Power Steering Fluid/Electric Pump

lillith919 · Dec 14, 2021

in Dec. 2018, i regrettably took my 2013 (20k mile) Jeep to a place for a quick O-change and rad/hose inspection for coolant loss b/c it was near work and i had to leave town soon after. the mech (who nearly caused catastrophic damage by using incorrect purple coolant despite my handing him the correct pink coolant - and requiring an engine back flush at the dealer to correct their mistake) said the power steering reservoir was low but they "could not find any leaks...so they topped it off with mineral oil".

that was 2018. ffwd to 2021 and the last very bitter 25 degree morning, steering on my way to work was VERY difficult. when i arrived at work, i checked & saw the PS reservoir was at the min line. sadly, until now, it never occurred to me to check what fluid they used in the power steering reservoir. on the receipt, they listed 68218057AB as the part # which is just basic ATF. it says right on the PS reservoir cap what fluid the Jeep requires due to the electric pump, which this shop ignored.

now am concerned what damage the ATF may have done to the pump itself, gaskets or whatever else. i have smelled an hydraulic type smell on start up for the past year and no one has found any leaks. today i saw fluid on the pan but i also just had an oil change 3 days ago. i also just topped off coolant which had been at min level as well.

i went to the dealer for the right PS fluid for my electric pump. i could easily top off the reservoir and have it looked at after traveling the 360 miles home for the holidays. but in reading about electric power steering pumps and how finicky they are about fluids, i am not sure i should travel home for the holidays in this Jeep as is. i had a PS pump fail on my 2003 Overland and it is just not driveable in that condition. 3 months in a row this happened and Jeep could not figure out why. that was when i traded for my current JGC.

should i get the power steering system flushed before i travel to be on the safe side?
my Jeep service department is rated 1-star, so if it can wait until i get to my travel destination over the holidays, that Jeep dealer is a 4-star Jeep shop and lots cheaper than where i live.

is it safe to mix the ATF with the correct fluid or no? i know lots of fluids do not play well together.
should i try to turkey baster remove what is in the reservoir?

look forward to your thoughts and suggestions.

jgcrp1 · Dec 14, 2021

You appear to know this, but in case you haven't seen it:

Belt pump (mechanical) Mopar® MOPAR® Power Steering Fluid +4 p/n 05166226AA (red in color when new)(Note: If MOPAR® Power Steering Fluid +4 is not available, then MOPAR® ATF +4 Automatic Transmission Fluid (05013457AA) is acceptable) 3.6L (early build 2011 models*) 5.7L (2011-2015 model years) 6.4L (2012-2015 model years)

Electric pump Mopar® MOPAR® Hydraulic Power Steering Fluid meeting MS-11655 p/n 68088485AB3.6L (2011.5 – 2015 model years*) 3.0L diesel (2014-2015 model years)

*CAUTION: There is an Electric Power Steering (EPS) pump available on later build 2011 3.6L vehicles which require a different fluid (early build 2011 3.6L vehicles have a mechanical pump). Do not mix power steering fluid types. Damage may result to the power steering pump and system if any other fluid is used. The mechanical power steering pump systems on this vehicle require the use of Power Steering Fluid +4, which meets material specification MS-9602 or equivalent. The EPS pump system uses fluid which meets material specification MS-11655 or equivalent. Do not overfill.

lillith919 · Dec 14, 2021

jgcrp1 said:
You appear to know this, but in case you haven't seen it:

Belt pump (mechanical) Mopar® MOPAR® Power Steering Fluid +4 p/n 05166226AA (red in color when new)(Note: If MOPAR® Power Steering Fluid +4 is not available, then MOPAR® ATF +4 Automatic Transmission Fluid (05013457AA) is acceptable) 3.6L (early build 2011 models*) 5.7L (2011-2015 model years) 6.4L (2012-2015 model years)

Electric pump Mopar® MOPAR® Hydraulic Power Steering Fluid meeting MS-11655 p/n 68088485AB3.6L (2011.5 – 2015 model years*) 3.0L diesel (2014-2015 model years)

*CAUTION: There is an Electric Power Steering (EPS) pump available on later build 2011 3.6L vehicles which require a different fluid (early build 2011 3.6L vehicles have a mechanical pump). Do not mix power steering fluid types. Damage may result to the power steering pump and system if any other fluid is used. The mechanical power steering pump systems on this vehicle require the use of Power Steering Fluid +4, which meets material specification MS-9602 or equivalent. The EPS pump system uses fluid which meets material specification MS-11655 or equivalent. Do not overfill.

ya i only saw that after discovering the shop used ATF fluid though so it's been in there for 3 years. i don't know how low it was though they charged me $13 for the "top off". maybe it was a small amount and it has not done too much damage. but it sure does suck waiting for catastrophe to strike while driving.

IAmTodd · Dec 14, 2021

Have it flushed with Pentosin CHF 11S and continue on.

lillith919 · Dec 15, 2021

Pentosin is a flush or the PS oil?

dealer quoted me $260 for the flush. how much is it just to swap in a new pump? 3 years of ATF could have dyer consequences could it not? reminder am not driving more than 12k annually (b/c i bike a most local places). don't know whether that included the $20 fluid. guess i can return what i just bought if so.

can it wait till i drive 360 miles home though? i just don't trust local shop at all -- 1 star rating is not confidence building. it won't cost half that in my home town.

can i make it home in one piece? top off with the right fluid if it gets too low?
or if it fails will it be gradual or catastrophic? to rent a 4x4 is $1k so i'd rather drive my paid for 4x4.

IAmTodd · Dec 15, 2021

if you've driven it like this for three years what is another 360 miles?

lillith919 · Dec 18, 2021

ya, hindsight is 20/20. wish i had seen this before taking it to the shop. that's precisely what the parts guy said. maybe the crappy shop just topped it off like a tiny bit but charged me for a quart...but a quart of ATF was what the listed as the part # on the receipt. the dealer tech said what they flushed out was green fluid. maybe all the ATF leaked out. lol. the flush cost $260. i will pay more attention to any other fluids coming and going in my Jeep from here out. lol. if was green after the top off then i would likely have not thought twice about needing the flush.
could have spent $20 on the fluid and called it a day.

Power Steering Fluid/Electric Pump

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