[orbit1957]

I am dogpiling on this post, just in case an owner with steering problems stumbles upon this thread using a search engine.

Let add a couple of key points that are covered in other posts on similar topics.

One, if you have the gold anodized aluminum block that controls the hydraulic pressure to the fan and steering gear box, you must understand that the priority is to the fan when the high fan circuit is activated by the engine computer. That prioritization can have unintended impact on the steering gear box IF there is a problem with the hydraulic fan motor.

So what you say? IF the internal seals are blown in the fan motor, it will negatively impact the steering. There is no outward or visible sign that the seals are blown. Here is how it will manifest. The coach will have steering until the engine reaches operating temperature, and then the steering will suddenly degrade when the engine computer activates the fan. When the internal seals are blown, the hydraulic pressure flows around the gears in the pump without restriction, and flows out the return line. None goes to the steering gear box when this happens. One owner replaced steering gear box and hydraulic pump before finding the root cause.

There is a derivative of this fail mode. The fan motor can fail at the front seal. In that case, you will know you have a leak because of the mess in the engine bay. It is hard to tell if the leak is the fan motor or the overhung load adaptor. Again the symptom is noticeable loss in power steering.

For those of you with steerable tags, either of the above situations will make the coach EXTREMELY hard to drive. Part of the steerable tag system has an independent hydraulic system to recenter the tag wheels. It takes the power of power steering to overcome the self centering feature. The coach will be almost impossible to turn the wheel at slow speeds.

Again, all the above info is contained in other threads that posted over the past ten years. My summarization was an effort to help someone in the future, and not to steal other’s post or pose as the subject expert.

Good additional information Richard.  Thanks for chiming in! Kevin