Non-BMW Stuff on a BMW Forum
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Assuming that’s under the dash?
also, UV dye
I don’t know why I thought this was a fuel leak. That would make sense.
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I’m struggling to identify where this is on the car.
Also, what’s the process for doing this?
Assuming that’s under the dash?
also, UV dye
Correct. Under the dash. It’s the hi line from inside the car that was leaking a bit and then the low side at the fitting between the evaporator and the expansion valve.
It was a $10 UV flashlight from Walmart. Decided to grab that at the last minute but it was very worth it. Excited to say the car now has cold AC. It’s actually a little better than my XC70. That probably needs a charge - which I can now do.
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How’s the new rack been working?
Much better. Had a huge air bubble reveal itself on my way home last week several days after installing the rack. Thought I felt the PS getting weak and when I got home the reservoir was empty. But zero leaks. Topped it off and it's been all good since then.
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The car has been running great for the most part. One nagging thing has been about once every other week I’d get home with an empty PS reservoir. I always thought maybe there’s a large bubble in the system since I completely drained it.
Confirmed today that’s not the case.
Pried one of the boots away from the steering rack and it was so full of fluid that it squirted out. It was under pressure.
Both seals are clearly blown out. Really disappointed with Rack Doctor. Will give them a call tomorrow but I can’t put on of their racks back in my car. I don’t trust them anymore. Will go with OE rebuilt unit from FCP.
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The car has been running great for the most part. One nagging thing has been about once every other week I’d get home with an empty PS reservoir. I always thought maybe there’s a large bubble in the system since I completely drained it.
Confirmed today that’s not the case.
Pried one of the boots away from the steering rack and it was so full of fluid that it squirted out. It was under pressure.
Both seals are clearly blown out. Really disappointed with Rack Doctor. Will give them a call tomorrow but I can’t put on of their racks back in my car. I don’t trust them anymore. Will go with OE rebuilt unit from FCP.
Ive heard really good things about rack doctor. Id give them a second chance.
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The car has been running great for the most part. One nagging thing has been about once every other week I’d get home with an empty PS reservoir. I always thought maybe there’s a large bubble in the system since I completely drained it.
Confirmed today that’s not the case.
Pried one of the boots away from the steering rack and it was so full of fluid that it squirted out. It was under pressure.
Both seals are clearly blown out. Really disappointed with Rack Doctor. Will give them a call tomorrow but I can’t put on of their racks back in my car. I don’t trust them anymore. Will go with OE rebuilt unit from FCP.
Major bummer... I've always heard really good things about them, hopefully they remedy the situation!
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They're sending me out a new rack tomorrow. The guy there highly recommended against using synthetic dexIII ATF and suspects that was the issue. I just was used what the internets said to use.
Anyways, on a more positive note. My wife ditched the XC90 for a 2021 VW Atlas with the second row captain seats. They are a game changer for hauling three kids.
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Interesting. I siphoned and refilled my reservoir over the weekend and it doesn't feel quite right. Could just be a tiny bit of air that needs to work itself out, but I am using Maxlife ATF. I like the Maxlife because the seal conditioners really seem to help reduce leaks in past experiences but if the “air”/lack of smoothness doesnt resolve itself I may try non-synthetic ATF
Atlas seems cool
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They're sending me out a new rack tomorrow. The guy there highly recommended against using synthetic dexIII ATF and suspects that was the issue. I just was used what the internets said to use.
Anyways, on a more positive note. My wife ditched the XC90 for a 2021 VW Atlas with the second row captain seats. They are a game changer for hauling three kids.
What did he suggest to use for fluid
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What did he suggest to use for fluid
To still use dex3 atf - but not synthetic.
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To still use dex3 atf - but not synthetic.
Interesting... I put synthetic in my car and my rack with allegedly 60k miles started leaking within a year.
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To still use dex3 atf - but not synthetic.
Me going downstairs after reading this to check what I bought from oriellys
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Interesting... I put synthetic in my car and my rack with allegedly 60k miles started leaking within a year.
He said the synthetic fluids usually have an stop-leak additive to it. And he said this is fine in transmissions because most of the seals are either sandwiched between aluminum plates or have a metal component to the seal. So as they swell, they get to a point where they can't swell anymore and they stay there. In the steering rack, the seals don't have that, so they swell and continue to swell until they blow out. And he said once one side blows out, the fluid will travel through the gear to the other side and ultimately you get leaks at both ends. He said this is an ongoing issue and have been getting a lot of racks back that they suspect is because of this.
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New rack is in and I don’t have any power steering.
I used a Dex/Merc fluid instead of a DexVI because I read people used that with good results. Even if the fluid was subpar, I can’t imagine I would have zero PS.
Maybe the pump is dead. It ran on several occasions dry because I didn’t know it was empty. I also noticed when I started the car in the air to bleed the PS system, the pump didn’t wine at all. Usually it has a few wines as you go lock to lock and get the system filled up.
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I think everyone is overthinking the fluid type. I've used Redline power steering fluid for a long time in many BMWs and other cars with no issues. It is a high end synthetic, but is also labeled only for power steering so maybe different additives?
The pump won't last long without fluid, they are a rotary vane pump. I would recommend finding a ZF pump and rebuilding it before you install it. I've done one and it isn't hard, then you won't have to deal with more leaks later.
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