steering box...

[A80Avant]

noticed the other day that i was low on hydraulic power steering fluid.I used some to fill it up,and today noticed where the leak is comming from.It seems that the bellows on the steering box has been raptured and i have a leak there...Taking the car on monday to get it looked at..
also steering acted a bit funny.When i filled up with fluid,i turned the ignition on,tryied to turn the steering wheel,it did 45deg curve then suddenly hit a stop(as if the wheel was locked.Then turned it once again,another 45 deg.then stop again.After a few seconds,the wheel was working fine.

Only thing i have noticed now though is that when i reach i full turn towards the end of the 2+1/2 circles,it gets kind of tuff to completelly reach the far end,on either sides of the turning(left or right)....
any ideas?
Could this be wrong kind o fluid used?could it just be the end of my steering box?could it just be the bellows and nothing more?By the way,after i added fluid it hasnt seem to have lost any for a couple of days now....

finally,is it bad if the fulid exceeds a bit the top filling?it seems to have in mine from what i idded to it..

cheers
Vasilis

[S2 Ant]

on the S2, it needs G002000 fluid.
It shouldnt be filled to the top, there are markers on the resevoir, the full mark is something like 3/4 of the way up, so not near the top.

The initial problem, might have been the fluid working its way back in to the system, now its filled all the way thru again, that might be why its workign as normal again.

The stiffness at full lock tho im not sure about.

[A80Avant]

i couldnt buy audis special fulid so i bought a BP visco fluid which is for power steering and automatic gear boxes(as it says on the box)
actually what happened was that i filled it up to the line,and then teh next day i saw it having been a bit higher than that!

[jon_91_s2]

Isn't anything other than G002000 a big no no on the S2?

[A80Avant]

i removed the excessive fluid now,so i guess on monday i will talk to the mechanic...

[Jas11n]

Hmmm, Fluid for automatic gearboxes is bad in the Audi PAS system as the guys say above. Other types will perish the seals in the pump and steering rack.
It has to have green mineral fluid only ( VAG G00 2000) I think the US chaps get away using stuff called Pentosin.
IIRC the fluid should be checked with the engine running too.

[A80Avant]

i see,well in that case i will go and buy the hydraulic steering fluid tomorrow from audi and remove the one that is already in with the new one.In any case,symptoms where there before i added the BP stuff in so...

[UR-S4]

If you get stuck you can use LHM fluid.citroen & Rolls Royce use it in their hydralic systems.

[Mikes2]

If the fluid you put in was red, you'll need a full system flush to clear it. I would recommend this ASAP as it will damage internal seals - not just on the rack but the pump as well.

[puppetman]

my steering kinda does the same. it will stick every once in a while. what causes this? also i noticed that my brake light comes on during quick heavy brakeing. any help would be great. sorry bout thread jacking

[A80Avant]

s$#^%t the fluid was red.Im going to audi in a little while.Ill use a big injection tube to drain all fluid from the reservoir and replace it with original.Should i do this with the engine running or stopped?

[A80Avant]

ok fluid is replaced.Used a syringe(being a doctor has its plus!) to drain all fluid from reservoir,around 600ml.I could not drain any more out,but reached bottom at the reservoir.Anyway,used audi original mineral fluid.I could say that i dont hear too many whining noises now,but the stiffness of the turning when the wheel reaches its final left or right turn remains.could this be an indication of a steering pump malfunction?is it a PITA job to replace?
cheers
Vasilis

[Martynf]

I would talk to Audi to ask them how much they charge to flush all the wrong fluid out. WHat has happened is VERY bad for the Audi steering rack and pump, it could mean new rack and pump, the ATF fuilds should never be used. Talk to Audi, ask them the best way to clean it all out, and keep your fingers crossed. Phone them, I'd be very reluctant to start the engine at all with the wrong fluid in there. The PAS pump is easy to replace, teh PAS rack is NOT!

I wish you very good luck

[A80Avant]

how much fluid is there in the steering rack alltogether?Is it 1liter?
well here is the thing,
the original fluid that was in was original audi G002000.I only added the wrong stuff which was less than 200ml.Hence i got a mix of correct and wrong fluid.

Now i drained 600ml of fluid (mixed)and replaced it with original again G002000.
How bad could it be?
Let me tell you also that i dont have servotronic,only regular power steering and also same problems where there before me adding the wrong fluid in,and also after today which i replaced i guess as much as i could.(techinician told me that it uses 1liter of power steering fluid,but i dont think so,it seems too much.)Even after that there was no improvement in the situation,so i doubt that my adding the wrong fluid damaged the rack.

There is a hole in the elastic bellows of the rack,which seems to have had a leak underneath,but after i added and replaced the fluid,i have no losses,so im hoping it is only the bellows,and maybe my steering pump is about to give up...

[volcano rs]

take all yor pipes off at the pump and to the bomb jack up your car from the front ,engine off ,turn your steering from lock to lock when all the fluid has come out let the jack down but leave the pipes off over night . next day jack up and lock to lock again to make sure all the fluid is out . then top up and start the engine the rack will rattle a bit turn lock to lock and keep adding fluid untill it bleeds itself . it should be ok thats how i did mine after putting wrong fluid in and damaging my pump (2 of them ) its ok now.