| You do not need professional help to check or | | | | After pulling the hood release lever, find the hood |
| change the power steering fluid of your car. If you | | | | latch and depress it. You will find this at the front end |
| have an older model, note that it may not have | | | | of the hood in most cars. A pulley and belt system |
| power steering. Circumstances under which you | | | | drives the power steering pump. This is usually labeled |
| should change the steering fluid of your car are when | | | | power steering by most manufacturers to avoid |
| you hear whining noises when turning the wheel, | | | | confusion. You can also go through your owner's |
| where there are leaks, when the power steering fluid | | | | manual to find out where the power steering pump is |
| level has gone down on the indicator, every five | | | | located. Locate the reservoir on top of the pump and |
| years or at least every 100,000 miles, whichever | | | | check the level of the fluid. If you car has a plastic |
| comes first, and when the steering fluid changes | | | | cap, you can check the level of the fluid by looking |
| color. | | | | at the side calibrations. If you car is metallic, unscrew |
| The importance of changing the power steering fluid | | | | it and use a dipstick attached to it to measure the |
| cannot be overemphasized. You should change the | | | | level. You can check the fluid while it is hot or cold. |
| fluid regularly because over time, the O-rings and | | | | The dipstick for the metal cap and the marking on |
| other interior power steering components undergo | | | | plastic caps has levels indicating Hot and Cold. |
| tear and wear and the power steering fluid hence | | | | If the fluid level is below these markings, add extra |
| becomes impure. This makes the power steering | | | | fluid. You should note that some cars should not be |
| pump work much harder than it should and this leads | | | | topped up with steering fluid that is not made |
| to eventual breakdown. You will be forced to cough | | | | specifically for the make. You should also go through |
| up much money in repairs when this happens. There | | | | the owner's manual to check whether there is |
| is even a risk of the system breaking down beyond | | | | anything extra you should do or know about. If the |
| salvage. Another reason you should check and | | | | fluid has changed color or if you have refilled for far |
| change the steering fluid regularly is to avoid | | | | too long, you need to change everything. To do this, |
| accidents. There is a risk of accidents when the fluid | | | | use a special tool designed to withdraw all the fluid. Fill |
| levels are low or when there is debris in the system | | | | the cap up to the level required and turn on the |
| because there is increased friction. The wheel could | | | | engine. Leave the engine running for some minutes |
| lock itself or fail to respond as it should and this will | | | | and then check the level again and top up if |
| make the car hard to control. | | | | necessary. If there is a change in color, you will need |
| To check the fluid level, open the hood of the car. | | | | to replace the fluid several times until the color is |
| There is a hood release lever beneath the dashboard. | | | | normal again. This will take a week or so. |