Can anyone CONFIRM Mercedes approval of Dexron III ATF's as a substitute for the oem power steering fluid? I just noticed the leak up at the reservoir and the closest MB dealer is 100 miles away. If I could get some compatible fluid locally and just put enough in to get me by until I can get the oem..... I need to use my 2001ML 320 in the meantime.
Also - I tightened the somewhat loose hose clamp where the return hose comes into the reservoir and cleaned up around the reservoir - maybe I can track the flow of the fluid if I get some more in the reservoir. I suspect it is the universal reservoir/o-ring problem. Does fluid return to the reservoir under much pressure? Thanks!
Can anyone CONFIRM Mercedes approval of Dexron III ATF's as a substitute for the oem power steering fluid? I just noticed the leak up at the reservoir and the closest MB dealer is 100 miles away. If I could get some compatible fluid locally and just put enough in to get me by until I can get the oem..... I need to use my 2001ML 320 in the meantime.
Also - I tightened the somewhat loose hose clamp where the return hose comes into the reservoir and cleaned up around the reservoir - maybe I can track the flow of the fluid if I get some more in the reservoir. I suspect it is the universal reservoir/o-ring problem. Does fluid return to the reservoir under much pressure? Thanks!
You should be okay but I'd use a fluid with a little more consistency of the original, like Valvoline SynPower synthetic blend. As a matter of fact, I've been using the synthetic blend in both ML's and in the ML430 for over a year. It actually got rid of the constant groaning I had after my hose blew. It seems the air gets out a bit better in this brand.
__________________ Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint.- Mark Twain
The return line is not under high pressure. The resevoir is not pressurized. The return line goes to the radiator, near the top on the drivers side in my '02 ML500, and returns to resevoir about seven inches lower on the same side of the radiator. I just fixed mine tonight and it was the o-ring. I wrote a detailed explanation of how to change out the o-ring in another thread near the top of the discussions. I found in MB service manual that I could use Dexron III ATF in my power steering. However, I like the previous comment to use synthetic. The o-ring takes about 15 to 20 minutes to exchange. I cleaned all around so I could see any future issues more easily. So I took about an hour total after I had all the correct parts as you'll see in my other thread.
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