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I've had a major power steering leak on my Mercedes R500 V8 97,000km for several years now. I have to keep topping off the fluid every 2 months as replacing the steering rack didn't fix the leak. It just ran low on fluid in under 2 weeks bringing back the horrible groaning noise. I decided to look under the hood today to try and find the issue. When I looked, I saw fluid near one of the hoses and in between the reservoir and the pump. My mechanic recommended replacing the pump however ~$600 replacement isn't something I think needs to be done yet. What's causing the leak and could I order the parts myself? Thanks kindly, Hayden.
Hi,
I had almost the same symptoms for many years too, except the leak was much less (I had to refill around every 6 months). I was also scared thinking I'd have to change the whole thing, but one day I saw a youtube video showing how to change the seal between the pump and the reservoir, saying that it is the reason of leak in most cases. I did not try myself but instructed my garage, adn they could do it for around 80$ (seal is only a couple of $ or so though). It's more than a year now, and no more leak, I'm very happy.
Did the O-Ring seal trick work Hayden? Wondering what you did to fix the issue. I'm having a problem with my power steering and they want to change the pump...and then maybe the whole rack.
The O-Ring seal fixed the power steering from it continually losing fluid, however, because of this leak the pump ran for some time without fluid, which caused it to wear out quickly. I got the pump replaced and the noise went away completely. If I had replaced this seal before the pump got worn out, I wouldn't have needed to replace the pump.
I had the rack replaced on my R500 a few years back when the power steering first started to act up. This didn't fix the leak issue. I left it for a few years as my mechanic would just top off the fluid every few months if it started to groan when turning.
If it's losing fluid, replacing this $20 gasket is an easy start to determine what's causing it to leak.
If your fluid level is stable and at the correct level, but still groaning, you probably just need a new pump.
This tread is at the top of the forum and funny enough it is exactly the reason I came here. I have 82k on my 2008 R350 and have a puddle on the floor from a power steering fluid leak.
I had replaced the o-ring two years ago myself but I still see a bit of sweat/fluid coming from it. The bottom chasis however is really wet which my mechanic once told me my steering rack and pinion is leaking.
Now I am trying to figure out if that much fluid could come from the reservoir or it is actually the steering rack. I will pay a visit to him this week to figure it out. I see that some also had to replace the hose. It is tough to tell since there is a bit of oil everywhere.
How much did you pay to replace your steering rack? Did you get a new one? If so, OEM or aftermarket? OEM is really expensive so looking to avoid that. I'm thinking used or aftermarket if anything.
Do you know how much labor was involved on the rack and pinion replacement?
Any huge amount of fluid can come from the reservoir as it's pressurized. I would lose half of the fluid from that little gasket.
They replaced the "steering box" and the two tie rod ends for ~$2000 CAD parts and labor. I can't remember if it was OEM or aftermarket but was new parts. This wasn't through the dealer. It was quite the expense only to hear that it didn't fix the leak.
Also, you said there was oil everywhere. I had my mechanic quote a "major oil leak" on mine when it had ~50k only to discover 7 years later it was the oil cap gasket making it lose 2L every few months. Fixed it for $20 and now it holds oil like a champ.
Thanks for the quick response. I will find out more info and post and update when I have it. This car has cost me a fortune over the last 25k miles. This year alone I spent 5k to replace the transfer case, AC compressor, AC condenser, belts, transmission fluid, two front wheel bearings. Just when you think you're good for a while you drive another 2k miles and you start pouring money into it again. If it wasn't for the car shortage, I'd get another car. Its one of those times where even at 2k its worth fixing and trying to buy another year (or 6 months the way I am pouring money into this thing)...
Indeed we've also poured a crap ton of money into our R500. But gosh, it's one heck of a ride.
yeah, it is really comfortable. We just came back to Long Island from Manhattan and it was nice to not have to worry about the roads. The suspension handles them very well. I'm finding it hard to determine what to replace it with. I'm going back and forth btw an Odyssey (more practical for 7 pass), X5, X7 and GLS450.. The latter three have lost a lot of features for the 2022 model year which is making me want to buy another year or two with the R350 and then upgrade.
07-04-2021, 05:52 PM
