[marc2oni]

http://www.8thcivic.com/forums/suspension/202421-diy-power-steering-flush-r18.html

I plan on just replacing the fluid in the reservoir every 15k-20k miles (currently at 11k mi)

Changing the oil at 15-20% is fine -- doing it at 40-50% is a waste of money and oil

ty :thumb:

& off topic but i agree. i've spoken to honda techs on the oil thing and they've told me even if it goes lower then 15-20% that it's fine. modern oil lasts a long time.

 

[Jatan]

Also, a user mentioned here that his pump started to whine after letting it run dry for a min: http://www.8thcivic.com/forums/do-yourself-articles/279453-power-steering-pump-56110-rna-305-a.html (3rd post)

If you dont want to risk that then just replace the reservoir fluid, start the car, turn the steering wheel right/left a few times so the fresh fluid mixes in, stop the car and do it again 1-2 more times (@32k miles your fluid shouldn't be that bad so replacing it 2-3 times should be good enough). If you want the fresh fluid to mix in a little more then you can do it once every weekend for the next 2-3 weekends. After that just replace the reservoir fluid every 15k-20k miles and you should be fine

I did this method on my old Nissan when it had 120k-130k miles since the red PS fluid was brown -- I had to do it 5-6 times until the brown fluid turned red

I dont know how much the reservoir holds so I would just buy 2-3 bottles of Honda PS fluid and keep the leftover to use in the future -- the retail price on the Honda fluid is around $4-4.50/bottle, you can check local dealer websites to see if they have any % off coupons that you can use (you can find it online for $3-3.50 but the shipping charge makes it much more expensive)

 

[marc2oni]

Also, a user mentioned here that his pump started to whine after letting it run dry for a min: http://www.8thcivic.com/forums/do-yourself-articles/279453-power-steering-pump-56110-rna-305-a.html (3rd post)

If you dont want to risk that then just replace the reservoir fluid, start the car, turn the steering wheel right/left a few times so the fresh fluid mixes in, stop the car and do it again 1-2 more times (@32k miles your fluid shouldn't be that bad so replacing it 2-3 times should be good enough). If you want the fresh fluid to mix in a little more then you can do it once every weekend for the next 2-3 weekends. After that just replace the reservoir fluid every 15k-20k miles and you should be fine

I did this method on my old Nissan when it had 120k-130k miles since the red PS fluid was brown -- I had to do it 5-6 times until the brown fluid turned red

I dont know how much the reservoir holds so I would just buy 2-3 bottles of Honda PS fluid and keep the leftover to use in the future -- the retail price on the Honda fluid is around $4-4.50/bottle, you can check local dealer websites to see if they have any % off coupons that you can use (you can find it online for $3-3.50 but the shipping charge makes it much more expensive)

Awesome write up that is exactly what I'm gonna do ty for the detailed response. :clapping:

thanks for the comments/advice/tips everyone, i'll post here after i change the fluid.

 

[marc2oni]

k so i bought 3 bottles of honda psf ($5/per) and a cheap fluid extractor from pepboys ($3). sucked out the old fluid, put in new fluid. turned car on and turned wheels lock to lock a few times. turned car off, sucked the fluid out, put new fluid in. looks good. i then went and changed the psf of my older 97 civic just cause i had some left over. have 1 unopened bottle left, which i'll return. so all in all, dealer would of chargd me $120min, cost me $13.

 

[5SK]

gotta love dealers lol they will always charge u an arm and leg

 

[Jatan]

How much of the bottle did you use to refill the reservoir once?

 

[marc2oni]

it used most of 1 bottle each time to flll it, not all. but keep in mind i did this the way that was listed just above ^^. where i had to pump it out, refill, mix, pump it out again, mix again... etc multiple times (i only did it twice tho and it was fine).

 

[ryanrasor]

Yes!!

 

[oj88]

This is how I ask the dealer to change my PSF.

You can do a sort of a 'dialysis' to totally remove the old PSF from the system. It's typically a two-man job and it involves removing the return hose and attaching an extension hose to it with the other end going to a container. The container is where the old PSF will go. You can initially use a turkey baster to remove most of the PSF from the reservoir so it won't spill when you pull out the return hose.

Lift the front tires off the ground about an inch, start the engine, turn the steering lock to lock several times while another guy pours new fluid in the reservoir. The new fluid will push the old stuff out and into the container. Caution: As soon as you start the engine, the return hose will immediately pump out PSF at a relatively high pressure. Make sure to secure the extension hose on both ends unless you want PSF all over your engine bay... and/or on whoever the guy is pouring the new fluid.

As soon as the PSF going to the container becomes clear, stop the engine and reattach the return hose to the reservoir. Fill up the reservoir with PSF, restart the engine, and turn the steering wheel lock to lock several times again while the other guy tops up the PSF. The bubbles will bleed itself out. Stop pouring new PSF when the level stays at the MAX line.

Clean up, drop the front wheels and you're done.

 

[Lone_Wolf]

Ok so heres what I'm gonna do. I bought a fluid extractor from PepBoys and spoke to the guy there about changing PS fluid. does this sound right:

1-I'm gonna suck the PS fluid out with the car on
2-turn the steering wheel side to side to get all of it out (he told me turning will get harder and harder due do there being no fluid, he said that will not hurt the car)
3-turn car off, clean anything needs to be cleaned.
4-Fill it up w/ new ps fluid. Turn car on, turn the wheel a few times.
5-have a beer.

i know there's a diy on here, i read it, i just wanted clarification.

This looks like a sure fire way to get air into the system. Also running the pump without fluid is a good way to break it.

 

[civic8lover]

Steering Wheel Get harder after a minut?

Hey Guys,

i am new to this forum hope i will not be disappointed by the experts here

I have strange issue with my Steering Wheel, i switched my car off and then i switched it on and start my car and all in sudden i felt that My steering wheel got hard like a ROCK to move with a hand, But as soon as I switch it off for a longer time lets say a night and as i switched on and start my car in the morning or after a longer time lets say a couple of hours then its become softer then before for a minute or so and again get harder after that.

Mechanic did changed the fluid though it was extremely dirty he removed the dirty fliud but even now after that the problem is the same, its still harder its only become softer once i start my car after a long time ( Letting my car switched off for a night or a couple of hours) and its remain softer for a minute but after a minute or so it become start harder and it become harder then ever within a minut.

I will really appreciate your expert comments here.
Thanks in advance.
Cheers!

Waqar

 

[Adel]

Dear Ladies & gents I dare sneak in here as would like to draw your attention on a recurring statement you focused on which is ' to use the genuine Honda PS fluid' and that is the crux of the matter .

The hicth is that I really must flush my PSF ASAP on my 2005 Honda civic EX as I had a glance on it yesterday and it is getting black ( never been replaced at all ! ) yet as Honda distibutors left ALGERIA ( North Africa) in 2008 I am in a pretty pickle here , honda spare parts are like gold dust here let alone fluids !

As a matter of fact , I had no choice other than using CASTROL ATF transmax to refresh the the auto tranny fluid , I am afraid the Power steering here will underfo the same treatment !

So far , I have been the laughing stock of the mechanics and salesmen and every Tom , **** and harry down here everytime I say the Power steering fluid and the ATF are not the same .

Tomorrow , I am gonna pop by VW , Nissan and Toyota official distributors down here and ask about their PSF and ultimately use on if them , the worst case scenario will be to use Castrol ATF Transmax on a temporray basis for some months and in the meantime find a Good Samaritan to bring me 2 liters of Honda PSF from Europe.

Please put yourself in my shoes and spot a replacement equivalent PSF that won't damage the joints and PS pump ...

Thanks a million for your active support guys

Best Regards

 

[Ducttaperacing]

Power steering systems are relatively easy on the fluid. However, steering racks are expensive and a gigantic pain in the balls to replace. Given that, I would replace it with Honda genuine p/s fluid or atf (whatever the manual specifies) every 60-80k miles and follow this video:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Iev1xIr345Y