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2003 Santa Fe steering locking up

I have experienced the steering locking up twice on my 2003 Santa Fe,

22000 mi. I drove thru accumulated water on the road during a storm. The water was about 2-3 inches deep and my speed was reduced to approx 20-25 mph. I was going into a left turn and the steering wheel felt extremely tight like old manual steering used to feel like. Almost felt like it would have taken both hands pulling to actually turn the wheel. After 10-15 seconds the steering responded back and all was normal. I have checked the steering fluid and levels are fine. Any idea what is causing this? What do I need to do besides the obvious (not driving thru water), which is not practical.
Reply to
Chase733
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What you describe is not what I would call "locking up". It sounds like your power steering belt is loose and the water caused it to slip, reducing pressure in the system and increasing the effort in the steering wheel. Check the belt tension.

Reply to
Brian Nystrom

I also have an 03 but have not experienced this scenario.

However, I did experience it quite often with a Ford Ranger I used to own so perhaps the explanation is the same. On the Ranger when taking Right turns in deep puddles (not as deep as you described) there was a gap in the wheel well that allowed water to spray all over the steering pump belt. All that water caused the belt to slip so the pump momentarilly stops working giving that manual turning feeling. All would be fine after a moment or two when the belt got some grip on the pump again.

Since I never had this in my Santa Fe nor have I heard of it over at the santafeforum.net I would check inside each of the front wheel wells to be sure the plastic linings are still in place to keep water away from the steering pump and belts.

Hope this helps

Reply to
afob3

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Reply to
Jody

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