Steering motor pouring out oil...

[FordTractorMan]

A problem that developed within a few weeks of getting my TW35 home last spring was the steering motor leaking. It pours out oil nearly as fast as you can dump it in. Fill the reservoir plum full and you can run about 45 min before the steering gets a little tough. At an hour, you have no choice but to stop and add fluid. Some years ago, we upgraded the 8000's motor to the newer style. I took it off in '09 and replaced the seal. No problem getting it off the 8000. Looks more difficult w/the TW since it has a cab and there's more in the way of the it. Anyone done this? What's the best way to go at it?
 

[Bern]

Gen II TW 35...oohh...not fun You thought the wheel wedges were tough...

Steering motor needs to come out - no other way around it. Remove whatever it takes to get the motor out, which may include: engine mount hydraulic pump, windshield washer reservoir, top engine hood, rear engine support bracket, etc.

Before you remove the motor, find out EXACTLY where it's leaking, unless you want to replace every seal inside that thing. USUALLY they leak on the bottom cap, but they can leak out the top as well by the input shaft.

Clean, and I mean CLEAN the motor as good as you can. You want NO dirt inside of it, or it WILL hang up. TORQUE the bolts to SPEC when reassembling, or it WILL bind up.

Wonder why it leaks? Oil gets too hot. This is a common problem on the TWx5 series. It was never an issue on the earlier TWs, and it used to stump me until I thought about it hard. The TWx5 series tractors used viscous fan clutches; the earlier ones used solid fans. The solid fans pushed way more air than the viscous fans ever did, keeping the PS system cooler.

If it was my tractor, I would plumb a cooler into the PS return circuit. I have done this on a TW25 that operated in a hot climate and had repeat issues with the steering motor leaking.
 

[FordTractorMan]

Yeah, I can tell it's going to be a ball. I knew it had to come out, just wasn't sure if there was a specific step by step, or just move whatever's in the way. Appears to be leaking at the bottom. That's where the one on the 8000 leaked. Is retrofitting a solid fan an option?
 

[Bern]

I think you could convert to a solid fan, but myself, I would simply add a small cooler.