AR|Groundzero

I have a 2002 Boxster S and my power steering is leaking where I need to fill it every 3 months or so. I cannot tell exactly where the leak is coming from. I have seen many posts regarding replacing the seal kits for the power steering pump.

Does anyone know where to get the seal kit?

Is there a better way to track it down other than trial and error?

Mighty Shilling

there is a special dye they can toss in there, and after a day or so, you hit it with a black light, and it'll light up the leak like a christmas tree. check with indy shops or parts stores to see about getting your hands on some

Macster

Get the car in the air (safely) and expose the power steering rack.

That is likely where the leak is.

If it is dry give those dust boots a squeeze like your testing out some breast implants for the... umm, just give them a squeeze.

If they squeeze back.. they're full of power steering fluid.

Why? A high pressure valve in a power steering line has failed and supplied too high pressure to the rack. The high pressure fluid seeps past the seals but is trapped by the dust covers, accumulates inside these.

(I watched a tech with the rack on the bench remove a cover and it popped and gushed power fluid, so these things can accumulate and hold some fluid.)

If you find fluid in the dust covers or signs of fluid that has finally made it out of the dust covers the rack is bad, the line with the valve is bad. The pump in your car's case may be ok since you kept the fluid level up.

The techs tell me that generally the owner only knows there's a problem when the car starts making power pump noise and this is due to the pump having been run low on fluid that leaked out as I described above.

By this time the pump is also shot.

'course if the rack is dry if the dust covers have only air in them then you have to trace the power steering lines from pump to rack and back again to spot where the leak is coming from. It may be a cracked line, a bad fitting, even a bad power pump tank.