[alpinec1984]

My 2006 e90 power steering reservoir seems to have an even coating of fluid and attracted dirt all over starting at the top. There is no seal of any kind, just plastic to plastic. Is this correct or did I lose something? I see no leaks it appears to be slight seepage from the lid. Thanks.

[mapleleaf1773]

You are correct, there is a seepage hole on the lid. That being said, there is a filter in the bottom of the ps resivor. When the ps fluid gets dirty it clogs the filter.

In most cases you will need to flush your ps fluid and replace the resivor as the filter is not replaceable.

If you do not, the dirty fluid will start to reek havoc on your ps pump and you don't want that.

[Efthreeoh]

The filter doesn't get clogged. Lol. Just clean the cap and housing get a new o-ring for Christ's sake.

BMW has been using that PS reservoir for nearly 35 years. It occasionally just needs a new o-ring.

[mapleleaf1773]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

The filter doesn't get clogged. Lol. Just clean the cap and housing get a new o-ring for Christ's sake.

BMW has been using that PS reservoir for nearly 35 years. It occasionally just needs a new o-ring.

Why does fluid come out of the seepage hole when the the fluid needs changed? Oring problem ok then. I stand corrected my bad lol. I was misinformed as well.

[Hoody007]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

The filter doesn't get clogged. Lol. Just clean the cap and housing get a new o-ring for Christ's sake.

BMW has been using that PS reservoir for nearly 35 years. It occasionally just needs a new o-ring.

I second this. It’s about $4.00 at the dealer - I’ve also heard success stories from inverting the o-ring as an alternative.

I bought and installed a new o-ring about 15,000 miles ago and the outside of the housing has been dry ever since. The dealer wanted me to replace the entire housing and flush the P/S system for “only” $575...

[alpinec1984]

for posterity, no O-ring whatsoever works poorly

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by mapleleaf1773

Why does fluid come out of the seepage hole when the the fluid needs changed? Oring problem ok then. I stand corrected my bad lol. I was misinformed as well.

The filters getting clogged is just internet BS. It's not a seepage hole. There needs to be an opening to the atmosphere, or else if a fluid leak occurred a vacuum would set up in the system and make the rack inoperable.

[mapleleaf1773]

Thanks for the clarification

[mainbearing]

When I put on a new o-ring years back, that stopped most of the fluid seepage but not all. Some still come out from the vent hole, I wonder if it had something to do with fluid temperature and evaporation.

IMO, this reservoir design sucks.