Power steering issues after having the van pulled up onto the flat bed to have it towed?

BARBARA BONK GRIFFITH

MEMBER
2004 HONDA ODYSSEY
180,000 MILES

My van was stolen from a retail parking lot because I was rushing and stupidly left my keys in it. I was on fumes with very little gas. We found the van less than a mile away in an alley, unlocked but with no keys in it. I called AAA to tow it home. The driver came with a flatbed tow truck. I explained the situation, and he advised me since I didn't have the keys that he would need to drag it up on the flatbed, which could cause strain on my van's transmission. I was unsure what to do so I called my sister, who talked with him. He said not always, but sometimes strain is placed on the transmission from the drag. We decided to get it towed. He sprayed his bed with WD-40 and loaded it up. The drop-off location was 3 miles away. When he was taking it off, he had a really hard time. The van kept bouncing like a bunny hop; the front went off fine, but the back took him over 20 minutes, and he got it off. It wasn't easy. 2 days later, I met a locksmith and got a new programmed key made. As soon as I started the van, it made a loud, almost whistling, weird noise. My friend said it was the power steering. I looked, and there was none in it. I looked underneath where my van had sat the past day and 1/2 and fluid on the ground. He filled it up, and I drove it home. It kept making noise and was pulling hard to the left. I woke up this morning to small leaks or puddles under my van. I will try to attach pictures. Started up my van and same noise. It drives and makes a louder noise when turning. Is this just a coincidence, or was the damage done by Tow? I verified its steering fluid that's leaking. Not transmission fluid. Idk what to think or do from here. I have an old van (2004 Honda Odyssey 4dpv) with liability insurance only. It's not much, but it's all I have and gets me to and from work daily. Insurance won't help. I'm not sure about anything now. Any advice or guidance would be very much appreciated. Thank you very much. Have a great day.

1 Reply

KEN L

MASTER CERTIFIED MECHANIC
47,282 POSTS

I am sorry to hear about your troubles, I will try to help. If you could upload a short video of the van making the noise that would make it easier for us. Also, it could have been damaged by the thieves or the tow truck driver, there is no way to tell until the van gets on a lift for inspection. We need to see the damage or the noise to have an idea of what's wrong, it sounds like the rack and pinion may have gotten damaged. Here is the power steering system so you can see how it works and what to look for under the hood. Please use a flashlight and look for anything out of the ordinary. Check out the images (below). Please let us know what happens.

Image (Click to make bigger)