My son has A 1981 Corvette with a 350 motor. He has replaced all the hoses, but the power steering fluid drains completly out of the reservoir after the car has been setting. I have wiped everything as clean as possible and filled the reservoir and laid paper towel under the front end so i could see any oil drips, left it set for about an hour and no leaks. Started the motor and turned the wheels from full right to full left several times, no leaks. Left it set for about 2 - 3 hours no leaks. The next day all the oil has leaked out. The car was not started or used. Can you help me with this problem?
If there is no visible leak point then unfortunately the fluid is probably ending up in the boots on the steering rack - i.e. it might mean that you need a new rack. You should see some evidence there, but those boots can hide it pretty well.
Either that or you’re using some super-special fluid & someone is sneaking in & stealing it by night…
You wiped everything, including pump, reservoir, hoses, and steering box. With the reservoir empty, there should be a puddle under the car and a fluid trail on something, unless leprechauns sucked it out.
Try using a UV dye tracing kit. Add the dye to the power steering fluid you add to the pump.
http://www.autozone.com/autozone/accessories/Quest-1-oz-oil-and-fuel-UV-dye-bulk//N-265k?counter=4&itemIdentifier=210225_0_0
Next time it leaks out, grab the light and see what glows.
It does leak out under the car but I checked it for several hours and nothing leaked, it then leaked out many hours later although the car was never started. I thought that maybe the o ring seal between the housing and the reservoir but I can’t find a trace to any excessive oil other than in the pan that we placed under the car.
That’s where the dye comes in. The dye will glow under the UV light from the leak spot and pinpoint the problem.
Ok - so it does actually leave a puddle under the car? This just can’t be that hard to track down then.
Thanks,we will try the dye and a uv light.