Re: Power steering fluid questions

[Aleksander Mierzwa <alex@matrix.pl>]

At 11:00 30.11.98 -0700, Matt Daniels wrote:

>I discovered this weekend that the level of power steering fluid on my '93
>90S V6 was below the MIN marker, I purchased the mineral oil based fluid
>from the dealer and topped it off (just below the MAX marker). Upon reading
>the owners manual, it states that if it goes below the MIN mark "it is not
>sufficent to just add power steering fluid" and that I should have it looked
>at by the dealer. What is the deal if it goes below the MIN mark and why
>isn't it sufficent to just top it off? Is it anything to worry about? 

The reason is simple: it shouldn't happen. The hydraulic system is a sealed
circuit and at least in theory, you should not need to ever add the fluid.
Of course, we Audi owners know that there's no such thing as an Audi with
no Pentosin leaks ;-)

>After looking at that, I decided to take a look at the level on my newly
>purchased '86 4kcsq, after cleaning off the reservior (I actually thought it
>was black plastic, it was that dirty) I discovered that it too is below the
>MIN mark. The manual says I need to add ATF Dexrol (sp?). Is this the same
>mineral oil based stuff I added to the '93 90? I tried looking for ATF
>Dexrol at Autozone, but didn't see anything. Is this special fluid or will
>any power steering fluid work in this model?

ATF = Automatic Transmission Fluid, the red stuff used in slushboxes. This
is different fluid than the Audi mineral fluid. You can probably use any
power steering fluid instead of ATF, but ATF is cheaper. You MUST NOT use
ATF or any other fluid in cars that call for Audi mineral fluid only.

Aleksander Mierzwa
Warsaw, Poland
mailto:alex@matrix.pl
87 Audi 5000CS turbo (mine)
88 Renault Medallion wagon (mom's)
91 mountain bike (just in case both cars broke at the same time :-)