took the fitting out and a small part of a seal was missing. My hydraulic fitting and hose store gave me a special washer with a built in O ring. Along with permitex hydraulic thread sealant and thread cleaner and activator high dollar but the leak has stopped. Thanks for the input from all and Merry Xmas. Racerjoe