Rack and pinion return fluid line

Today, while backing out of my driveway in my 2016 SR5 4x4 with 120,000 miles, my power steering suddenly failed. Initially, I thought the power steering pump was the culprit. However, after some investigation, I discovered that one of the steel hydraulic lines connected to the rack and pinion was the issue. I struggled to find the right part name online but eventually figured it out. When I visited my dealership, I was informed that they couldn't source the specific part and that I would need to replace the entire rack, which would cost $1,600!

Has anyone else faced this problem? If so, was the part easy to repair? I can share pictures as well. I even considered purchasing a used rack for $150 from a local salvage yard to avoid the steep cost of a complete replacement. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. The picture of the leak was taken from the passenger wheel well. Thank you!

 

You should be able to make one or have one made at a hydrualic shop. You can replace with a rubber hydraulic hose. Those are usually rated at 3000 PSI and steering racks rarely see more than 1400. The shop will need the old pipe so they can see the type of flare used and the nut threads. Need to bring the whole piece in so that they can make the correct length. If that is too much hassle. Most of these rakes all use the same flare style and nuts, so some searching on the web should help to figure out a plan to source or make a replacement. I can gaurantee you wouldn't be the first to make one instead of giving the criminals $1600. The rebiuld shops are making these every day, so tools and know how are out there. It is probably just a JIC 45* flare, which is very standard in the hydraulic world. Though it could also be one of those that use an O ring and I don't remember the spec.

 

Replaced my lines with rubber lines when I did a larger heat sink. Easy peasy. Save the money and hassle. Rubber lines left side of the pic