My father rang me a few days back to tell me that he was having issues with the power steering. I took the car in for an oil change today, and noticed that when the car was on the rack that there was a little leak of red(ATF) fluid on the steering rack, that had spilled down on to the tranny. My mechanic sprayed brake cleaner on the area in question, and told me to bring the car back tomorrow, or Friday, so that he could investigate further. I have read that some people have used a power steering sealer lubricant(Lucas or Bar's), and I was wondering if that was a good solution to this particular problem. Thank you one and all

A few years ago, my indy mechanic told me that the steering rack on my '96 850 Turbo was leaking and would have to be replaced. The rack itself isn't that expensive but the overall bill is a killer due to the labor (drop the sub-frame, remove lots of parts, etc).
While I was deciding what to do, one of his mechanics took me aside and told me to wait until on this until I really needed to replace the rack. In the meantime, he put a few drops of brake fluid in the power steering unit. (He stressed just a few as more is not better in this case).
After that the leak stopped and it lasted about three years before the seal finally let go and the rack HAD to be replaced.
This may not work for everyone, but it worked for me. Good luck, Fred.

Mine was leaking just the same way... the way I figure it, you can try the Lucas' (like I did, and it worked) for $5, or you can just throw your hands up in the air and say "they never work" and spend many hundreds of dollars when you might just get another year or two out of it if you had tried the $5 solution.

Like I said in a previous post, Lucas worked for me, and I had a "weeping" fluid loss just like this.

i **just** got off the phone with my mechanic. My rack also needs to be replaced, because the seal is shot. Strange that there are suddenly so many postings about this, but apparently the cold weather has some effect on the seals failing.
i found the best price to be jorgenauto.com for $265 (but this does not include shipping for new part or core return). Also they *will* accept the original rack (SMI, French made, non-rebuildable) - some suppliers will only take the newer TRW cores as they are re-buildable.

I wound up going with a used one from erievovo.com for $145 - right now it's all about keeping the cost down, so this is the best alternative for me, although not my first choice. They test and warranty the part, however, so I'm not terribly worried about it failing while I own the car.

scott k.
96 850T wagon

When I bought my V70, just over a year ago, the dealer suggested that I replace the steering rack. A second opinion told me that it was just "weeping" and could be just an O ring. I haven't touched it since and it stopped making noise.
Before you jump to costly conclusions, let your mechanic find out why it is leaking. He is your best source.

Klaus
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(V♂LV♂s 1975 164, 1995 854T, 1998 V70R)

Just so happens I'm having the exact same issue right now. Unfortunately, have no answers, just questions...

Power steering pump was making a little noise. Checked the fluid level, it was a little low. Topped it off, then looked under the car to see where fluid was escaping. Leak appears to be fairly new...nothing dripping on the garage floor.

I'm aware of the serious nature of power steering fluid leaks. How do I save my rack? Will a flush help? Have yet to pinpoint the location of the leak...does that matter? Help!

Update: the power steering fluid is coming out from around the pinion shaft. Is this the "bad seal" that everyone is speaking of? One other thing - I'm just a caveman, but could someone explain how a single leaky seal causes the need for an entire rack to be replaced?

The search continues.......... :)

I have yet to see any of them work, for anything. And that includes radiator, power steering, tranny, and so on.

Mine was leaking and I drained the old PS fluid and replace with new PS fluid - been about 4 years, and still no leak. Good luck.