Before driving your car with any sort of fluid leak, it’s critical to understand the possible consequences. While some small leaks aren’t a concern, some fluid leaks can quickly create damage to your car that can require costly repair or replacement.
When it comes to leaking power steering fluid, in certain cases you can continue to drive until you can repair the leak and replace the fluid, but you need to pay close attention. We have put together this list of guidelines to help you avoid damage and get your power steering leak fixed quickly and affordably.
What Can Happen?
While a small power steering fluid leak won’t put your car off the road, it is very important to treat your leak quickly. There are several reasons for this:
- A small leak rarely stays a small leak. Your power steering fluid is obviously not meant to leak. That means if there is a leak, you have the beginning of a problem. A few drops of power steering fluid on the ground are not a reason to panic, but know that once a leak starts, it almost always gets worse over time. When your leak is due to a small crack in a hose, for example, if the crack gets bigger, you can quickly lose all your fluid in a short time.
- A loss of power steering fluid affects the drivability of your vehicle. While some (much) older cars don’t have power steering, that’s not the same as driving a car equipped with power steering but no fluid. When your power steering fluid leaks out, your power steering rack will not function properly and steering effort is greatly increased. This is especially pronounced at low speeds and can make steering extremely difficult. Your vehicle’s instruction manual will outline the dangers of driving with no power steering fluid.
- Driving your car for extended periods without power steering fluid can damage the pump. While there’s nothing that physically stops you from driving your car if you have a power steering fluid leak, once the level drops, your pump runs dry. This causes increased friction and heat and can quickly cause expensive damage. If you need to drive your car with no power steering fluid, try to avoid extreme turns to the left or right, and replace your fluid as soon as possible.
A power steering fluid leak isn’t going to leave you stranded on the side of the road, but it still needs to be taken care of quickly. At the first sign of a leak — either power steering fluid on the ground or a low level in the reservoir — pick up one of our Bar’s Leaks power steering leak repair products and stop your leak before it becomes a major one.
We’ve been in the business of stopping leaks for over 60 years and have proven formulations designed specifically for your power steering fluid circuit. We guarantee your satisfaction and are confident we can stop your power steering fluid leak quickly and affordably.
Questions? We have answers. Hit us up on Facebook, or contact our support team directly. We’ll help with you with any concerns you might have.
