Leaking P/S hoses
Appreciate the replies so far. I picked up the new reservoir today and will stick it on either today or tomorrow.
I haven't checked to see what kind of clamps hold the lines, hopefully worm-type. I have noticed fluid on
the belly-pan, so will investigate further.
Regarding your findings of fluid on the belly pan, two of the four hoses are made with two sections (flexible rubber
and metal) and commonly develop leakage at the swagging where the two sections meet, then it seeps down the
inside of the hoses' mesh protective covering. When I did the reservoir replacement, I replaced both of the hoses
that connect to the reservoir. The other line (between the cooling coil and gearbox), is far more expensive.
Fortunately mine was not leaking from the swagged connection. If you replace one of the hoses going to the
cooling pipe, be sure to order both of the o-rings for the connection at the cooling pipe.
For the hose clamps, use of the factory (Oetiker, pinch-type) clamp will provide much tighter clamping than that
from a typical worm-drive style. Plus, you can use two of them on each connection (and offsetting the clamped
ends by at least 90 degrees) for some serious over-kill. They are very simple to use; just standard "end-nipper"
pliers will work just fine. These clamps come in a vast multitude of sizes, so for proper sizing, use one that will
just slide over your new (and not yet installed) hose.
Power steering fluid; any Dexron III compatible ATF.
Regards,
Alan