I think I found it....

[Dave Haupt]

I'm in town long enough to get one or two
half-evenings available to look at The Beast.  I used
ye olde quarter-eating car wash to slough off as much
Pentosin as I could under the hood.  Then drove it
home.

You see, during my last out-of-town trip, my DSLB
(Dear Sweet Lovely Bride) took the car shopping.
Inside of one mile, it drained the Pentosin reservoir.
 No massive wetness under the hood, oddly enough.
Just a major mess on top of the transmission, but that
looked fairly old, given the amount of dirt mixed in
with it.  What strangeness!

The rack boot was torn, and I was assuming there was
the trouble.  After some exchanges with other
knowledgeable list members, I decided it would be
appropriate to really figure out where the Pentosin
was going before plunking down six months' disposable
income for installation of a rebuilt rack.

So, after said thorough cleaning, we got The Beast
home and ran it, sitting on the patch of dirt that
serves as our driveway.  I had my DSLB turn the wheel
right and left.  Aha!  At the rightmost extreme, I had
her hold it against the stop, with modest pressure.
Nothing.  But, hold the wheel against the left stop
with modest pressure, and a flow of Pentosin roughly
as large as you see coming from a drinking fountain,
came burbling out of the torn boot area spilling
directly onto the dirt below.  So that's how you lose
a lot of fluid without filthing the car!  The pump
still leaks, but it is a seep compared to this.

So I will reluctantly plop down $700 for a rack
installed by some mechanic I've never worked with
before.  Next time I'm back in town long enough to
figure out how to get The Best to said mechanic.

There's some satisfaction, anyway, in at least knowing
that I've identified what is most likely the biggest
of the leaks.

Dave
1989 200TQ Sedan, 148k, with self-changing hydraulic fluid

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