I drove my 2010 S65 to work Friday. I live in Alabama and it is brutal cold (for alabama) 13F, (-10C). I drove to work and back (30 miles total) friday, no real issues. When I got home I saw a stream of fluid leavng my driveway (there from when I left). It worried me, but not enough to stay outside and figure it out. Got in the car Friday evening to drive to a chirstmass party and backed out of the garage. Went back in the house to get something and noticed a bunch of oil on the garage floor. So I left it and took another car.

After sampling the oil on the ground and under the car it appears I have an oil leak and it appears to be the ABC fluid or power steering fluid (in is a greenish fluid coming from the drivers side). The underside covers are dripping oil on the drivers side. From the top it looks like there is a lot of fluid about halfway down, but I can't see any obvious leaks.

I backed the car in the garage (engine cold) and checked the dip sticks with the engine off. The ABC fluid is on the dipstick, below the AUS unbeladen and the power steering is not even on the dipstick, although the lowest temp indicated on the dipstick is 22C, which is a lot warmer than the fluid was. I willl note the power steering is working, both during the drive to work and the brief time it took to back it in the garage.

I am going to wait until it warms up to actually work on it and figure out where the leak is coming from but I have a few questions:

1. What is the correct way to check the ABC level? It has an "Aus Unbeladen" and "An Unbeladen" on the dipstick, I figure that is engine on and engine off? Does temp matter?

2. Any advice on troubleshooting other than turning on and looking for the leak?
"

 

Hi Auburn:

On #1: The top is for engine off, after it sits a while, and bottom is engine running. The accumulators compress while the pump is running and thus the level goes down. Which, BTW, is a way to check if your accumulators are kaput ... I don't think temp is crucial.

On #2: Take a look at this post: https://mbworld.org/forums/cl-class-...ectancy-3.html

At post # 57, I started on the same journey with my V-12. And the culprit is at post #71. If your getting that much fluid, you should be able to find it. If not, here's another journey, which was "fixed" with Pro-Seal and still good:

https://mbworld.org/forums/s-class-w...hink-leak.html

However, sound like you're beyond a stop leak solution.

Good luck and Merry Xmas... Mark

 

sounds like - lack of use and cold temps, seals dried up and given up

 

Generally, Google is your friend, brother. However, in this case, it is still a little vague. I think mcypert is probably correct about the conditions implied by the markings.

 

It got warm enough for me to brave the garage with two space heaters going and run this down. I took off the inner fender wells and the front two underbody panels, no obvious leaks. I topped up the power steering and ABC fluid and turned on the car and it was easy to spot the leak.

It is leaking quite rapidly under pressure from the same hose you had a problem with. It is at one of the fittings on the area where the hose runs vertical next to the pump. It is not burst such that fluid is coming out at high velocity but in terms of volume, but in terms of volume it is weeping out rather quicklye. Quite frankly I am surprised I got to work and back this week without it running dry.

It is also very weird the way that hose loops around over top of the pump. It could have been half as long if it just ran from the valve body to the pump.

Well at least it is not the pump. Probably going to drive the corvette for a few weeks until it gets a bit warmer and I can fix it without being terribly uncomfortable. Any tricks to getting that hose off? Just unbolt everything and work it out?

 

I guess that's good news Auburn-- in that you found it! Still have the pics of mine:




The U-turn that hose makes over the pump is a mystery to me. I don't see any engineering reason for it. Certainly, not for cooling. Perhaps, more hose to take up pulsations of the fluid, but that's what the accumulators are for???

Now the question is whether to "try" to fix the old hose or get a new one.... It's just a hydraulic hose, but running at absurd pressures. One would think a good hydraulic hose shop could fix it, but, being at the far southern end of Texas, I couldn't find anyone too nearby. Just make sure they know this isn't a run-of-the-mill PS hose, and will be running at several thousand psi!

A new one will probably be special order, but the first link, in my reply above, provides some suggestions.

And, Yes, just bolt-off and bolt-on. I've provided some screw sizes in the pic. The ones on the pump are difficult to reach. IIRC, I used a torx/star bit and taped it to a small box-end wrench to get to the T-40's on the pump connection-- either didn't have the right tools or there was just no room... tedious and time-consuming, but there are only two!! I also recall having to buy the T-47 because it wasn't in my arsenal, and guessing the correct size required a couple of trips to Ace Hardware...

Be ready to catch the Pentosin when you remove the hose. I manually primed the tandem pump by turning the pump pulley by hand, with the bottom connection loose. (I had thought of bumping the starter to spin the pump, until someone reminded me the engine would start as soon as you hit start!!!) I don't know if manual priming is needed, just didn't want to run it dry... I think any other air left in the system will otherwise work its way to the top of the reservoir...

Finally, to those critical of ABC, I still like it, and think the experience is worth the price of admission...

Regards... Mark