PS fluid was low and pump is now whining. Air in system?

T

twa318

Member
Two weeks ago I noticed the power steering had become quite stiff. Checked the PS fluid and the reservoir was low.

Used a fluid pump to remove old fluid, put in new ATF dex ll, turned the wheels a few times and repeated twice until I could see nice looking red fluid on the return line.

The PS response is better now, not as butter smooth as it was prior, but I’ve noticed there is now sometimes a high pitched whine when I’m pulling in my driveway that I suspect is the PS pump.

Does this mean there is air in the system or did I damage the power steering pump by letting it run low on fluid?

It’s still the original PS pump at 220k miles
 
Register to hide this ad
did it get so low that it exposed the orifice at the bottom of the reservoir? that could allow some air in, but usually when you refill it & purge it by turning the wheels it will bleed the air out.

what type of fluid did you use to refill? these pumps take dex3, not power steering fluid or WS trans fluid.
 
It wasn’t low enough to expose the orifice at the bottom but was well below the cold min line and the fluid was dark black.

I used ATF fluid, bottle says meets dex3 specifications. I only used just under a quart, even though I cycled the fluid out twice, so maybe it’s worthwhile to try removing and replacing the fluid again since I have two bottles of ATF

I had to use the fluid pump method instead of the return line method as I couldn’t get the return line off the reservoir, which means it’s possible some of the old fluid is still in there even though it looks good in the return line
 
In the past I did it by jacking up the front and turning the wheels lock to lock a number of times. I would not attempt this process without having the wheels in the air personally.
 
twa318 said:
It wasn’t low enough to expose the orifice at the bottom but was well below the cold min line and the fluid was dark black.

I used ATF fluid, bottle says meets dex3 specifications. I only used just under a quart, even though I cycled the fluid out twice, so maybe it’s worthwhile to try removing and replacing the fluid again since I have two bottles of ATF

I had to use the fluid pump method instead of the return line method as I couldn’t get the return line off the reservoir, which means it’s possible some of the old fluid is still in there even though it looks good in the return line
Click to expand...

Like Firebirdguy said, if it didn't get lower than the slurpy tube at the bottom, then you probably didn't run the system dry. Maybe the pump gave up at the same/near the time you noticed the noise?

As far as air in the system, it pretty much burps itself as you turn the wheel. I let the level get a bit too low once when flushing, and just kept turning until the bubble came out.

Without taking of the return line, you can't really get a good flush. Its hard to see in this picture, but it has one of the longest nipples I've ever seen lol. This could be why you were having trouble getting it off, I had to do a lot of twisting and pulling to get it off.
 
That photo is very helpful. No wonder I was having so much trouble, that nipple is a lot longer then I would have expected.

I think I’ll give another shot at removing the return line and doing a proper flush and see if that makes a difference

I noticed when searching that PS pumps don’t seem to fail very often so maybe another flush will help
 
twa318 said:
That photo is very helpful. No wonder I was having so much trouble, that nipple is a lot longer then I would have expected.

I think I’ll give another shot at removing the return line and doing a proper flush and see if that makes a difference

I noticed when searching that PS pumps don’t seem to fail very often so maybe another flush will help
Click to expand...

I too was surprised at how long it was! It also helps me to see pictures of things before I get into a project, so I tried to grab some and they're linked below. Definitely worth a shot to flush again, my pump is OG at 212k and fluid has only been changed at 108k at Toyota and 211k with me according my records. With pretty minimal upkeep it keeps on chooching, so hopefully yours is good too!

To do the flush: I just jacked up the front, and removed the return line from the long nipple. Then plugged the return nipple on the reservoir with with a kinked piece of 3/8" vinyl tubing, and attached the hose end to a 3/8" splice barb (hosed clamp because its a tad bigger) and about 4 feet of vinyl tubing down into a waste container. I didn't get any good pictures of how everything was connected, but hopefully I explained it well. Let me know if you have any questions. I filled the reservoir with the plastic cup and went almost lock to lock, then repeat filled. I never turned the engine on, only the ignition so the steering wheel would unlock. I did about 2qts to try and get everything cleaned out and used Valvoline Maxlife Synthetic.

I have more pictures of what I did here: y=mx+b's Build Thread: PS Flush

These are probably the best pics of the tubing arrangement, all should be linked to imgur as well, so you can click for them to be bigger. Left: the top of a pump soap was perfect for removing the old fluid. Middle: The piece I used to block off the nipple after removing the return line. Right: shows a bit of the nipple blocked off and the splice barb into the tube
 
Last edited:
Keep us updated! I have a new to me 06 V8 and I noticed it was low as well and then began the whine. I didn't flush my system though, just topped off.

Sent from my Pixel 3a using Tapatalk
 
I’ve had a whine in mine for a while due to the power steering pump and a few weeks ago sprung an outright leak. I replaced the low pressure line as it had corroded through. No leak but still a pretty good whine. After all the leak and refill it has been drained and filled a number of times. Doing some reading it looks like the pump does fail from time to time
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Members online

Total: 554 (members: 3, guests: 551)

Forum statistics

Threads
278,316
Messages
3,554,112
Members
248,016
Latest member
Advally Service

Share this page

Trending content

Back
Top