Power steering flush at 30k?

Still under warranty and need to be ... might have a rear main seal going out. Dealer is telling me I need to flush power steering as part of my 30k service. That seems ridiculous to me. Fluid color is fine. Hell in 168k miles I never flushed power steering fluid on my 86 4Runner and never has issues. Dealer is telling me the new fluids are more corrosive. Thoughts?

 

yes, change the fluid.

 

Really I don't remember ever seeing that in any service. I did lose a pump in my old 97 but it did have around 230K. What does that has to do with a rear main seal though?

 

I don't know, I've got 110k and not done it. Maybe next spring/summer I'll look into it but I'd change out the rear diff oil to synthetic asap, though.

 

I went 175k on my 06 and I'm at 146 on one of my Camrys, neither have been touched.

 

c'mon guys, really?

It is all about preventative maintenance. Very easy to change the p/s fluid. Every and all fluids should be changed at certain times to help prolong the life of stock components.

 

And this procedure is outlined in the Toyota maintenance manual? Do you take the tank off and clean the filter screen too? How about all the oil that’s still in the steering rack? Time is better spent on diff oil changes and transmission services oil and air filters. Don’t forget to check the drive shaft bolts. Probably 85% of the owners will not keep their truck long enough to see high millage related failures.

 

Should have done it at 15K.

 

Break out your owners manual and see what it says. Follow your owners manual's recommended service intervals and you'll never have a problem.

 

Well, I put 300k on another truck (it starts with N and ends with N) I "think" I changed the engine oil maybe 6x and that's it. Got sick of driving it after 10 years and gave it to my cousin; he drove it for another 5 years then gave the truck to a farmer that drove it another 5 years until he finally blew the motor but ya, a little preventative maintenance can't hurt.

 

If you do your own maint - simply siphon/refill the power steering reservoir every time you change oil. Been doing this for over 40 years. Works like a charm.

 

I work at a dealer and I feel sorry for our customers who pay for these unnecessary flushes on newer, low mileage vehicles. The power steering fluid in your Tacoma is basically ATF. If it can last 100,000 miles in a transmission, it should last much longer in a power steering system. JMO.

 

I hope you don't work at my dealer. You really recommend to not change the p/s for 100k?

 

The owners manual calls for Dexron-II or Dexron III for the power steering fluid. The 100K ATF fluid your refer to is Toyota WS which is used in the transmission; not the power steering system.

Low mileage dealer flushes are a rip in my opinion, but I wouldn't dream of using the same PS fluid for 100K. You can simply siphon and refill the PS reservoir every oil change like I mentioned above and have good fluid for the life of the vehicle.

 

Please show me where it says in the manual to change the P/S fluid at 30k.

 

You are correct - it doesn't - at least I have never seen a specified interval for PS fluid change.

This is just my 2 cents, but I believe that a lot of "recommended intervals" are designed for the bulk of people who buy a new car a lot more frequently than some of us do. Car mfgs. do this to lower the total-cost-of-ownership - TCO. Dealers do it to increase their profits. People hate paying for car service, especially when they can't do it themselves. Todays cars for the most part can go 100K with little more than oil/air filter changes and on or before that mark is when many dump their cars.

I likely go overboard with my maint because I put 300K - 400K on all of my cars.

 

This.

Change @ 100k, okay, sounds good.

 

A lot is not in the manual, but should be.

Not specifically saying it should be changed at 30k, but rather should be changed at regular intervals. Me personally, I do it at 50k. Others saying not to change until 100k sounds ludicrous to me.

I tend to keep my vehicles for a long time, and highly believe in preventative maintenance.

I am not waiting to 100k to change the trans fluid either.

 

I've never flushed ps fluid in my life. I've never seen it go bad. Brake fluid on the other hand is hydroscopic and should be replaced at regular intervals. I've been told every three years (probably overkill). As far as ps fluid, if you feel you should change it, it's cheap and easy to do. Most dealer flushes are a rip off in my opinion. We charge 70 bucks for the flush kit, and an hour labor (another 105 bucks).

 

fluid in my 07 highlander started turning gray; probably because of the transverse mount and ps pump in the rear where it's hotter. Flushed it per below until i'd put in 2 fresh quarts.
I recommend NOT to use transmission fluid as there may be 'friction enhancers' which don't help a ps system; Generic PS fluid I buy for 4$ /qt such as an auto store brand is cheapest.
(Dealer showed me what he used and it was no-name brand.)
Flush; probably not needed,
Every 30k on my cars, get an old hand soap bottle pump, clean it out, use it to pump out old fluid in the reservoir into a container. Add fresh fluid. Drive it a couple days and repeat until i've put in a fresh quart. Done.