Power steering fluid flush

Here is what I did to flush the power steering fluid.

Supplies:
2 quarts Valvoline Maxlife Dex/Merc - $14.58
Siphon pump, or turkey baster with small hose attached, or liquid soap dispenser
Jack
Jack stands
Drip pan
Chock blocks
Pliers
Vise grips or something to hold line to drain below cleanly
Ear plug

Estimated time to complete: 30 minutes
Difficulty: Easy

1) Set parking brake and chock rear wheels, jack up front of truck and put jack stands underneath. Wheels high enough so they can turn each way completely.

2) Suck out as much old fluid in reservoir as you can. I used a red siphon pump. I've seen that you can also turn the wheels after you sucked out as much as you can to fill the reservoir with more fluid to suck out. I skipped that step.


Try to change elevation of pump below reservoir to get it flowing better. Pump looks like:


3) Disconnect return line and plug it. I used a foam ear plug.


4) Route line down below to drip pan. A considerable amount of fluid came out. I used vice grips to hold line onto sway bar so it drained down below into drip pan instead of on top of the skid plate. As it was draining I filled it with new Dextron III compatible ATF fluid (not power steering fluid). I used Valvoline Maxlife Dex/Merc (red bottles).


5) Once reservoir was filled I grabbed hold of the passenger front tire and turned it to lock both directions. All the way to left, hold for a few seconds and all the way to right hold for a few seconds. Did this more than 15 times each direction. Watch reservoir level as you're doing this and top it off if it gets low. This is the flushing step. You can go into the truck and turn as well, but I wanted an eye on the reservoir in case it got low and on the fluid coming out to see what color it was coming out.

6) Once fluid is coming out red and clear I stopped, then reconnected the return line. It wasn't extremely dirty to begin with so I didn't have to use a full quart but I did. You may have worse fluid and require more so have more ATF on hand just in case.

7) After return line is connected, top off reservoir if needed. I gave it a few turns now to bleed any air out with wheels off the ground. Then lowered truck onto ground.

Nice and red, good.

8) Started truck and turned wheels both directions 5 times on ground, then rechecked fluid level. If needed, top off reservoir.

Power steering flush complete! Now go for a test drive and bring some ATF along just in case your fluid changes while you're driving.

Before and after color of power steering fluid:

Red vs. s**t brown.

Definitely something to check if needs done once a year and should be done every 2. Had no idea when it was last done, just like all my other fluids so now I know. All I have left is coolant.

 

nice write up

 

Thanks! I like that you don't have to fire up the truck at all during this process, and turning the wheels manually from the outside is a nice touch. After changing the PS fluid in my last car (and having to turn it on) the huge mess made it not worth it to me, but this gives me hope for the Taco.

 

Nice write up, one more service to go on my "to do" list.

 

On A 4.0, their is a place behind the skidplate where the hard return line off the rack goes into a rubber line. This is the lowest point in the system. and works great for draining the rack as well as the res.

 

@beavis87, nice write up! I'm apparently overdue for this one.

I know we can all just trace the line to this spot, but this is TW... pics would be great. Thanks!

No garage and snow on the ground means I'm not gonna be the guy to get the pics.

 

Recommend power steering fluid.
I'm not sold on using transmission fluids in the PS regardless of what's printed on the top reservoir cap.. It doesn't come with that from the factory. Toyota service guy told me they use just regular generic PS fluid.
Anyway, good write and I used [close] to the above procedure but used Valvoline PS fluid (clear, not red color) specifically.

 

Yeah I wondered why Toyota does this but I read this here:

Searching toyota power steering fluid in Amazon brings up Toyota branded ATF Dex III, next is a special Prestone PS fluid for Asian vehicles. The Toyota ATF is actually cheaper than the Prestone PS fluid. Confused why a Toyota service tech would recommend something different than whats in the manual. What does it come with from the factory?

 

Thanks for the write-up. I'm going to attempt this as my power steering is starting to whine. It's never been done in my truck. Does this look right?
It's a 2009 3.4L V6 with 50,000 miles. I don't notice any leaks / dripping but it definitely whines - especially in cold weather.

I'm also confused on what to buy to replace the fluid with...

Mine does not look dirty or smell burnt but it's also not cranberry like several others. ???



This is on a cold engine.

 

The whining your experiencing is being causing by a low fluid level and the power steering pump sucking in small amounts of air. Hopefully this hasn't been going on for too long and no harm has been done. In any event, a power steering flush would be beneficial to get any possible metal contamination from the pump/rack and get clean fresh fluid in the system.

 

I got into researching this some years back. Was confused by the P/S looking color of the fluid, yet the owners manual said to use Dex III - red? Learned that car mfg.s use untinted Dex III - it's cheaper.

Calls to local dealers - 6 in all - revealed they use plain jane P/S fluid. None use Dex III.

I queued up with Prestone about their "asian" formula. They told me this is only needed in Honda's. I found that to be odd as the bottle pretty much named of all of the major asian car mfgs?

I have used Dex III in Toyota exclusively and I have also done the same with plain jane P/S fluid in Toyota's. They both perform the same.

 

Not seeing your pics.

 

If you really want the best Dexron II/III in your system you can try these:

Schaeffer's #204SAT All-Trans Supreme®
GM Dexron II, II-D, IIE, III, III-E, III-G, III-H
Toyota Type-II, Type III
Toyota T-1V (JWS 3309)
Toyota WS (JWS 3309)

Red Line D4 ATF
Dexron II®, III® and Dexron IIIH®

Red Line High-Temp ATF
Dexron III®, Dexron II®

Amsoil Signature Series Multi-Vehicle Synthetic Automatic Transmission Fluid
GM DEXRON® II, DEXRON®III
TOYOTA Type T, T-II,T-III,T-IV

Amsoil OE Multi-Vehicle Synthetic Automatic Transmission Fluid
GM DEXRON® II, DEXRON®III
TOYOTA Type T, T-II,T-III,T-IV

Mobil 1™ Synthetic ATF
GM DEXRON® IIIH, IIIG, IIE, IID, II

Mobil™ Multi-Vehicle ATF
GM DEXRON® IIIH, IIIG, IIE, IID, II

Are these compatible?
Amsoil Torque-Drive® Synthetic Automatic Transmission Fluid
GM DEXRON III-H

Mobil ATF™ D/M
GM Dexron® III H

I do wonder what makes Dexron IIIH different that its the only Dexron compatible in Amsoil's Torque-Drive ATF Mobil 1's D/M. Its confusing, theres 3 types of Dexron II and 4 types of Dexron III. Do we just go with the ones that don't have letters after it? What I found really interesting is that Shaeffer's is the only one that specifically says all types of Dexron as well as all types of Toyota ATF types. No one mentions that it can replace Toyota WS, which is what is used in our automatic transmissions. Its confusing that we have to fill our ATF with WS but fill our power steering with Dexron II/III. It would be so much simpler if there was one kind of fluid for both and it sounds like Shaeffer's would be it.

 

Thanks for the write up beavis87.
Anyone know how much pressure is in the return line? Was thinking a variable speed drill pump may be sufficient to pump fluid in while the PS pump pushes it out.
Also how about a hose barb and clear tubing (3/8" or 10mm I assume) to extend the drain hose to a container.

My first car with power steering (70 Chevy) used ATF. I believe every car I owned with PS after that one did also.

 

Thanks for the how-to, just did this in my 2011 RC 4x4!

Old fluid was much darker than the new stuff.

 

Great writeup, gonna add to the "to do" list

 

Seen thjs done with a "mighty vac".... large one, like 3 gal catch jug. Seemed soooo much easier. Iirc they are only $100

 

Seems pretty easy, i'm going to have to do this when the weather gets nicer. Can't say i'd use ATF fluid if the dealers use PS fluid, but that's just me.

 

I've used a "mighty vac" in the opposite way for filling up a trans with oil. I guess they make one that syphons oils to.

 

I've use the method from this thread to flush a couple of times. It is nice and easy, and requires no pump. Each time I've done it, it has taken maybe 30 minutes and that includes jacking the truck up. I have some rubber end caps laying around from another project that I used to cap the return inlet. Use Valvoline Maxlife ATF each time.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/power-steering-flush.416379/

1. Disconnect return line to reservoir. (Not the line that goes to the pump.)
2. Plug reservoir inlet and direct drain return line into a container. Fill reservoir with fresh fluid.
3. I used Mobil 1 Synthetic ATF.
4. Jack up front wheels off the ground.
5. Turn steering wheel (do NOT start engine) back and forth. This will pump ATF through the system. Refill reservoir as it drains.
6. After a quart I was getting clean ATF from the drain line so done.
7. Reconnect drain line and fill as necessary.