Stopping Power Steering Fluid Leaks

[JEllis]

Everyone that tracks their M3 knows that the power steering fluid gets very hot and will eventually leak out of the vented reservoir.

Here is my passenger side fender liner after my last track day. What you are seeing is power steering fluid that has sprayed the fender liner as well as under the hood and pretty much everything else in proximity.



One solution you see a lot is this:


-Hopefully you don't mind me borrowing the pic

But, this is just a temp fix and eventually you are going to have to top off the reservoir.

When I tracked my car last I brought this problem up to Ilia of IND and he mentioned a solution that 3D Design came up with. Essentially a secondary reservoir above the first that the power steering fluid can expand into and then flow back into the system as needed. Its a really clever design and I am surprised they are not more popular.



The installation is very simple. Take the OE cap off and screw on the 3D expansion reservoir. Then put the cap back on the 3D reservoir... done!



The expansion chamber installed. You can see the vent holes for the fluid to expand.



Installation complete!

[dparm]

Interesting product. Thanks for sharing.

[MilehighM3]

Very nice. I think that's a lot better than the external reservoir others have used appearance wise.

[E90M3velocity]

Cool product, not so cool on the price lol. I havent taken the m3 to the track yet, but it looks like this will give me one less thing to worry about when i do. Thanks for sharing this hidden gem

[E90M3velocity]

Originally Posted by Bmw135er

Very nice. I think that's a lot better than the external reservoir others have used appearance wise.

Eas also recommended a while ago replacing the reservoir with the newer style oem ones (32416767161) and an hose adapter. Suppose to be better at venting pressure. Havent read much people that are using it though

[JEllis]

Originally Posted by E90M3velocity

Eas also recommended a while ago replacing the reservoir with the newer style oem ones (32416767161) and an hose adapter. Suppose to be better at venting pressure. Havent read much people that are using it though

Hmmm interesting. Its an expensive piece but its nice not to have to worry about power steering fluid spraying everywhere.

[spdy330]

That is pretty cool!

[MilehighM3]

Originally Posted by E90M3velocity

Cool product, not so cool on the price lol.

Holy hell, I just googled it. That's a solid 4x what I had expected! $665 for that, I'll pass

[speedaddictM3]

Originally Posted by Bmw135er

Holy hell, I just googled it. That's a solid 4x what I had expected! $665 for that, I'll pass

yeah. No shit. I'll just keep wrapping mine in toilet paper/ paper towel/ napkins and hold it with an elastic band.

[IMG]

Very nice,looks great too. Thx for sharing !

[happos2]

Cool idea. Now if someone could make it on the cheap. For that price, I can go through A LOT of socks and shop towels! Appreciate you sharring!

[rev9k]

That price is ridiculous for what it is although I'm not surprised. Maybe someone can make one for the rest of the community here if we could get our hands on one. Looks very simple.

[okusa]

Originally Posted by Bmw135er

Holy hell, I just googled it. That's a solid 4x what I had expected! $665 for that, I'll pass

$665???

[C-M2]

You can also go this route for a lot less. Team RLL runs a similar set up on the Z4's in ALMS.

Credit: kaiv

Parts:

* Rear brake fluid reservoir from the F650GS PN# 34 21 7 706 055
* 2 feet of vaccum line (napa)
* 90° fitting (napa)
* 1 bolt (10mm head bmw)

Total cost: less than $30.

[E90M3velocity]

Originally Posted by JEllis

Hmmm interesting. Its an expensive piece but its nice not to have to worry about power steering fluid spraying everywhere.

True that, btw is that a newer style oil cap that your using?

[JEllis]

Originally Posted by Smg Ftw

You can also go this route for a lot less. Team RLL runs a similar set up on the Z4's in ALMS.

Credit: kaiv

That is pretty cool.

[JEllis]

Originally Posted by E90M3velocity

True that, btw is that a newer style oil cap that your using?

My car is a 2013, not sure when the new caps came out.

[Hujan]

Originally Posted by Smg Ftw

You can also go this route for a lot less. Team RLL runs a similar set up on the Z4's in ALMS.

Credit: kaiv

Cool idea. I would probably also mix in a pair of small hose clamps to keep the hoses on there. Do you have a BMW part number from the bolt?

I do wish the 3D Design piece was a little cheaper, but I appreciate you bringing this up, JEllis. I haven't taken the M to the track yet, but want to in the near future and I love learning about relatively simple, unobtrusive things that can be done to make the car more track-worthy.

Great thread!

[JEllis]

Originally Posted by Hujan

Cool design. I would probably also mix in a pair of small hose clamps to keep the hoses on there.

I do wish the 3D Design piece was a little cheaper, but I appreciate you bringing this up, JEllis. I haven't taken the M to the track yet, but want to in the near future and I love learning about relatively simple, unobtrusive things that can be done to make the car more track-worthy.

Great thread!

At a minimum cover your reservoir with socks/towels or whatever. The fluid goes everywhere! The 3D solution is probably more useful to some than others.

[0_to_60]

interesting idea

[C-M2]

Originally Posted by Hujan

Cool idea. I would probably also mix in a pair of small hose clamps to keep the hoses on there. Do you have a BMW part number from the bolt?

Great thread!

I don't but I can find out for you. I plan on adding this to the car during the winter.

Originally Posted by JEllis

At a minimum cover your reservoir with socks/towels or whatever. The fluid goes everywhere! The 3D solution is probably more useful to some than others.

The only place the fluid should be escaping is the little evap hole on the cap. If its coming from the bottom of the cap then you have a gasket issue.

Here is a picture of the setup RLL uses on the Z4

[Beedub]

Originally Posted by Smg Ftw

You can also go this route for a lot less. Team RLL runs a similar set up on the Z4's in ALMS.

Credit: kaiv

Great solution!!!!