Re: Help: Hydraulic Fluid Leak

[steveb@newkla.kla.com (Steven Buchholz)]

> My 5k has developed a hydraulic fluid leak. I top up the canister and it falls
> below the MIN mark within 6 weeks. There are small drops of fluid under the
> car below the firewall, but I can't see any leaks around the hose connections.
> Where should I look? How can I test for leaks?  The car has approx 105k miles
> on it.

Congratulations ... you probably have a leak in your steering rack.  When
I looked at the boot over the rack from the front it looked good and supple, 
but when I investigated further after the leak developed, I found the back 
of the boot was all hard, cracked and disintegrating ...  It is my theory 
that the little rubber bits work their way into the seals and cause the 
leak, but who knows ...  It should be fairly easy to find hydraulic oil on 
the boot if that is your problem.  Otherwise you may need to clean up the 
engine compartment, especially near the firewall and monitor it over time 
to see where the source of the leak is.

I believe that the subject of steering rack replacement is discussed in the 
archives ...

Steve Buchholz
s_buchho@kla.com