A power steering pump weighs 10 to 15 pounds and combines a cast iron or aluminium body, an aluminium or steel reservoir, and a steel or aluminium pulley. Sold whole it grades as irony at a few dollars. Sold as a rebuildable core it is worth considerably more, since a rebuild runs around $175.
The word at the scale
Hand a yard a power steering pump and the ticket may say irony, sometimes written as dirty. It is not an insult. It is a specific mixed metal scrap grade, meaning aluminium or another non-ferrous metal with steel attached that has to be separated before melting. The aluminum with steel scrap price always sits below the clean rate for that reason.
The pump is a textbook case. On many designs the body is cast iron, the reservoir is aluminium, and the pulley is steel or aluminium depending on the application. Three metals, one object, and the yard prices for the trouble of splitting them.
That is the same deduction the engine block page covers for iron sleeves and the cylinder head page covers for valvetrain steel. The pump is where it is easiest to see, because the three parts come apart by hand.
What is inside a PS pump
Worth knowing before you decide whether to separate anything.
The vane-type Saginaw pump with integral reservoir is the archetype, fitted to GM, AMC, Jeep, Chrysler cars, Dodge trucks, Ford cars and pickups and IHC trucks up to 1974. Other suppliers include Thompson, Federal and Eaton.
Inside the housing sit a snap ring, a pulley shaft and pump drum assembly, a set of small vanes, and a flow control valve with spring below the pressure union. The reservoir separates from the pump body by tapping on its flanged edge.
One era detail that helps date a pump: the reservoir design changed in midyear 1971, from round with a long filler neck to tear-drop shaped with a short one. That is the only difference between them.
Today's irony vs clean cast spread
Route or component Basis Notes Value today (USD) Measurement What the figure is based on What changes it Computed from the live rate unless marked a reference Rebuildable core, common application Per unit Against about $175 for a car or light truck rebuild $15 to $60 Aluminium body pump, stripped 6 to 10 lb Later designs; the better metal outcome $5.22 to $8.70 Aluminium reservoir, separated 1.5 to 3 lb Taps off the pump body on Saginaw designs $1.31 to $2.61 Whole pump, assembled and undrained 10 to 15 lb gross Mixed grade; the outcome to avoid $1.50 to $3.00 Cast iron body pump, stripped 9 to 14 lb Older Saginaw and many 1980s to 1990s pumps $1.30 to $2.02 Steel pulley, separated 2 to 4 lb A new one retails around $20 $0.30 to $0.60
The gap between the whole-pump row and the separated rows is the irony aluminum price in practice: you are paid a mixed rate for an object that contains a perfectly good aluminium casting.
Whether closing that gap is worth your time depends on which body you have, and that is the useful split.
The discount ladder: cast iron body or aluminium body?
This single check decides whether separating pays.
Aluminium-bodied pumps, common on later designs, are the good outcome. Separate the reservoir and pulley and the body earns the clean aluminium rate, which is several times the mixed grade.
Cast iron-bodied pumps, standard on older Saginaw units and many 1980s and 1990s applications, are not. Strip one and you are left with cast iron, one of the lowest-paying ferrous grades. The aluminium reservoir is still worth taking off, but the body itself is not the prize.
A magnet settles it in a second. And a useful note from owners of one platform: on some applications the cast iron and later aluminium pumps are directly interchangeable, which is worth knowing if you are buying rather than scrapping.
The pulley, and a warning
The pulley comes off first whatever you are doing, and there is a specific way to get it wrong.
Pumps up to 1974 used a threaded pump shaft: remove the nut and washer and pull the pulley off. Pumps after that used a pressed-on pulley.
The warning from a rebuilder is blunt. Do not try to pull a pressed-on pulley with a two or three jaw puller. The pulley will distort and you will end up buying a new one. A proper pulley puller is the tool, and a new steel pulley retails around $20, which is more than the pump is worth as scrap.
So if the pulley is sound, it is worth more intact than as a few pounds of steel.
Does pulling the shaft pay? Is a small pump teardown worth it
The honest arithmetic, in two parts.
Separating a reservoir and pulley takes minutes and moves real weight into better grades. That part is usually worth doing when you have several pumps.
Going further, opening the housing to extract the shaft and vanes, is not. The internals are small, mixed, and the ignition coil page documents what happens when someone sorts small mixed items out of a general bucket: they can earn less than leaving them in.
So the rule is: split the assembly, do not dismantle the pump.
The core route, which beats all of it
As with most of the accessory drive, the metal is the fallback rather than the target.
A car or light truck power steering pump rebuild is quoted at around $175, and rebuild and seal kits are widely available from parts stores. That market exists because the alternative is often nothing: on some applications the pump cartridge with its vanes is no longer available new, with one owner finding sources quoting $300 or more and doubting even those were real.
Rebuilders also work at component level. If the internal parts are not scored or worn, a kit fixes it. If the reservoir is sound but the pump is not, the pump can be exchanged and the old reservoir reused.
That matters for a seller: a sound reservoir has value even when the pump is finished, which is the opposite of the scrap logic where the reservoir is just aluminium.
Irony aluminum examples: the other classics
The grade applies far beyond this one part, and recognising it saves arguments at the counter.
- Air conditioning compressors, aluminium bodies with steel clutches and mounts. Refrigerant must be recovered first, as the core page notes, and that is regulation rather than policy.
- Water pumps, often an aluminium or iron housing with a steel hub and pulley.
- Alternator and starter housings, aluminium end castings around steel cores.
- Transmission and ABS castings, covered on their own pages.
The common thread is that none of them reach a clean rate until the steel comes off, and on each one the question is the same: does the metal underneath justify the minutes.
Pump prices around the world
Aluminium and iron settle in US dollars, so the metal in a pump is worth the same everywhere. Currency and local buyer depth are what change.
Market Equivalent range Local market note United States $0.30 to 60.00 Deepest buyer pool. Even within the US, state to state runs $50 to $60 per ton apart. United Kingdom £0.21 to 42.61 Strong processing capacity. Battery and PGM material reported 20 to 40 percent above thin markets. Canada C$0.40 to 80.50 Similar structure to the US; thinner in the prairies and the north. Australia A$0.40 to 79.10 Good coastal capacity, long hauls inland. Distance is the main discount. Germany €0.26 to 52.70 Dense processing and strict documentation. Good grades pay well; paperwork matters. India ₹26.10 to 5,219 Large volume, but black mass export restrictions have compressed local payables. Bangladesh ৳32.45 to 6,491 Ferrous depth is good. Specialist converter, PGM and battery buyers are scarce. United Arab Emirates AED1.05 to 209.33 Re-export hub with real processing depth. Among the better-paying markets outside the West. Saudi Arabia SAR1.05 to 209.25 Growing capacity; specialist PGM and battery buyers still limited. Turkey ₺15.12 to 3,024 Major ferrous importer, so steel grades hold up better than non-ferrous here. South Africa R4.07 to 813.83 Reported below UAE and UK on battery material; processing infrastructure is the constraint. China CN¥1.98 to 395.10 Aggressive bidder on imported battery material; 2026 recycling rules moved payables down.
Treat these as a metal-value anchor rather than a local quote. The core route depends on whether rebuilders serve your market, which varies far more than the metal price.
Questions people actually ask
"What is a power steering pump scrap value?"
Sold whole and undrained, a few dollars at the mixed or irony grade. Separated into aluminium reservoir, body and pulley it improves, and sold as a rebuildable core it is worth considerably more again.
"What does irony aluminum mean?"
Aluminium with steel attached, priced below clean aluminium because the yard has to separate the metals before melting. The dirty cast aluminum rate is the same idea under another name. Any assembly of aluminium castings and steel fasteners lands here.
"Is a water pump scrap value the same?"
Broadly, yes. It is the same mixed construction and the same grade, so the same rule applies: take the steel hub and pulley off if the housing underneath is aluminium, and do not bother if it is iron.
"What about an AC compressor?"
Same grade, one extra step. Refrigerant must be properly recovered before the compressor is handled, which is an environmental requirement rather than a yard preference.
Figures on this page are indicative. Metal rows are computed from the site's tracked daily benchmarks; rebuild and retail figures are published 2025 and 2026 market references. Drain power steering fluid before transporting any pump.
Frequently asked questions
What is the power steering pump scrap price today?
Sold whole and undrained it grades as irony or mixed at a few dollars for a 10 to 15 pound unit. Separated into an aluminium reservoir, body and pulley the total improves, and sold as a rebuildable core it is worth considerably more.
What does irony aluminum mean at a scrap yard?
Aluminium or another non-ferrous metal with steel still attached, priced below clean because the yard must separate the metals before melting. It is a grade description rather than a poor offer, and it applies to most bolted assemblies.
Should I take the pump apart?
Split the assembly, do not dismantle the pump. Removing the reservoir and pulley takes minutes and moves real weight into better grades. Opening the housing for the shaft and vanes is not worth it, since the internals are small and mixed.
Does it matter whether the pump body is iron or aluminium?
It decides whether stripping pays. An aluminium body earns the clean aluminium rate once separated, several times the mixed grade. A cast iron body leaves you with one of the lowest-paying ferrous grades, so only the reservoir is worth taking off.
How do I get the pulley off?
Pumps up to 1974 used a threaded shaft, so remove the nut and washer and pull it off. Later pumps used a pressed-on pulley. Do not use a two or three jaw puller on those, because the pulley will distort and a replacement steel pulley retails around $20.
What is a power steering pump rebuild worth?
A car or light truck rebuild is quoted at around $175, and rebuild and seal kits are widely available. That market exists partly because on some applications the pump cartridge with its vanes is no longer available new at any credible price.
Can the reservoir be reused separately?
Yes, and rebuilders do exactly that. If the reservoir is not bent or cracked but the pump needs rebuilding, the pump can be exchanged and the old reservoir kept. So a sound reservoir has value even when the pump itself is finished.
Are cast iron and aluminium pumps interchangeable?
On some applications yes. Owners of one platform report the older cast iron pump and the later aluminium-bodied one being directly interchangeable, with the same line fittings. Confirm for your specific vehicle before assuming it.
What is a water pump scrap value compared with a PS pump?
Broadly the same, because it is the same mixed construction of a housing with a steel hub and pulley. The same rule applies: remove the steel if the housing underneath is aluminium, and leave it alone if the housing is iron.
What is the ac compressor scrap price situation?
The same irony grade, with one non-negotiable extra step. Refrigerant must be properly recovered before the compressor is handled or returned, which is an environmental regulation rather than a yard policy, so no buyer will waive it.