I know about the fact that you need to change all of the fluids regularly but I can't find anything about power steering fluid. How often should it be changed? How do you change it? Any recommended fluid? Neither manual has a recommendation about it other than to "inspect the power steering wear indicators"

 

I've used a turkey baster to extract the fluid I could, filled it up drove it around the block then drained it agian. Do this 3 times and you'll get most of it out. My 95 requires synthetic ps fluid, not sure about other years-synthetic may do more harm than good (leaks)

 

Same here, the manual for the 95 specifies part numbers 12345867 or 12345866, one for a pint, one for a quart, or any fluid that meets GM spec 9985835, I found some of the GM stuff on Ebay and swapped it out as Steve20 described. None of the PS fluid I found in the stores met the GM spec.

 

Well FWIW I change mine once a year and use Redline synthetic, that is with track use though. If I did not track the car I would likely change the fluid when it looked dirty. That would probably take two years + and some tens of thousand miles. I only suck out the reservoir and replace with fresh. So far the pump has lived, I've been surprised.

 

Can you still get Valvoline SynPower Synthetic PS Fluid? That's what I used last time I changed the fluid in my rack and it works great.

 

I think the Synpower stuff is being discontinued, I found some at a NAPA and it didn't meet the GM spec, so I didn't get it and used the GM stuff. There are many people that use "conventional" PS fluid with no problems. I asked one of the Techs at the local dealership that pretty much only works on Vettes and he said any PS fluid would work. On the other hand, you will see many threads about "morning sickness" in the steering rack. The correct GM part is called "cold weather" ps fluid, so I am thinking that perhaps the high incidence of morning sickness is related to using conventional fluid. So I sprung the $20 for the special fluid. My car has 60K miles on it and I am assuming it was never changed, so I changed it, I will probably do it again in another 60K

 

As for the "how to do it", I flush the PS fluid in one of two ways. Both methods involve the same prep work.
1. Examine PS reservoir and locate the upper, return hose. You will need to remove the upper hose (some fluid will spill) from the reservoir and then plug the upper port to the reservoir. I use a piece of vac or fuel hose (that is the proper ID) and plug the ID with either a wood dowell or a hex bolt to plug the upper port of the PS reservoir.
2. Get a length of hose (about 3 feet) whose ID is very close to the OD of the PS hose that was removed above. Slide the PS hose into the larger hose and place a clamp to hold the two together. Make sure you keep the end of the new, larger hose elevated such that fluid does not begin to drain.
3. Jack up the car and place stands under the car. Place a large pan under the car directly under the PS reservoir. While keeping your finger covering the end of the hose, route the end of the hose toward the pan under the car. The fluid will begin to drain from the PS system.

Method 1: Allow the fluid to drain until it stops. Add more fluid to the reservoir and this will flush the new fluid through the system and it will flow into the pan. I do this twice while the wheels are straight, twice with the wheels turned to left and twice while turned to the right. Note the fluid drains slowly and this may take some time.

Method 2 is much faster and can be very messy if a mistake is made. Instead of using a pan, use a 5 gal plastic bucket under the car. Tie the hose (from step 2) to the bucket with either tape or string. Fill reservoir with fluid and bump the starter. When she fires, immediately shut off the engine. The pump will void the reservoir in about one second and will literally "blow out" the fluid. Add more fluid to the reservoir and do the same with the wheels turned to max in both directions. Do this until you have fresh fluid coming into the bucket.

After you complete the flushing (and the car is still up on jack stands), reconnect the hose to the PS pump, fill the reservoir and start the engine. While the engine is running, move steering wheel to both right and left to remove any air bubbles in the hydraulic system. Recheck the PS level.

Sorry to be so long with this as this is an easy process to do.....after you have done it once.

 

SamLam's method is probably the best for getting all of the old fluid out, but I used the turkey baster method like Aardwolf and Steve20, I do it like a week apart 3 times and the stuff I am taking out looks pretty much like the stuff I am putting in.

 

I'm thinking that this is a maintenace item that I should do, since I have no idea how old or how long or what the fluid might be in mine. So, can someone identify the recommended or 'correct' PS fluid for an '85. I had just assumed that there wasn't a whole of lot of choice for PS fluid as it is basically hydraulic fluid, but it sounds like there is...

 

For a 95, the FSM specifies part numbers 12345867 or 12345866, one number is for a pint, the other is for a quart, or any fluid that meets GM spec 9985835. I don't have the manual for an 85, I would be interested to see if it says the same thing.

 

I have both the owners and shop manual - so, I'll check tonight and let you know.

 

My '85 GM shop manual calls for "GM power steering fluid, Part No. 1050017 or equivalant"