My power steering is leaking at the high pressure side of the pump. I changed the "O" ring twice with the same result, BTW the O ring got cut up when I tightened the line? So I'm thinking this is either the pump housing or the line itself has some issues. Anyone out there heard of something simular?

Can I drive the car with the belt off for any length of time and not worry about harming the steering rack or am I just asking for more problems?

I might pull the pump out and take a look in the boss area for any funny business. But then again, this leak just started about two days ago.
--
89 740 174K, 91 240 208K

Dumb, dumb design on the later lines that go around the pump body (91-93). I've seen numerous ones break because of the leverage exerted by the weight of the line that wraps around the pump and then goes down to the rack (body mounted) against the movement of the engine (soft mounted). THey get a hairline crack and dump fluid. No belt? No problem at all.

Napa was selling them for $50 or thereabouts, exact fit. Make sure to have a picture of the hose, or a very good mental image, so you can pick from the book, because it looks nothing like the earlier PS hoses from 240s. The replacement is kind of tedious but not bad. Dealer price is more than $200. The only thing is trying to identify the later hose vs. teh earlier one -- even the salvage yards don't seem to understand the difference. And there is a HUGE difference.

You won't hurt the rack, or the pump by not running it.
You will have a hell of a time parallel parking.
But no, no damage will occur to the rack by driving without it.
--
Rob Bareiss, New London CT ::: '87 244DL/M47- 225K, 88 744GLE- 209K, 91 244 183K. Also responsible for the care and feeding of: 88 745GLE, 229K, 88 244GL, 146K, 87 244DL, 235K, 88 245DL, 236K