2009 power steering very heavy

[oragex]

Originally Posted by jtaw45

I had steering issues with my 09 XC90,mainly a slight scraping sound and very heavy steering. After lots and lots of visits to the dealer and lots of parts replaced it turned out to be a valve in the PAS steering pipework. Replaced the pipes and problem solved. It was real head scratcher for the dealer and they literally spent a fortune trying to solve it (thankfully under warranty) and lots of time on the phone to Sweeden. It was literally the only thing they hadn't changed.

Sadly, this post doesn't mention more precisely which pipe valve was stuck and at which specific location on the pipe. But I believe this may be a very common problem on all P2 Volvo cars. I believe there is a valve that gets stuck, possibly from grit accumulation, causing heavier steering. There are other possibilities of course, such as seized lower steering coupler, worn pump, low quality front strut top bearing plates, faulty rack speed assist sensor