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Check Your Power Steering Fluid

From Matthew Wright,
Your Guide to Auto Repair.
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Regular maintenance should always include a check of your car's fluid levels. Power steering may seem like a luxury you could live without (as if) but if it fails you could be putting yourself in danger. A car designed to have power steering can be very hard to steer without it. If it goes suddenly, you could lose control of the vehicle and end up in a very bad place.

Lucky for you, it takes less than five minutes to check, and even fill, your power steering fluid.

Checking your fluid level:
It's best to check your fluid when the engine is cold, but some cars have markings for checking it hot or cold.

The reservoir that holds your power steering fluid can be found under the hood, usually on the passenger's side of the vehicle, but sometimes on the driver's side. It's usually on the side that has the belts in a smaller (transverse mount engine) car. It will say "steering" on the top some kinda way in any case.

Most cars these days have an opaque reservoir that allows you to check the level of the fluid without opening the container. Wipe it off for a clear view of the markings, then check the level.

If your vehicle doesn't have a clear reservoir, you'll need to remove the cap to check the level. Before you open it, take a rag and clean the cap and the area around it. Dirt can really irritate the system. The cap will have a dipstick built into it. Wipe the stick off, screw the cap on, then remove it again and check the level.

Now let's add some power steering fluid.

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