vermontcalbud

I bought my 1985 944 nine days ago today.I drove from downtown Boston back home to northern Vermont and no leaks at all.
Didnt use a drop of oil.75-85 m.p.h in the "HAMMER" lane all the way back.4 Hours flat.
I pulled my power steering fluid dip stick this morn and noticed it was between add and full.
I noticed that the rubber hose on bottom of reservoir had fluid around it.
I unclamped the reservoir and took the rubber hose off and inspected it.(Looked Good!!)
I pushed it all the way on again and re tightened the clamp.Still wetness coming from where it is pushed onto the reservoir.
Bottom of car has nice power steering fluid on it.
Am I missing something??
I looked underneath and dont see any more leaks!!
Fluid on the control arm and also underneath the pass.side.
If I had to guess,I would say it is still leaking from the rubber hose that goes to bottom of reservoir,and runs down the hose and is being sprayed onto the arm and underneath.
Can the hose be bad and I not notice where???
Can the clamp be stretched and not sealing the hose properly??
I am getting annoyed!!!Thanks!(sorry this is long)

elf89

That hose is a much better place to leak than the rack itself. I had the same leak, but took it to the shop because I break more than I fix when I try to do it myself (but that's just me.)

They told me the end was bad, but the hose length was long enough so they trimmed the end and reclamped. No leak anymore. Hope yours is that simple, and enjoy your new 944. Welcome to the club!

josephsc

The PS pump is also a potential culprit -- I fixed my rack last year and now I sprung a leak at the pump! I think I'm going to go manual steering this time around.... BTW, our cars use automatic transmission fluid rather than powersteering fluid.

TrevorW

Come again? I've been dumping power steering fluid in the reservoir, why would they use automatic transmission fluid?

PorscheDoc

Yes, it is ATF fluid, not power steering fluid.

TrevorW

so..... Should I suck out all the power steering fluid and replace it, is power steering fluid less viscous than the ATF, would that explain why my rack is leaking more than normal? Sorry for all the questions.

josephsc

I'm not sure what the exact differences are, but our cars use Dextron III (or was it IV) -- which happens to be used as ATF by most manufacturers. I don't think dumping in the wrong fluid will cause the car to blow up, however. IIRC, my old Honda did something similar, too -- used a special fluid for power steering...

TrevorW

I've seen power steering fluid with a leak stopper in it, I imagine its probably a gimmic but I'd like to see if it works.

Joliett

Didnt anyone here ever hear of an owner's manual???

Dextron is specified. And I was real close to pouring power steering fluid down there. If I had I would have called george b to ask what to do. Otherwise, I bet sucking the stuff out would be a good start.

Hope the two are compatable! That's the question.

josephsc

You want to use the ATF with leak stopper in it -- I've tried it for my leak and it did no good, though... Going back to your problem, alot of people have simply gone manual steering by disabling the pump (by removing the belt) and have been quite happy with the result.

7thStranger

I have been dumping the ps fluid with leak stopper in my S for 2 years. Hasn't caused any problems, hasn't stopped the leak either.

Now that my sway bar bushing is completely gone, I guess I need to address this.

Matt H

Any expansive hydraulic fluid will work fine. ATF can be used in almost anything to stop leaks, in older cars it was not uncommon to use it with the oil.
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TrevorW

Thanks for your help everyone, I'm going to siphon out the ps fluid and put the ATF Dexron II in.

Danno

I had that power-steering leak as well when I first bought my car. Left a puddle under the right-front every single night and the driveway was starting to look pretty bad. Found out the problem was that there was no gasket between the cap and the resevoir.

Plum

I forget exactly where I found this but it worked great for me.
Ordered the parts from Pelican.


Part of the procedure in fixing the leaks was replacing the line clamps at the reservoir end. These are zebra clamps, you can probably get them at many places. Try to get some w/ rounded edges so the clamp does not cut into the lines.

I bought the clamps from Porsche. The small size clamp is, I believe, 999.512.450.02 and cost me $0.90 at the dealer. The bigger size clamp is 999.512.346.02, costs $2.30. I bought two of the small clamps. However, the diameter of the fittings at the reservoir is not the same. Thus, one of each size clamp might be needed, someone else who has also done this will have to step in and clarify where the large clamp is used. However, on my 951 even the small size clamps fit at the reservoir end of the lines fine w/ no leaks.