Power steering fluid for Nissan...

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First off, do you think it's worth changing.

Second:

My manual says use Nissan or an equivalent which it says could be Dexron3/Mercon or an equivalent ATF. It doesn't list Nissan Matic D as an equivalent.

However, under auto transmission in the manual it says Dexron3/Mercon or equivalent is ok.

So it doesn't specifically say I can use the Nissan Matic as power steering fluid, yet the equivalents they list for each fluid type match.

Do you think I can use the Nissan Matic as power steering fluid? The reason I ask is because they only sell power steering fluid in small bottles and it would be cheaper to get the bigger bottle the Matic D comes in.

Anyone know how much I'll need? I don't know how much the Nissan takes Sentra Takes. It's an '01 SE.

Thanks
 
Every oil change I use a turkey baster and draw out the fluid. Then refill with M1 ATF in Ford PS pumps.
 
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..Or any other Dexron III fluid. Synthetic ATF such as M1 or Amsoil would work great and keep the PS system well preserved. Buy 2 quarts and siphon out the PS reservoir every hundred miles or so. By the time your 1 QT. bottles are empty, you'll have pretty much all new concentration of fresh fluid.
 
I have a 2007 Frontier. Went to the Nissan dealer and the garage guys told me to use Mobil 1 ATF. It is all they use in the garage. I too use the turkey baster method and the pump runs very nicely on the Mobil 1 ATF.
 
Most of the seal issue occur on Hondas when using a non honda approved/specd fluid. I have used both ATF and PSF in Nissan applications without issue.
 
Originally Posted By: Spartuss
..Or any other Dexron III fluid. Synthetic ATF such as M1 or Amsoil would work great and keep the PS system well preserved. Buy 2 quarts and siphon out the PS reservoir every hundred miles or so. By the time your 1 QT. bottles are empty, you'll have pretty much all new concentration of fresh fluid.


I have a question about this. I'm wondering if anyone has done the math on this. I'll start a new thread if it doesn't get much action here because I think this is an important point.

Say the system holds 2 quarts (anyone know what it actually is?), and I can only replace 8oz. at time. If I replace 2 quarts eventually, I would still be nowhere near a 100% changeout. Reason being is everytime you add fluid it's going to be dilluted with the rest. Some people would say it would be contaminated and ruined at that point, but I have no idea if that's true or not. For argument's sake let's say that it's false. You still have it being dilluted and everytime you go to replace some more you are dumping out some of what you put in.

If you are trying to replace 2 quarts in this manner, my guess is it will take many time 2 quarts to actually come close to a complete changeout.

I'm not saying it isn't of some help, but I think a lot of people haven't really though it through.

If someone is good at math I'd love to see the formula for this.

I did some reading about ways to actually do a flush and there seems to be some risk to it as it's a hydraulic system and could be harmed with the engine on from lack of pressure and also if you aren't fast enough with pouring and get air in the system. Not sure how much I could get out of the system without the engine on.

I may go ahead and do a couple quarts just to feel like I'm doing something or I may just leave it be.
 
I don't know the math but here is what I do. Once a year pump out as much PS fluid as possible, and fill the system. Drive for a day or so and repeat, I do 2 qts worth. If you're the original owner it will serve you well.

If I am buying a car of unknown history, I check the fluid and condition as part of the car inspection process. If the car meets my stamp of approval, and I buy it, I'll do the same thing as above only swap out 4 qts. Then go back to my once/year approach I mentioned in the beginning. I never had any PS issues in 33+ years of doing this.

I am not a fan of disconnecting anything on the PS system to do a flush. YMMV. HTH
 
Aman74: I don't know the mathmatical formula but when I 'turkey bastered' my Buick I just kept doing it every few weeks until the fluid was clear.I think I used a qt. and a 12 oz. bottle. The original fluid had turned very brownish by 80K. I'm now at 105K and I just added Auto-RX to the PS reservoir. I plan to run it 1K and then 'Turkey baster' it approx. 4 times over the next 2 months. I'm hoping this quiets the whining.

I don't think getting every last drop of old fluid out is as important as adding new fluid (with fresh additives).
 
Originally Posted By: demarpaint
I don't know the math but here is what I do. Once a year pump out as much PS fluid as possible, and fill the system. Drive for a day or so and repeat, I do 2 qts worth. If you're the original owner it will serve you well.

If I am buying a car of unknown history, I check the fluid and condition as part of the car inspection process. If the car meets my stamp of approval, and I buy it, I'll do the same thing as above only swap out 4 qts. Then go back to my once/year approach I mentioned in the beginning. I never had any PS issues in 33+ years of doing this.

I am not a fan of disconnecting anything on the PS system to do a flush. YMMV. HTH





When you say "pump out" do you mean just what you can get out of the reservoir or are some of these pumps that are geared towards this able to get out more than what's in the res?

Thanks
 
Originally Posted By: pbm
Aman74: I don't know the mathmatical formula but when I 'turkey bastered' my Buick I just kept doing it every few weeks until the fluid was clear.I think I used a qt. and a 12 oz. bottle. The original fluid had turned very brownish by 80K. I'm now at 105K and I just added Auto-RX to the PS reservoir. I plan to run it 1K and then 'Turkey baster' it approx. 4 times over the next 2 months. I'm hoping this quiets the whining.

I don't think getting every last drop of old fluid out is as important as adding new fluid (with fresh additives).


That's the route I'm going to take. How much do most power steering systems hold? The overal volume and the amount you are able to change would be key to the effectiveness. In thinking more about this I think my PS fluid reservoir is actually pretty big, so this might work out ok, but I don't know how big the system volume is.

I have a friend who was suggesting the turkey baster method for brakes. Honestly, I don't think that would do much at all. For one thing, my master cylinder reservoir is very small. Another thing is, does brake fluid move much throughout the system? Maybe it does, I dunno.
 
Originally Posted By: aman74
Originally Posted By: demarpaint
I don't know the math but here is what I do. Once a year pump out as much PS fluid as possible, and fill the system. Drive for a day or so and repeat, I do 2 qts worth. If you're the original owner it will serve you well.

If I am buying a car of unknown history, I check the fluid and condition as part of the car inspection process. If the car meets my stamp of approval, and I buy it, I'll do the same thing as above only swap out 4 qts. Then go back to my once/year approach I mentioned in the beginning. I never had any PS issues in 33+ years of doing this.

I am not a fan of disconnecting anything on the PS system to do a flush. YMMV. HTH





When you say "pump out" do you mean just what you can get out of the reservoir or are some of these pumps that are geared towards this able to get out more than what's in the res?

Thanks


I have a small pump looks something like the pumps from the large detergent bottles you get at Wal-Mart. It has 2 clear hoses, one long, one short. IIRC I bought it years ago for filling a differential. I stick the short hose into the PS reservoir, the long hose into an empty bottle, and pump out the fluid. Faster and cleaner than a baster, and the short hose can get down far into the reservoir. HTH
 
Thanks, I thought maybe it was something that takes more out of the system then just the reservoir. Still, sounds handy to have.
 
It does a better job IMO than a baster, I've used both, and it does get more out of the reservoir. Both will work.
 
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