Power Steering Fluid Loss

[greg124]

I've recently noticed a drop in the level of power steering fluid in the reservoir. Haven't had chance to crawl underneath, but is this likely to be the rack, or something else? and can the rack be repaired, or would it likely need to be replaced?

[Cloggy Saint]

It could be the rack, or the connection on the pump or the connection from the reservoir. A look underneath will reveal all.

[Brianmoooore]

Rubber boots on the end of the rack can hold a fair bit of fluid before anything leaks onto the ground. The inside of the boots should be dry, apart from possibly a smear of grease.
Rack repair kits do exist, but can be difficult to source, so the usual route is to replace with a professionally reconditioned rack, a good second hand one, or to 'upgrade' with an E36, E46 or Z3 rack.

[BenHar]

First place to check is the low pressure connection on the bottom of the reservoir.

They all seem to go there. Nice easy fix.

Ben

[greg124]

Thanks guys.
The top 6-8 inches of the low pressure pipe under the reservoir was wet, so I've ripped the crimped pipe clip off, cleaned everything up, inspected the hose and replaced with a jubilee clip.
Need to keep an aye on it, and hope.

[Brianmoooore]

The weep on the pipe under the reservoir is just about standard on every BMW that uses a hydraulic power steering set up, and the standard solution is exactly as you have done, but the fluid loss through this weep isn't usually enough to noticeably drop the level in the bottle between services.
Have you checked the rack boots? It's important that you do before a MOT tester does.