Since the topic of maintenance is a hot one today, I suppose I'll get this out of the way since I didn't find anything directly related in a quick search.

My car has 98k and the fluid has turned a nasty greenish/gray color. I also noticed a little bit of P.S. noise when the car first starts and the idle is higher.

I heard recently in another thread that Toyota is still using the absolutely stupid design where the P.S. pump is located DIRECTLY above the alternator. If this is still the case and there's the possibility of a leak, is it wise to do a FULL flush at this point, or would it be better to remove and replace a few pints directly out of the canister with a turkey baster etc.?

Yet another fluid that should have a more frequent change interval and results in direct consequences by just 100k. Sigh.

 

On my old 06 Highlander (at 57k miles the PS fluid was black) I manually drained the PS reservoir and refilled with clean fluid about 7-8 times. I did the drain and fill about 2-3 times a week (when I had 5 minutes to spare) until I had done it enough times that the fluid stayed nice and clear. Probably used about 1.5 to 2 quarts of Trans fluid total to do this pseudo "flush". Fairly primitive but it works just fine. I plan on doing the same to the LS when the fluid gets dirty and dark looking.

 

My dealer charged $144 for a power steering flush at 50,000 miles. I'm happy with that. I try very diligently to properly maintain my UL.

 

The 2002 Lexus Maintenance Schedule doesn't show any time or distance interval for power steering fluid change. Not sure if this means "as needed" or if it means that the fluid should not be changed in case changing would damage something.

The service manual doesn't have any information for doing a flush or for fluid replacement. I am sure there is a reason for that - maybe the fluid wasn't meant to be replaced and the system wasn't meant to be flushed? EDIT: My local Lexus service manager says "The power steering fluid does not need to be replaced under regular use, the fluid should only need to be replaced if the power steering pump has failed and there is metal in the lines and power steering rack."

For foaming or emulsification of the fluid, the repair procedure is to bleed air from the system.

3. BLEED AIR IN POWER STEERING SYSTEM
NOTICE:
If you replace or separate the components for power steering
oil pressure line, bleed air in the power steering system
after the operation.

Jack up front of vehicle and support with stands
With the engine off, turn steering wheel slowly from lock to lock several times
Lower vehicle
Start engine

(a) Idle the engine at 1,000 rpm or less until bubbles in the
fluid disappear. (Be sure not to turn the steering wheel.)
(b) When the bubbles disappear, slowly turn the steering
wheel from lock to lock 2 to 3 times, keeping it at full lock position for 2-3 seconds each time.
(c) Repeat procedures (a) and (b) until the fluid level in the
reservoir becomes stable and bubbles disappear. If the
fluid level goes below the MAX line, add fluid.
(d) When the fluid level becomes stable, increase and decrease
oil pressure 2 or 3 times for both left and right by
turning the steering wheel to the full lock positions and jiggling
it there.
(e) Make sure that no bubbles exist in the reservoir. When
turning the steering wheel quickly or turning it from lock
to lock position, check that the steering wheel is not heavy
to turn and there is no abnormal noise or vibration.
(f) When there are fluid leaks or abnormalities after bleeding
air, repair them and repeat procedures (a) to (e). If the abnormalities
still exist, replace the related parts.

 

On my old 06 Highlander the fluid had gone black at 57k. Toyota checked it during a standard engine oil change and recommended at $89-100 PS flush service. Being cheap and careful, I declined until I went home and did a little research - after researching I decided I could approximate a flush myself with using a diy manual drain and fill process - spent about 7-8 bucks on two quarts of Dextron. The PS fluid was still fresh and clean 5k afterwards (then we sold it and bought an 07). I think in the old days PS was generally not changed because if neglected it would still last about 100-125k and by then many cars were in junkyard anyway.

 

 

Same. When I got my 04, the first thing I did was take it to an indie Toyota/Lexus shop and have them flush and change every fluid. Power steering, brake, transmission, rear diff oil.

If there's one thing common to Toyota and Honda-made vehicles, the hydro-mechanical systems seem to last decades IF the fluids are changed.

 

 

A great "tool" to have around is a turkey baster. Excellent for removal of old fluids, and cheap to boot.

 

 

A very handy item is a vacuum oil drain setup. Marine dealers sell them. I'm sure one can be had on Amazon as well.
On my old Mercedes diesel I could literally do an oil and filter wearing a suit and tie. No climbing under on the Mercedes diesel engine back in the day.

The small drain tube and the vacuum power these generate make them THE tool for removing fluids. I noticed that Harbor freight has an air powered vacuum drain setup that looks pretty good. My old boat oil drain setup is about done, I've had it for a lot of years. I may splurge on the Harbor Freight unit, I think it's around a 100 bucks.
Does anyone use a setup like this on their LS? I know I had a Ford where the dipstick tube passed very close to the exhaust manifold. Be very aware of that if you use one of these units. Getting melted plastic out of your dipstick tube is not an easy task. That's about the only issue I had and it sure makes for a quick and clean job.

 

If the fluid never been changed (original fluid) then the reservoir most likely has a sludge. In my land cruiser, I disconnected the reservoir and scrub it with tooth brush. Also there is a little screen that I cleaned by spraying brake cleaner (I am assuming the LS also has little screen similar to Land Cruiser). I then flushed the fluid. Here is a good step by step for Land Cruiser, but I am sure can be applied to LS.
https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/ste...#post-10516307

 

I know you're talking about something more sophisticated than a hand pump, please explain? Seems like since the opening is large to the PS reservoir, the fluid pump that's sold on amazon for maybe $10-$13 would work, it's sold under many different brands, but available at HFT for about $5.59 with their coupons:

https://www.harborfreight.com/multi-...ump-63144.html

I let my indie do it for $42. Don't get me wrong I drain/fill my wife's GM tranny, but I have avoided the '06 LS430's tranny and since $42 sounded reasonable with the PS, I let them do it. I know people even use a turkey baster method for brakes, I don't like it at all, and prefer to do things right (heaven forbid a dealer does that, right? I suspect some might, get the money and don't do the work).

 

Any place that has snowblower suppliers usually has them as well. Easiest way to change the oil on a snowblower without tipping it over and making a huge mess.

 

Mine has a drain tube with a cap, the tube runs horizontally, and the cap resembles a fancy valve cap on expensive rims