Power steering problems - losing fluid

[Slackboy72]

My VR (265k) is losing power steering fluid at a steady rate and giving me that dull whine when the fluid gets low.

Last time I re-filled/looked there were tiny bubbles in the fluid.
So what could be causing this?
What should I replace?
How much?

[Tom_1569]

Well its gotta be going somewhere.
Clean up all the powersteering gear with degreaser, (Rack, Lines, Pump, Reservoir) so its spotless, then fill it up with cheap Dex III and bleed the system out*, check fluid, fill if neccasary.

Then drive it for ever how long it takes, and check to see where its leaking from. If its the rack or pump, you can get reco ones, rack being around $220, and pump being around $140-$160.
If its the reservoir, go to holden or the wreckers and pick one up.
If its the High pressure line I would be inclined to get a new one (genuine if possible), if its the fluid return line either the wreckers or a new one.

*Bleeding the power steering system is easy, its a matter of parking the car on sand or on jack stands, with the engine running go full lock left (holding it for a split second) then to full lock right (holding for that split second) then return to centre.

[Slackboy72]

Ah cheers. Going to fix the water pump this weekend and the PS next weekend. I'll do the degrease when I change the WP.

[Shaundy]

If its the pump don't just rush out and buy another one. I recently had the same issue with my VS and all I did was go to Repco and purchase a seal kit for around $12. I dismantled the pump myself, refitted the seals and reinstalled it and havent had a problem since. Much cheaper option than buying another pump. One tip however is when you remove the old seals, make sure that there are no small chunks of the old seals left in the grooves. If there are and you don't remove them, the new seals will get pushed out when you install the backing plate and it'll leak like crazy. I lost a reservoir-full of fluid in a day because of this.