How do you flush out the power steering all the way? I looked at my fluid and it's all burned black. Is there a drain valve some where or do I need to take it to the stealership?

 

ive been wondering this too. i looked at my oil levels a couple days ago and saw that my ps fluid was a brownish color.

my guess would be to suck it out, fill it and run the car, then suck it out again and fill it. bu that wouldnt get all the dirty fluid out.

 

yeah - there's a hose on the bottom of the pump (i believe) that you remove. turn the wheel lock to lock and it squirts or drains out of the hose, filling the reservoir from time to time. there is a diy in the diy thread (i think) - i remember seeing instructions on here somewhere....

 

From the Helm manual on Fluid Replacement:

1. Raise the reservoir, then disconnect the return hose to drain the reservoir. Take care not to spill the fluid on the body and parts. Wipe off any spilled fluid at once.

2. Connect a hose of suitable diameter to the disconnected return hose, and put the hose end in a suitable container.

3. Start the engine, let it run at idle, and turn the steering wheel from lock-to-lock several times. When fluid stops running out of the hose, shut off the engine. Discard the fluid.

4. Reinstall the return hose on the reservoir.

5. Fill the reservoir to the upper level line.

6. Start the engine and run it at fast idle, then turn the steering from lock-to-lock several times to bleed air from the system.

7. Recheck the fluid level and add more if necessary. Do not fill the reservoir beyond the upper level line.

System capacity: 1.1L (1.16 US qt) at disassembly
Reservoir Capacity: 0.4L (0.42 US qt)

Sorry...can't draw:

 

Crap I messed that picture up. Disconnect the stock hose at the reservoir!

 

great drawing newperson

thx for the help.

 

This is how it should be:

 

when i looked at my car, the reservoir has and inlet and outlet, the outlet goes to the pump, from the pump it goes to a mini cooler in front of the radiator, then back to the reservoir.

 

Lol, you're right, there's actually a top and a bottom; looks like the bottom one is the one you disconnect. So Basically the return hose is the one you disconnect (aka not the one going to the pump). Matter fact lemme just take a pic with phone:

 

Thanks for the help new person!!

 

If only I knew how to read diagrams right the first time though.....

 

contrary to the diagram-
members here found that a large-~1 inch diameter piece of garden hose slipped OVER the ps hose, NOT inside the ps hose as pic shows
It was nearly impossible to get a secure seal there- and fluid does spray everywhere

by using the larger hose outside, the connector pressure is reduced and a standard screw type hose clamp will tighten enough to prevent leaks at connection

No need to suck the master dry- just pop the return line and follow the rest of the direction of turn wheels lock to lock until all the old fluid is out
Will not hurt the pump or system- you are not driving it like this, and you immedialty turn off the engine - reconnect hose and add fluid
May need to remove res from its mount to get the hose off- make sure to put it back on!

Note- piece of cardboard under each front wheel will reduce surface friction and wear on the tires and steering.
Make sure to burp out all the air or it will make noise- back and forth - slowly, with slightly elevated engine speed above idle to make the pump turn faster

If its really dirty fluid- go ahead and repeat the entire drain and refill - should be good then, but do it 3 times if you want!
just dont put any additives and use the `honda ps fluid`- it has special stuff the acura likes

 

ok, gonna go buy that next weekend. thx for everyone's help. hope the op understands too.

 

whats with that little cup full of old p/s fluid? now you have a dirty cup! cant you just do this over a storm drain, like when you change the oil?

 

yes you can, but not in your storm drain.
thats just wrong

 

hahahahahahahaha!

 

 

I've got a question regarding this flush process:

I have 140k so I decided to do a flush. After I got all the old fluid out of the system, I reconnected everything and added the new fluid (honda fluid). Now when I turn the wheel I get some pretty LOUD sounds from the pump/system or something. I mean I feel like I may have caused more damage then good...

Any suggestions?
(Much appreciated)

-Kev

 

bleed the system.

 

yeah I did that... and the noise is still there. Maybe my PS pump is just getting old...

 

Figured i would add a pic even though the one posted is good enough. My only question is does lock to lock mean to turn the wheel all the way to one side then all the way to the other? Also when you remove the bottom hose how does no fluid pour out from the res if the hose is removed?

 

Good reference picture tlzib. I'm guessing you had the cap on when you disconnected the bottom hose. In that case it there is no vent for it to pour out. (Similar to when you plug the top of a straw with your finger, no fluid will drain.)

 

Well i haven't done it yet, just wanted a couple more questions answered before i take the plunge.

 

if u remove the lower hose, it will spill out the fluid. cap it with a rubber nipple like thing or with someones finger

 

Thats what i dont understand, some members say only a little will come out and other say a lot will come out. I would think its easier to just suck out the fluid 1st then remove the hose.

 

i removed the hose and it all came out

 

So you think sucking out the old fluid first, then removing the hose would be a wise thing to do?

 

So I would only need 1.16 qts for a flush?

 

Sorry for the thread revival, but my search yielded nothing except for this thread....
A. Is there an update on this??? I can't find the DIY in the DIY section and wanted to know if we can just remove all the fluid from the P/S cylinder through other means (i.e brake fluid removal with a suction)?
B. Saw the below and had some questions.... see items in blue:

1. What size tubing did you use??
3. Isn't the P/S system a pressurized system like the brake system is? So wouldn't you not want to run the cylinder dry (as suggested)? Couldn't I just use a turkey baster or syringe to remove the fluid from the reservoir???
4. If I reinstall the return hose then doesn't that mean I still have .7L of old power steering fluid in the system??

- This is the procedure I found and was going to use, but now don't know:
a. remove the p/s reservoir and remove the old fluid with a turkey baster
b. disconnect the return hose with my own hose going to a catch cup
c. lift the car off the ground with a jack and place the front end on jack stand (allows the wheels to move freely)
d. place new, clean p/s fluid into the reservoir (read in the BMW forums that this should be done while the wheel is turned to the left most position, don't know how true that is)
e. (while car still off), place ignition into position II and turn the wheel from side to side watching that the fluid is coming out from the reservoir
f. after all the old fluid is out, then reconnect the return hose to the reservoir
g. fill fluid back to the correct level
h. start the vehicle and turn the steering from side to side (slowly)

Some sites say to leave the reservoir cap off, but I don't understand this as I assumed the p/s system was a pressurized system like the brake system is.. help?!?

 

I did it a diff way.. I sucked it all out with a turkey baster and then put the car in the ignition but not on just 2 clicks and turned the wheel left to right and more came out sucked that out and kept turning back and forth and most of it came out..
I refilled 2-3 containers or the acura PD fluid!

 

i did this to my car but its still kinda brown i think. i should try and do it again

 

I had a hard time following you... but I am assuming you only turned the key to position II and then turned the wheels, correct?
How much is 2-3 containers of acura fluid? Quantity and price?

Anyone else have an opinion on the subject?

 

I had my mechanic do a PS flush, drain and fill two times yesterday and the fluid is still dark.

Any reason why this would be?

 

depends on how they did it-maybe system wasnt fully drained
tip- place cardboard under the front wheels to reduce friction
ck the DIY section to compare procedure to what they did

must turn the wheels full lock to lock several times until no fluid comes out- then its empty
refill and repeat draining procedure
engine must be running at idle during the draining procedure

if you had really ugly fluid it can take a few cleanings-
might try seafoam in it and drive around then drain and refill 2 times.
www.seafoamsales.com

 

make sure they use Honda PS fluid