is there an easy way to take the top off the power steering fluid reservoir.

My power steering was making an whine and was a tad low. I went to autozone and they said the dextron III fluid called for was no longer made so I was sold a dextron IV equivilant. Not long afterward my steering was making an awful whine and started to have a loss of function. I have pulled out the fluid with a pump and ran several reservoirs full of fluid through along with some bars leak treatment and have seen a great improvement. I want to remove the top of the reservoir so I can clean the screen and purge the whole system more completely. Is there a way to do this easily? it seems that there are some bent metal tangs that hold on the reservoir top , but they are rather difficult to get to when the reservoir is in place.

 

I haven't done this on mine, but I understand that you need to remove the drive belt and then you can rotate the pulley so that one of its holes will give you access to the forward bolt with a socket+extension.

 

The first minor issue is removing the reservoir. You may be able to fit a wrench through the pulley to remove the bolt holding the reservoir on, or you may have to remove the pulley to get access. If you do remove the reservoir, you need to replace the o-ring with a new one.

I took the top off of the reservoir I have from a 97 Corolla. All the Toyota reservoirs are similar, just differences in where the mount bolts are and the inlet pipe. I had broken the screen when I was pumping out the fluid with a plastic pump from an old spray bottle. I also noticed that the screen was very dirty, so I ended up getting a used one from a junkyard. I took the old one apart.

First I used a small metal pick and hammered it lightly under the tabs to bend them out a little. Then I used a screwdriver to bend them fully.


Here is the condition of the screen


The screen is a separate piece, but unfortunately it's held in by these dimples around the reservoir. One dimple seen here.


So, you can't just take the screen out. You'd have to un-dimple those dimples first.

I also tried to clean this screen with brake fluid, then hot water. That gunk on it doesn't come out easily, and you can't really scrub it without breaking it. The screen appears to be a very thin nylon type material. I'm not sure what the gunk is, but it might be tiny pieces of the old rubber PS hoses mixed with old fluid. It was glued to the screen pretty good.


Shine a light down your reservoir and see if the screen is intact or if it's broken. You could also try taking a picture down the hole.

In my opinion, you won't be able to clean the screen very easily even if you could un-dimple the side and remove it from the reservoir. If it looks dirty/clogged/broken by inspecting through the hole, then it's probably best to replace with a new one ($$$) or a used one from a junkyard in good condition. Another option is to break the screen out and put an inline filter in the return hose.

 

Is the bolt behind the pulley all that needs removed to pull off the reservoir? Can't tell if it just slides onto the pump or if it is threaded on.

 

There are 3 bolts, one in front, and 2 in the back/sides. When the bolts are removed, I believe it just slides up and off.
As mentioned by DrZ, be sure to have a new o-ring ready for re-installing.

[Edited for correctness]

 

One bolt on the pulley side and two on the back side.

On a 98 2RZ-FE I couldn't remove the pulley-side bolt without removing the pulley. The holes in the pulley didn't line up with the bolt. On my 97 Corolla I could get the bolt out without removing the pulley, so it just depends on the car.

Once the bolts are out you just wiggle it while pulling upward. Coat the new o-ring with ATF fluid before reinstalling.

 

You just need a wrench/socket to remove the whole reservoir. No need to remove belts or anything. I just sprayed brake cleaner on the screen liberally in order to clean it out, then reattach

 

It probably varies from 4 and 6 cylinder and maybe the year whether the bolt can be loosened through the pulley.