PS Fluid Flush - What fluid is best to fill with? AT fluid?

[W O T]

My PS fluid is dirty as junk and has probably never been replaced. So Im gonna give it a flush with this good weather were having.

What would you guys suggest I fill the system up with? Regular ATF fluid, synthetic atf fluid, regular pg fluid, some type of conditioner etc....

Ive heard mixed opinions in my short days, Just curious what everyone else would use/ does use

[pathfinder_se_black]

I got nissan to flush mine out for me. when i had my 4runner i used royal purple synthetic. i think oem original should be fine.

[W O T]

Well I know Ive heard there is stuff better than OEM, for probably less money. Does fluid with "conditioner" of any sort clog up your system?

[W O T]

anything

[W O T]

Just swapped my PS pump and used generic ATF fluid (DEX III) and my car has never turned so smoothly lol

I wish i woulda done this a month ago when m steering started getting hard

[JHC828]

How exactly do you go about flushing the ps fluid? I've noticed lately that mine is getting harder to turn and getting a little whine from time to time. Is there a link?

[W O T]

Well I know how Ive always done it and I know alot of alot people use this method for P/S flushes (if youre not changing any ps parts out anyways)

You just crack open your PS fluid resevoir, pull out the filter (keep clean dont put it on the ground or anything), and use a turkey baster to pull out the 500ml of used fluid from the resevoir, empty as mch as you can, then fill it up with new fluid, filter, cap. Go for a drive around the block and make a bunch of turns, pump the fluid around, pop the hood and do the turkey blaster again, put in more new fluid. You can flush it 2-3 times and your fluid will be fresh as day lol

I just did it this afternoon, used 3L of ATF to do the flushes and final fill. And a 4L jug of atf is like $12 and a turkey baster i bought at the dollar store...

Im sure you could just crack a line at the bottom of the system where it meets the rack, and get rid of all the fluid at once, but I hate to touch old aluminum fittings and brittle connections... just my choice

[JHC828]

Where is the filter? Can I pick up a new one from the parts store or something? I've never changed any of the fluids on it before (I'm at 55k) I was wanting to get started and eventually do all of them. I read about the transmission cooler being weak on these so I was thinking of looking around for an explorer's and putting that on. I have an extreme amount of heat that comes up into the cabin if I have the sunroof open or windows down.

[W O T]

Oh, filter is re-usable, if you crack the cap on the PS resevoir, (left side back looks like a pop can) the filter just drops in so you pull it out with your fingers, just dont get dirt on it is all im saying, your gonna put it right back in. Then just suck all the fluid out and repeat....

As for the heat, you mean heat comes from INSIDE your car? i didnt get that

[W O T]

And ve heard nothing of the transmission cooler

[JHC828]

Thanks for the help with the PS flush!!!

Edit: What I had read about the transmission was for a WD21... sry
Modified by jcpathy69 at 7:50 PM 2/9/2009

[JHC828]

Flused mine out today and filled it with some DexIII. It's SO much smoother now. From the looks of the old fluid, which was solid black and smelled burnt, and the filter, which was completely clogged, I'm surprised the thing hasn't went out already! *knock on wood*

Easy thing to do and made a big difference, I recommend it to anyone!

[longhornsqx4]

that fluid look clean compared to mine lol, thats all you got? I got about 3 liters when drianing the pan, filled er up, then drianed and filled again..

Wheres the filter though? Or did you drop the pan completely

[JHC828]

Pan? I'm talkin about the power steering here... what r u talking about?

[longhornsqx4]

sorry, I thought i clicked the transmission flush thread lol