Isuzu Bighorn power steering fluid flush procedure

[lukemclaughlin]

I’ve just flushed my power steering fluid and wanted to share the method I used which was quick and easy to do and resulted in a complete flush of the system in under 10 minutes.

Begin by removing all the fluid from the reservoir using a fluid pump ($21.49 from Supercheapauto). The filter inside the reservoir can be removed with pliers and pulls straight out the top. Removing this filter allows you to reach the bottom of the reservoir and pump all the fluid out. Next disconnect the return line at the bottom of the reservoir, it’s the smaller of the two hoses and is the rightmost hose if looking at the reservoir from the front of the car. Attach the fluid pump directly to this return line hose. Block off the return line hole/port at the bottom of the reservoir, to do this I used the longest hose which came with the fluid pump and attached this to the reservoir return port and then bent the hose back on itself to make sure no fluid flowed into this hose from the reservoir. Using any plug or hose and bending it back on itself will work. Next fill the reservoir up with new ATF and begin pumping the fluid pump which is connected to the return line hose. This will suck the new ATF through the system down the hose you didn’t disconnect and pump all the old fluid out via the return line hose. Once the reservoir is empty refill and continue until the fluid runs red out of the pump. It took me 2 reservoirs worth of fluid to pump all the old dark fluid out and see new red fluid begin coming out of the pump. To avoid a giant mess you want to finish the flush with the reservoir empty so after you’ve pumped all the old fluid out, continue pumping until the reservoir is empty (avoid pumping air through the system, leave a small amount of ATF in the reservoir, 1cm is enough). Then you can disconnect the plug/hose that was blocking off the return line port on the reservoir, disconnect the pump from the return line hose and reconnect this hose to the return line hole/port on the reservoir. Then reinstall the filter and fill the reservoir with ATF. Turn the car on and top up the ATF in the reservoir. Move the steering wheel from lock to lock multiple times and check the fluid level again. Top up if needed, alternatively if the fluid level is above the max line use the fluid pump to drain a bit from the top of the reservoir.

I used Dex 3 fluid as recommended by the manual. Place a rag underneath the reservoir and hoses to avoid getting ATF on electrical parts. I pumped the old fluid directly into a oil drain pan but any container will work. There is a lot of space for a container to sit next to the reservoir and hoses. To accurately check if the fluid your pumping out of the return line is the new fluid you’ve been adding to the reservoir you should use a new container to pump the fluid into each time you fill the reservoir, this way you can see an accurate depiction of the colour of the fluid that you’re pumping out. This job requires around 1-2 litres of Dex 3 but a 4 litre bottle of fluid is recommend if you wish to do this procedure again after a few weeks of driving to ensure there is only clean fluid in the system.

[lukemclaughlin]

This power steering fluid flush procedure was done on a 1996 Isuzu Bighorn 3.1DT

[obs1234]

This power steering fluid flush procedure was done on a 1996 Isuzu Bighorn 3.1DT

Just found this...thanks for this! Need to do on my '97 Bighorn.....