Driving a car with a hard steering wheel is one of the worst things we can do, for example: parking is a headache, here in this video I will tell you the solution to this problem.
But first you have to identify what type of steering your vehicle has, there are: mechanical steering, power steering and hydraulic steering. Once you have identified what type of steering your car has, you will be able to find the parts that are causing the problem.
The most common reasons for a flywheel to stiffen are as follows:
Alignment problems
When the wheels are out of alignment the steering wheel will always pull to one place, this will make the steering stiff because you are putting force to one side while trying to turn to the other.
It is also important to emphasize that this fault is fairly easy to fix, and it is very cheap. So if you haven’t checked your wheels in a while, it’s a good idea to do this step.
The third thing would be the steering rack
This part is super important as it is directly connected to the steering wheel and is the one that receives the information when we turn it. If it has fluid leaks or worn pinions, the steering wheel could become very stiff at a certain point.
It can also happen that it has an internal electronic problem and that it does not send the correct signal.
If you have problems with this part it would be best to replace it, although this part lasts many kilometers.
3- may be the belt or the belt.
Remember that the steering pump has a pulley, if the pulley is bent, it may be due to a blow or that the belt is too tight, this causes a lot of wear on the pump shaft, as it generates friction and bends the pulley.
Surely when you start the car it sounds like a squeak, this indicates that the belt is too tight.
The idea is that the belt is well adjusted but neither too loose nor too tight.
Lastly, air has entered the system and is leaking.
We already know this, if the pump works dry it will be damaged, because it will suffer a lot of wear inside due to heating.
Recommendations
I recommend you to check hoses, pipes and joints to verify if there are leaks.
If so, it is most likely that this is the problem, and for those reasons the steering is getting stiff, the good thing is that you can repair it before the pump is damaged and it is not so expensive.
But if the pump is damaged it is better to buy a new one and not repair it.
