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Steering wheel has become harder to operate

K

Kirdud

Contributing Member
Good day! I'm the owner of a Monterey 282 with two Volvo Penta 4.3 engines and XDP-S drives. After winter, the steering wheel has become harder to turn. Perhaps something needs to be lubricated? The power steering actuator was replaced two years ago, and the fluid level is good. What else should be checked? Thank you in advance!
 
How old is the boat? Might want to check if the steering cable is getting stiff, if so it might need to be replaced. First make sure your P/S belt is tight enough
 
The way to check the cable (not easy, probably difficult access) is to disconnect the cable at the outdrive steering arm (behind engine) and see if you can move the cable in & out of the sheathing by hand, if not the cable should be replaced.
 
louc said:
The way to check the cable (not easy, probably difficult access) is to disconnect the cable at the outdrive steering arm (behind engine) and see if you can move the cable in & out of the sheathing by hand, if not the cable should be replaced.
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Yes, this looks impossible. I can't imagine how to reach it.
 
When I did mine in my 1988 Four Winns I pulled out the rear seats & removed the exhaust system for access. Same thing you have to do to change the power steering actuator.
 
louc said:
When I did mine in my 1988 Four Winns I pulled out the rear seats & removed the exhaust system for access. Same thing you have to do to change the power steering actuator.
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Does it need to be lubricated, or is it not serviceable?
 
You can try that, but I am guessing that the cable wears inside the sheath and gets stiff. First thing you have to do is verify that that's the fault. If you're doing this yourself, I hope you're not too big of a person and are pretty flexible because it is one of the worst jobs I have done on a boat.
That, or just bit the bullet and pay to get it done. Here's pix from my ordeal replacing the steering actuator. You can see I removed both exhaust manifolds to get at it, it was tough getting at the cotter pin under the steering arm to remove the cable end, but even tougher to remove the 2 big cotter pins that retain the bolts that hold the actuator onto the inner transom plate. My steering cable was still OK when I did this job (2021). I had to use a cotter pin extractor and various other tools to get those big cotter pins out. I lubed everything with Evinrude triple guard grease in case I ever have to do that hateful job again!
 

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No, for me, that kind of work is impossible because of my size :) But I have access to the steering actuator from the deck. Before I owned the boat, a mechanic changed the steering actuator and provided access to it by making a hole in the deck because otherwise, he couldn't find a way to reach it. If it's easy to lubricate something, I can do it myself, but if it requires some work and disconnecting cables, it will be hard for me, and I'll need to ask someone to provide this service.
louc said:
You can try that, but I am guessing that the cable wears inside the sheath and gets stiff. First thing you have to do is verify that that's the fault. If you're doing this yourself, I hope you're not too big of a person and are pretty flexible because it is one of the worst jobs I have done on a boat.
That, or just bit the bullet and pay to get it done. Here's pix from my ordeal replacing the steering actuator. You can see I removed both exhaust manifolds to get at it, it was tough getting at the cotter pin under the steering arm to remove the cable end, but even tougher to remove the 2 big cotter pins that retain the bolts that hold the actuator onto the inner transom plate. My steering cable was still OK when I did this job (2021). I had to use a cotter pin extractor and various other tools to get those big cotter pins out. I lubed everything with Evinrude triple guard grease in case I ever have to do that hateful job again!
Click to expand...
 
Problem solved after half a year. After changing the helm, steering cable, and steering pump, it became clear that the final issue in the system was the steering actuator. It turned out to be the worst part, both in terms of cost and the labor required to replace it.

To install the new one, I had to pull the boat out of the water and place it in dry dock. I had to unmount a lot of components just to access the actuator. Half a day was spent fighting with the pin, it was so badly stuck that it had to be cut. Once that was done, the new steering actuator was installed.

Now everything is working great!
A good mechanic and proper diagnostics can save you both time and money.
 
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