I've noticed for a month or so now that the power steering pump is leaking or at least from around the unit and my indi wants to replace the pump. I read numerous threads with people saying they have had noise and some saying they have had intermittent power assist steering. I haven't had any of the issues as other people and is my indi. correct that it is the pump and not a hose?

 

The hoses are prone to leaking, but crawl under and take a look. If it’s unclear, you could clean things up and then check everything over after driving it for a bit.

 

The mechanic did tighten up the hoses and then said to dry it and let him know after a few days. Originally I noticed a leak more on the passenger side and then went to see the indi for him to tell me where did he think where the leak was coming from. I knew it was not an engine leak because the leak was a clean fluid.
Now after going for a few days as the indi suggested the leak now was more midline.

 

Hoses and clamps going to the tank and the cap O-ring are the usual offenders. As long as you're not leaking copious amounts of fluid on the regular would keep it topped off (CHF 11S fluid only) until you can replace both hoses at once; easiest to do the next time you drop the sub-frame for a clutch job, suspension rebuild, etc. Otherwise not impossible in the car but kind of a PITA. Would also be careful not to over-torque the banjo bolts; each has two crushing washers in it which will leak if incorrectly torqued.

 

Lets say, if I am leaking power steering fluid and the hoses appear to be okay then the pump needs replacing? Is there ever a time because I am leaking fluid that automatically mean I need a new pump or is the only time a pump needs replacing is if it makes noise or I am getting intermittent power assist? Am I making myself clear?
I am thinking of going to another shop and see what they find.

 

The hoses generally leak at the unions / clamps. The rubber gets soaked from the fluid and/or nearby leaking motor oil and gets soft and squishy. Believe the pump generally fails electrically (make sure your cooling fan works). Would also think it could leak but not sure how often this occurs.

Hopefully others and/or your 2nd opinion mechanic will weigh in...

 

Yeah, the hoses will generally look fine, but they leak at the connections. Whether it’s your hoses or the pump, I don’t know, but I can tell you that if you own a Mini, the hoses will leak eventually. Sometimes swapping to traditional clamps fixes the issue for a while.

 

I just replaced all the hoses* and reservoir on my power steering system which resolved the power steering fluid leak. This was done when I had the front subframe down for some other work as @Daftlad suggested, so it was pretty easy to do at that point. This has resolved my power steering fluid leak. Of note, my power steering pump was replaced under recall around 2015. I did not intend to replace the reservoir but when I went to order a couple of bottles of the CHF 11 power steering fluid from Amazon for the job, there was a kit that was 2 bottles and the reservoir for less than 2 bottles alone. As it turns out, 1 bottle was sufficient for the job but better to have extra than not enough.

Personally, I am skeptical the pump is leaking. I would do the hoses before the pump.


*power steering feed hose to the pump, the pressure hose/pipe assembly from the pump to the steer rack and the return pipe/hose back to the reservoir.