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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

I don't care if you have to resort to a payday lender, but you shouldn't drive the car if power steering is gone

47 replies

haveatarday · 05/01/2015 18:49

My sis drives a cheap fiat. The power steering has gone but she's still driving it. Says with Christmas she can't afford to have it looked at till next month and needs it to get to work.

Aibu to say she should defo not drive it until its fixed?

OP posts:
Gileswithachainsaw · 05/01/2015 18:51

I'm. assuming without it she can't get to work and earn the money to pay for it.

perhaps lend her the money and help rather than start a thread

ghostyslovesheep · 05/01/2015 18:52

yes - offer to help out if it upsets you so much

littleducks · 05/01/2015 18:52

If the power steering is gone didn't that just render it the same as a car with no power steering ( i had a micra like this)

I'm no mechanic though. Is it dangerous in some way?

Witchofthenorth · 05/01/2015 18:56

The power steering in my car is broken along with numerous other things...and I need to wait till the end of the month too, apart from maybe ending up with arms like popeye, I dont see what your issue is?

EveDallasRetd · 05/01/2015 18:56

Cars can still be driven without power steering, she'd be better off saving for another small car - Fiat Puntos are notortious for it - I had it and know 4 more people all with the same issue.

Tell her to try replacing the battery first though, that sometimes resets the sensors. Take out old battery, leave it out for 30 mins, connect new battery. It might work (did for mine)

LuisSuarezTeeth · 05/01/2015 18:58

Power steering is essential to drive safely if it was put in at manufacturing. Usually only very light cars don't need it. She won't be able to turn the wheel quickly enough unless she is very strong.

PossumPoo · 05/01/2015 18:58

Really? ! You'd rather your dsis went for a payday loan? You sound fucking pleasant .

YouAreMyRain · 05/01/2015 19:02

Power steering is not essential to drive safely! Especially not in a compact car. It wasn't in any of our family cars (including estate cars) back in the 70s/80s it just takes more manual effort.

APlaceInTheWinter · 05/01/2015 19:02

I guess whether YABU or not depends if you're coming from a helpful advice pov or a judgemental one. If the former then yy you're right that driving without power steering might cause more damage to the car and if she has a bump then it might invalidate her insurance. Is she sure she doesn't just need some power steering fluid? If so then she should be able to fix it easily and cheaply.

APlaceInTheWinter · 05/01/2015 19:05

I should add that I was assuming you were joking about the payday lender as I can't imagine anyone seriously presenting that as a solution to a relative's car problems. Pay day lenders are not the solution to anything imo HTH

PagingDrFaggot · 05/01/2015 19:08

Power steering is not essential at all. In most cars it's just hydraulic assistance to a standard rack and pinion system to make it lighter .perfectly safe to drive without it , it was only standard fit from the 90's and people managed perfectly well without it then . Certainly makes life easier but the car isn't unsafe without it .

Original poster
haveatarday · 05/01/2015 19:12

Really? ! You'd rather your dsis went for a payday loan? You sound fucking pleasant .

I'd rather she did than drove an unsafe car ffs!

Contradictory advice here also, is anyone a professional?

OP posts:
whothehellknows · 05/01/2015 19:13

This is typical for fiat puntos and sometimes pandas. To replace the whole power steering unit often costs more than the car is worth.

It happened with mine and I managed to search forums and find a cheaper fix (has to do with re-soldering some connections within the unit) that my mechanic could do in time for MOT. But I had driven it for nearly a year with no PS.

None of my previous cars had power assisted steering, and a fiat is so light that driving without it honestly wasn't a hardship at all.

whothehellknows · 05/01/2015 19:14

It doesn't make the car unsafe! It's just slightly more heavy to steer.

GretnaGreen · 05/01/2015 19:15

It's only less safe in the sense that you need to be aware you can't move the car as quickly. I am pretty sure cars are designed to still be driveable without it. I remember getting a courtesy car (more like a discourtesy car, glove compartment was crammed with blackening banana skins, it was gross) and discovering in the middle of a junction that it had no power steering. I thought it was broken but no, it was just a car with no power steering. Perhaps your sister could check with the manufacturer.

CumberCookie · 05/01/2015 19:15

I drive a 14 yr old car without power steering, but it was built like that. It makes it more difficult but I've been driving it so long I don't notice it.

She will run up a horrific amount of debt if she uses a payday loan and be in a worse position than when she started.

ItsAllKickingOffPru · 05/01/2015 19:16

She can manage fine without power steering. A payday loan is a stupid idea.

cariad34 · 05/01/2015 19:17

Power steering is not essential! My VW campervan doesn't have it and that's not a light vehicle Wink

caroldecker · 05/01/2015 19:18

Fiat use electric power steering, so no fluid - not dangerous

Bearbehind · 05/01/2015 19:18

Op, do you know how much a pay day loan might cost?

Can you offer to help her out of you feel so strongly that she shouldn't drive the car?

Eltonjohnsflorist · 05/01/2015 19:18

The power steering went on my last car. It wasn't slow to turn in motion (ie round a roundabout) but it made parking a bundle of laughs. I actually got used to it to the point the mechanic who failed it on it's MOT struggled to get it out the bay I thought I'd swung it into with ease!

It's really not that serious a problem.
It didn't even fail it's Mot for that so it can still be roadworthy with broken power steering (although I suspect this might depend on why it's failed)

VanitasVanitatum · 05/01/2015 19:21

As previous posters said, as it was manufactured with power steering it will be heavier than the original cars manufactured without power steering. This will make her manoeuvres slower and harder.

Depending on the system it is also possible that further damage will be caused driving without fluid in the system.

However, payday lenders are in my opinion simply the worst option possible. I would get a quote from a mechanic you trust and see if you or other family could help her.

sliceofsoup · 05/01/2015 19:28

Well you can say whatever you like.

She can say fuck off just as easily.

Moreisnnogedag · 05/01/2015 19:38

It's still perfectly drivable, she just needs to be more road aware.

Well aren't you just a pleasant happy camper? Could you not loan her some money to help out? Because I'm sure she's delighted that her dsis is heaping on the judgement rather than helping to find practical solutions that won't land her in a heap of debt

TheHermitCrab · 05/01/2015 19:45

I've used pay day lenders twice, both for unexpected bills (one dental, one home damage) I knew I could pay it back the next pay day and did. Simple.

The only people who suffer from pay day loans are those who borrow £200, would only need to pay £240 back on pay day, but instead extend it and extend it until they owe about £600 and wonder what the hell they did wrong.

But either way, what she chooses to do with her car is her choice. And she has decided to wait it out.

Like someone said, you could always help her, or leave her to it.

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