power steering goes again.
 

June 2015. Power steering hose splits and car towed to dealership to fit a new hose.

been having some whine and screeching while driving for the last 2 days and about 0.5 mile from home, I lost all power steering. limped home and opened the bonnet. No steam like there was previously but could see lots of fluid on the undertray. I don't know if it's another busted hose or a cracked pump. Is there a way to check the power steering fluid level? thanks

will need to tow it to somewhere nearby to get it fixed.:bigcry:

The reservoir is under the airbox and you have to remove the airbox to see it.
I think it's the hose. They tend to break relatively easy.

have you tried aftermarket hoses? like Hack engineering ones?

what is the power steering fluid to use

Pentosin chf 11s. Same as smg fluid 1 lt cans from BMW

tx. bought 2 L from opie

Definitely a weak spot in the car - mine has gone once and i know of a fair few others that have had similar. :bigcry:

Atf oil only
Written on the cap

Bin the cap . C Avatar pic. Originally specified by BMW, probably spec Castrol now. Monkey probily has that info

+1 :thumbs:

I'm fitting what came out.this car has atf in it
I've only ever seen atf come out of these so I don't know if they've been drained flushed and superseded

You're quite right mate, that's what I use. On certain cars we change the ATF to CHF-11S to eliminate certain noises, but it's not something I've seen recommended for the CSL. It may well work fine with the CHF-11S, not something I've ever needed to do though. I think between myself and Adem we look after a few E46 m3s....:supz:

+1 :thumbs:

Stand corrected. Confusion lies on realoem , label for oil container power steering pump chf11.s. :banghead: Cap says atf

so i bought the wrong fluid then

As far as understanding 11s can replace old oil , generally it's used in colder climates, as its better for that purpose, BMW supply label to stick over atf written on cap, don't mix two oils, better to completely renew, both types of oils are for hydrolic systems, don't see any problem BMW recommend it for colder climate, BUT check manufactures instructions if you can find any, sure I will be corrected if I'm wrong, chf fluid was designed to run at higher temperatures and pressure over a long period, could possibly be better in a hard working csl , excluding garage queens..:thumbs:

Any feedback on this guys,always interesting to hear if anybody has different views or experience on this subject, oil technology moves on,

Adem fixed my power steering. Thanks mate

its lighter than I remember now. Perhaps it was indeed pinched leading to eventual failure. Think I will need the billet steering coupler for increased feel.

Hi guys ,I'm still of the opinion chf can be used, Adem James are you still of the opinion chf shouldn't be used in Csl, as I may just give it a go in my csl to compare steering performance :thumbs:

Mate to be honest I don't think you will feel a massive performance increase.
The techs that built the Csl must have genuinely thought that atf was sufficient for the power steering system and stuck to that.im not an oil guru so I can't comment further all I can say in my opinion is that the power steering works far less then the smg pump system.smg gets a lot hotter has far more functions as in its gotta control 3 hydraulic valves so it would be the obvious choice for that system.whereas your pas system is basically a loop around the rack.secondly the rack sits below the engine and it stays cooler as the cold air passes it and once moving steering is under less pressure to work as opposed to standstill turning this could be a factor in not using chf 11s.you would need a technical sheet to compare the 2 oils.its like dot 4 vs dot 5.2 brake fluid higher boiling temps but that will only count if you really abuse the brake system.so summary you could in deed use chf 11s if you felt like you Needed to but I'm sure if Bmw deemed it nesseccary they would have used it in first instance.dont forget they spent I think £95k developing the Csl and sold them at a loss of around £65k to get them outta the door.the techs we met who built the cars said if they had their way it would be so much more track orientated but the average car enthusiast had to be able to drive it.anyone agree?
As I said I'm not an oil guru and I've not noticed any benefit switching brands

As long as it's completely flushed through no cross contamination you can use it.you shouldn't do any damage
One last thought.as your atf cools then heats and cools and heats cycle it does start to break down turns brown kind of colour now simply changing the atf as good service practice will not only improve steering feel it will clear the system of worn debris floating in the oil.didyou know the reservoir has a filter in it.ive only seen it once but these can collapse or block causing steering to feel heavier then usual.these are only my opinions and not facts guys ok

thanks Aden just wanted to confirm it can be done without problems, don't doubt any thing you said , fluid wise if there's anything better out there why not try it:thumbs: ps from what I've read atf good for about 60k before it breaks down, chf could do100k ,.. makes me wonder if there was a cost factor involved.., but that's just my thoughts

Well as you stated earlier oil technology moves n my e90 uses chf 11s so there's no reason Csl can't
I don't know as for cost factor all I recal hearing was that the cars cost more to make then they were sold for
It's marketing proof that Bmw could make one of the most legendary cars ever.i think that's what their aim is regardless of all the new m series cars they have produced the Csl and e30 m3 evo sport are thier finest cars in my opinion

Totally agree you Adem,still love every minute in csl, am on 67 k now am off to goodwood next wk in csl got it booked on super car parking Saturday, will be doing full full steering oil change when I get back, think it's probably due one, see if it make a notable difference :thumbs:

Wicked
Can't hurt to try
Mines at 76k I wanna bring it in and fit my headgasket and schrick cams

Further to this power steering fluid,I’ve not had chance to try chf as yet. But I’m just going to do a part flush for now Do you just use the std semi synthetic atf dexron 111 “red” Oil anybody??? Was in bmw this morning and they couldn’t find a part number or any stock of atf at local dealership???? Just read bmw oil spec for power steering fluid , says to use equivalent to dexron11 Anybody know difference between dex11 and Dex111 ?? Is dexron 11 just a mineral oil, Dexron 111 is a semi synthetic, ....ok I’ve found it dexron 11 relates to mineral atf. Such as castrol TQ dexron 11d -22 765. Or castrol transmax sd21 923. Others Olso, used for older transmissions ha ha ,,so if you can’t find the correct type atf .. There nothing wrong with using chf11 as it’s the only synthetic atf that bmw recommends for out steering rach according to bmw data sheet, completely flush system of course ,, can’t go wrong that way,,

Bit of a bugger when you go to bmw for a part number for the mineral atf,, and the don’t know ,, then you go to an independent motor factors , and with car details inc chassis no. Data system comes back with chf11 ,, Ok you can use this ,, so novice would probably mix the two ,, not good ! But are so called specialists Indi’s mixing the red semi synthetic atf with the red mineral atf,, could this be why the steering rach gets trashed , mabe you can mix the reds anybody???,, just a rant chaps all very confusing this atf:whistle:

Speak to Gareth at Bartletts :) ?