Voodoo Vix Posted November 7, 2011 Share Posted November 7, 2011 I fitted this (and the coolant one) back in August and the power steering was still whining and the fluid is coming out the top (like an oily residue), thinking that it was probably over filled we drained a little off but the fluid coming out is now worse (still whining too). Yesterday the tank was drained and fresh fluid put in (just above the bracket which is apparently the required level) to see if this improved it, it's obviously whining as it has air in still but the fluid is coming out worse than ever. We took it for a drive and all was fine then about an hour later I was driving home and my engine management light came on (I noticed this after I had used by windscreen washers (about 5 mins into my journey) but could have been up before that). My main issue is the amount of fluid I'm now losing and whether any of you have ever had the same problem. I have a cap that can go over the top which we mainly got because opening the bonnet after it had been raining the water in the bonnet rubbers would drip directly above the hole in the tank (thankfully none got in). We took this off because of the whining to see if it was air that needed to escape but it made no change, I'm tempted to put it back on as it stopped the fluid going everywhere but need to know if there is a problem causing the fluid to come out in the first place before I do this. Any ideas what the leakage could be (its definitely coming out the hole in the lid and not anywhere else), its making a bit of a mess, and also why the EML has come on, the fluid level is not low, I have no other lights on and the steering is not any heavier than it has been previously. Thanks in advance. Apologies if this is not in the right place, please feel free to move. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ebized Posted November 7, 2011 Share Posted November 7, 2011 Procedure on here posted by Lincolnbaggie for bleeding the system: viewtopic.php?f=9&t=42799&hilit=power+steering+fluid But, from a quick trawl of related threads for some - simply turning the steering from lock to lock several times seems to have worked in getting the air out. Pump failure is not uncommon and water getting in (fluid colour change) and perished hoses have been been the cause of problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Voodoo Vix Posted November 7, 2011 Author Share Posted November 7, 2011 Thanks Colin. 3 months of driving and doing the steering lock thing hasn't stopped the whining, although it should have by now. I'm more concerned why its spraying out the top even though its not over filled, or whether its a problem with having these tanks and I should just put the cap back on top of the tank's lid. Also worried why the EML has now come on Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mplavery Posted November 7, 2011 Share Posted November 7, 2011 I thought i would add my notes as i installed the Alloy tanks when removing the OEM tank, i siphon the old fluid until dry then removed and fitted the Alloy tank and reused the old fluid as it still looked fine. I did noticed when i put back the old fluid that there is a plate half way in the bottle and the fluid contained on the OEM bottle was about 2cm over this plate. I left it like this anyways and just kept an eye on it.. After getting all the air out of the system the car was fine until you drove it for half hour then (When parking) the power steering was slighty noisy again..This only happens when the car is hot..Its quite when cold. You can see loads of air bubbles in the oil again which is causing the noise.. When popping the bonnet i noticed a small oil residue coming out of the breather hole on top of the cap. So i thought maybe the plate is a max line so i drained a small amount of fluid to see if it improves.. Well it seem to make it a little worse, the noise was the same and when driving for a while seems to have more oil residue on the cap So i decided to drain the oil level with the plate and now even more oil is coming out from the little hole of the cap and making quite a bit of mess So our qst is if anyone has these tanks on there cars.. What level do you have the oil..Is it just below the plate or a few cm above the plate ?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keyser Posted November 7, 2011 Share Posted November 7, 2011 I have one, was on it when I got her. Oil was just below the plate when I stripped it out for the refurb - did think that was little low and needed topping up may not now Mine does not leak from the top although at some point in the past it has had a leak in the pipe from the bottom of the tank - That pipe will be replaced when I rebuild the car next year. Other than that no problems no squeaks no noise from the steering and she wrokrs fine both on and off track! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mplavery Posted November 7, 2011 Share Posted November 7, 2011 I have one, was on it when I got her. Oil was just below the plate when I stripped it out for the refurb - did think that was little low and needed topping up may not now Mine does not leak from the top although at some point in the past it has had a leak in the pipe from the bottom of the tank - That pipe will be replaced when I rebuild the car next year. Other than that no problems no squeaks no noise from the steering and she wrokrs fine both on and off track! That's exactly what i thought that having the level below the plate seemed not enough fluid.. Im guessing that the plate acts like a splash plate to stop the oil getting air into the system again Thanks for that info, will put the level below the plate and will see how we get on Cheers mate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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