Power Steering Flush: Do You Need One?

A Power Steering Fluid Flush is an often overlooked part of car maintenance. But if your vehicle utilizes a power steering system, you’ll want to perform one to get it working like new. But what is a power steering fluid flush, anyway?

The good news is that you don’t need a professional to get the job done. All you need is a little bit of time, and a little bit of tools to get your power steering fluid flush done in no time.

How Do I Know?

Evaluating your power steering fluid level is a fairly simple process. You can do it by removing the cap of the reservoir and taking a look inside. The fluid may be visibly dark or obviously contaminated, in which case a flush is in order. If you’re not quite sure just by the look of it, use your dipstick to gather a sample. Place the sample on a white paper towel. Is it dirty? This is a good indicator of whether or not you need a flush.

Performing a power steering flush is a procedure you can do in your garage with a few hours on Saturday morning. And a good set of hand tools.  A power steering flush is something that your car needs if your power steering fluid looks dark.  Power steering fluid is usually a light golden or bright red/pink color.

While you can certainly replace your fluid, a  flushing ensures a fresh new start and uncontaminated power steering fluid. Emptying and filling the reservoir multiple times just to get clean fluid is both wasteful and time consuming. You can perform a simple power steering fluid flush with a few tools and a little patience.

What Do I Do?

Pump the fluid out of the reservoir, then fill it with new power steering fluid. You’ll then want to find the low-pressure line in your system and disconnect it. Allow it to drip into an oil drain pan.

Start your engine and allow your power steering pump to extract the new power steering fluid from the reservoir, and push the oil fluid out. Be sure the reservoir isn’t dry, as you don’t want air in your system. It may be helpful to have someone else start the engine and pay close attention to the drain pan. Meanwhile your task lies in keeping the reservoir full at all times. Once you notice new fluid from the low-pressure line you disconnected, shut off the engine and reconnect your line. Next, “burp” your new system and top off the reservoir with new fluid.

And you’re done!

If you want to leave it to the professionals, not to worry. Contact our Payne Service Department and let us get to work on your vehicle.