Power steering issue... fluid, or broken big time!?

Evening all, haven't used my C4S for a while (I know, I know) and with plans to attend a cars and coffee meet tomorrow morning I thought I'd treat it to a proper wash at the in laws 4 miles away (they have the driveway & jetwash I don't). Couple of miles into my journey suddenly a loud whirring noise happens which rises and falls with revs. Within a minute or so I'd worked out that the noise was more prevalent when using the steering, which in turn became very obvious when the power steering stopped working just as I was getting there. I drove the 4 miles back, no noises but no power steering either. Checked level and it's bone dry so that's the smoking gun - although it doesn't answer why the level suddenly dropped. So my questions are: Has anyone experienced this before and if so what was the resolution - naturally I'm hoping it's as simple as topping up the levels! Does the fact there is no noise now indicate that the pump and/or rack is damaged having run without fluid? If not the latter then I'm hoping I can drive straight to a garage in the morning, refill and carry on to the meetup.... which I realize is optimistic...

Refill and drive it. Park in the same spot, then check for leaks front/rear. Power steering pump is pretty robust. Question - when was the last time you checked the fluid level? Often goes unchecked/unnoticed for a long time.

Yep, very common. Just be careful when you fill it up. It doesn't take much. Plus its very thin so it runs fast. A skinny turkey baster or cooking syringe with a plastic tube on the end works well when removing extra fluid. Here is the fluid. You can get it on amazon or at your local dealer. Never checked at the local auto store.

Thanks guys, will take note when filling. Been a while since I checked personally but it was serviced in January so I'd expect them to have picked up if it was low.... But it was just an oil service and checkover so maybe it was missed. Do I need particular fluid? I think Halfords or a large garage is about all I'm going to find tomorrow...

If it ends up that you have a leak, it could be a number of things so there is no need to jump to conclusions. Check out this thread for some info. https://rennlist.com/forums/996-foru...uid-leaks.html

Probably popped a seal at the rack

Napa caries the Porsche Steering blood, both versions..

Morning folks. Did the club meet this morning, car fine, steering heavy I did pick up some of this on the way back, it's same spec as the branded stuff recommended above, but presumably it'll work just fine as it says for vehicles where CHF 11S is recommended. Given it'll likely leak out as I suspect a blown seal, probably ok....right? Any thoughts appreciated. https://www.halfords.com/motoring/en...MTE4MS4wLjAuMA ..

Could be a blown seal. Also, the connector/o-ring into the back of the PS reservoir can leak. Took me forever to find the leak as the fluid will pool on top of the engine before it fills the voids enough to drip down.

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Yup. I mean, I could be lucky and it's just low and a top up sorts it.... but that seems unlikely. I'll have a good look over it in the next few days and if I can identify a leak, there seems little point in topping it up. Any thoughts on the Halfords fluid?

Just total anecdotal experience, but every time I've tried equivalent brands of hydro fluid when the original stock was Pentosin have not ended well for me. Power steering, atf always got seal leaks, I finally just started sticking with it. Bad as owning a bike with Magura hydraulics, use other brands and feel the fail.. LOL

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Out of curiosity what happens if using non Pentosin? As a layman, it seems to me that the same grade should work fine and it's branded as 'for vehicles with CHF11S'..... Mainly asking as I want to try filling/topping up with the Halfords fluid. If it's just a top up then it'll be mostly OEM fluid, if it's leaking then it'll help me figure out where from and can be replaced with 'the good stuff' when fixed.

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don't always trust marketing from companies ..

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Well, I don't. But 'replaces 'such and such' isn't marketing, it has to be fact or it's lies which is dodgy. Anyway, my question was what happens if I use the Halfords stuff?

Don't know how far you are from a dealer , but it's only about �5 more a litre. I get mine from design 911 as I'm just replacing leaking pipes on the rack. Although somewhat delayed as currently in hospital As for Halfords, no idea. I generally used oem or dealer Hope that helps

Hydraulics fluids are touchy picky chemicals. I grew up around farm equipment.. You use exactly what they tell you or a nice man with the ability to empty your checkbook shows up to replace all the seals in the tractor .... Same with motorcycles, try and replace the "Magura-Blood" they call it brake fluid.. you mix even the supposedly compatible stuff and all the seals in the clutch or brake let go.. If you flush the system with what you wish to go to,, (Which means wasting at least a gallon) But rubber changes with age, and the new chemical package may or may not play nice, with the old rubber.. Like I say I'm sure there are exceptions but considering a new pump rack for a 996's price? I err on the side of the extra 5 bucks, plus despite its cost, the Pentosin is very very high end fluid, its used in a lot of critical applications they make about 20 flavors for many other non Porsche things.. I/m pretty conservative on fluids, I use the Porsche Antifreeze too... And I cant even give a good reason..

Fair enough, I'd rather pay the extra than end up with dead seals/rack/pump! I only bought the halfords stuff because it was the only place open on the Sunday it happened... glad I didn't just chuck it in!

AutoZone, O'Reilly's, and perhaps other chain auto parts stores carry CHF-11. The stuff must have gold in though, because it's around $40 per quart. Use the correct fluid. The PS reservoir cap has CHF-11 stamped right on it.

I use cff-202 with no issues in the street and track. Its advertised as compatibale with chf-11 and its half the price. Although in my car i did perform a full flush.

Yes the CHF202 is the newer version of the CHF11S. VW specifies the CHF202 in all their cars from 1990-up. Around here it's available in most auto parts stores, they call it "convertible top fluid". That said my Cayenne was full of brown PS fluid (Ford fluid I think) when I got it. I drained and flushed it with CHF202 and it's been fine since.

CHF11S is the "dirty bad earth killing" version CHF202 is the new friendly version. FWIW, they are both TRUE hydraulic fluids, versions of it are used in Aircraft landing gear and things like that where misbehavior is BAD... Most PS fluid is ATF without the friction modifiers. Hydraulic seals typically don't like petroleum products much, kinda like the old silicone vs DOT3/4 brake fluid. Its amazing though how even the wrong stuff, is better than non at all..

Holy thread revival! Garage can't get my car in till 27th hence not been across this much. However it's nearly time so..... This presumably is the right stuff? And if so how much do I need.... https://www.design911.co.uk/p/pentos...urce=doofinder

That's what I've been using from design911 too

Has anyone had success finding Pentosin elsewhere? D911 don't have any in stock and it may be a while before it arrives.... Is there an acceptable substitute such as Fuchs Titan? Amazon Amazon

I walked into AutoZone and picked up a can of CHF 11S. Simple. Don't mix power steering fluids.

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That's great... but sadly we don't have Autozone in the UK I can't find it in stock anywhere available off the shelf....

You can get this from any VW or Audi dealer, it's the same stuff. Ask for fluid for a 2015 Touareg or a 2015 Q7. It's called G004. Febi-Bilstein 06161 fluid is listed as an alternative too.

Since you provided an Amazon link, why not get this Amazon Amazon

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" Currently unavailable. We don't know when or if this item will be back in stock"

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This is available in a few places right now, if it's definitely an alternative I'll get it ordered, thanks. Has anyone else used this stuff instead of Pentosil?

To add; the only reason I'm questioning the Febi stuff is variable listings: some on Amazon/ebay don't list Porsche, mostly VW & BMW whereas Opie Oils (who I trust as an expert) list this as their only compatible PS fluid for my car.....

So at this point its been over a month and u cant find this fluid in the uk? I would be happy to stop at the store on the way home from work, grab 2 liters and figure out how send it to u. I hope it doesnt come to this but its a serious offer.

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That's very kind of you! If only you were in the UK.... First three weeks were just waiting for the booking (my garage is very popular, which I guess is a good sign) but now just waiting for supplier to actually receive some stock. If I can use the Febi-Bilstein stuff instead I can get that next day, but reluctant to use unless recommended - although it is listed for my 996 by a top quality company so I'm inclined to trust their judgement.

Im sure u will be able to confirm a substitute but if u cant im happy to help from this side of the pond.

Pentosin has been used on BMW's in the noughties and it's a avaliable at the parts counter of BMW dealers. 11. Hydraulic fluid CHF 11 S 1000ML X 83290429576 83290429576 Give them a try!

Thanks for the replies folks, I finally managed to get an order in with Design 911 and 2l *should* arrive tomorrow. I might even be able to drive my car by the weekend!