Lost steering

[wrench]

2013 hdi avenger. When it got cold in the morning I lost the left steering. Could tell right away, the steering had a lot more play on the left side. Checked for leaks, no leaks. No loose parts, rotors not stripped on shaft. No movement from caliper when steering left. Just felt like maybe the master cylinder inner seal was bypassing fluid. Has anyone seen this before? When things warmed up, it started to steer better.

[Avenger Bob]

That has happened to me several times. The problem was one of the little tabs on the steering shaft that hold the piston pins was bent. The pin was falling out of the recess on the end of the piston. It seems the tabs must be absolutely flat.

[wrench]

Found the problem. I guess with the brake pads wearing, the master cylinder fluid level had gone down low enough for air to creep in the system. Bled the circuit and all is good now. Not the best engineering. The masters are installed at such an angle that there is hardly any fluid capacity. Will have to keep an eye on it more often. Both these masters should have had a remote reservoir if they needed to install them at an angle.

[mightymaxIV]

Had it happened on mine a couple of times, it was always air in the brake lines, bled the lines, issue solved.