[VWNate1]

RE : the 4th.P.S. Pump in 4 years ;

The fluid is polly contaminated in spite of your changing it with each new or rebuilt pump .

Give it a sniff , if the fluid smells like burnt coffee , it's bad .

I like to buy a gallon or two of bulk Dexron and flush the system , it's simple : disconnect the return hose and put it in a large jug , cap off the nipple on the pump , fill the system and have a funnel in the pump and the new gallon of ATF in your hand, have your helper start the engine and as the pump rapidly (you'l be amazed at how rapidly) pumps itself empty , you fill the resivoir as your helper turns the steering wheel lock to lock , of course the front wheels must be off the ground , this will flush out the nether regions of the entire PS system, the box , spool valve and so on .

Then stop the engine and re connect the hose , fill the resivoir until the ATF *just* touches the bottom of the dipstick , it'll expand a lot (10% minimum) once it's good and hot .

I hope you know to use Dexron ATF in the power steering .

Also , never , EVER hold the steering against the stop ! this is what causes the fluid to rapidly overheat and burn plus it also beats the living hell out of the PS Pump .

I often find I have to flush the PS system several times before the fluid remains sweet smelling .

I always use a hospital clean drain pan and look closely at the old fluid , if there's any shiny bits in there , get a Rare Earth Magnet and place it inside the resivior to collect the metal swarf that's been killing your pumps .

In some of my old junkers it's taken over a year and 6 + flushes before the fluid stopped turning black & stinky after a month of operation .

As always : oil is the cheap Mechanic and easier to change than steering parts .