Ive noticed some max's have a copper tube(cooler) that goes in front of the radiator..well how important is it to have? since i got my 98 gle have changed the ps fluid by way of turkey baster, i did it about 8 times..my question is do you guys think that a cooler will help the ps rack/pump last longer or is just changing the flud on a regular basis do pretty much the same thing?...like i said in other posts ...i have been maintaining this car better than any other car i have ever owned....i just hope it actually makes a difference and not just waisting my time chainging the ps fluid?!!

 

This should be common sense. I suppose you could go without it since the 99's didn't come with it, but I wouldn't feel comfortable about it.

 

I didn't know the 99 didn't have the cooler. Nissan evidently brought it back because my 2000 has it.

 

Why are you worried about the ps cooler?

 

My 98 didnt have one of the copper cooler line either.(just a rubber hose loop) .soi i guess nissan decided it wasnt necassary??

;

 

im just looking forward to having this gle as long as i can and common sense tells me the rack and p/s pump would last longer when cooled, but i dont have the copper cooler (didnt come with one) so do you think just changing the fluid once or twice a yr will help the pump and rack last??

 

99? hell my 98 gle didnt come with one either...guess the nissan engineers said screw it, its not that big of a deal!

 

Changing the power steering oil every year isn't going to make any difference. Most people never change the oil and having around 15 years to see how this works out, I think it shows that changing the oil isn't going to buy you much.

And if you do change the oil, remember that the power steering uses Dexron ATF oil.

 

Well this is interesting. My 98 has it.

There was a thread posted not long ago about the 99's not coming with it.

 

99 has 150k original rack and all, no problems. Cooler sounds nice but my car has managed in the Florida heat w/out any (ps) problems that is.

 

why the heck are you changing your power steering fluid so often? there are much more beneficial maintenance items you could be doing instead of wasting your time changing something that can literally go like 5-10 years without a change.

 

i added a3" x 8" cooler in front of where the loop was, i did it because i had it and didnt use it for what i planned. i figured why not, i have not seen any difference but i doubt its the kind of mod you notice, i have 211k on her ... can't think of a good way to measure effectiveness tho.

 

So that's why the 99's have much better steering, it's the removal of the cooler.

Who knew...

FYI: Only changed the PS fluid 2x in 200K, never an issue with the steering.

 

I havent chaged the p/s steering fluid 8 times...i just emptied the p/s res 8 times with a baster to make sure i got most of the old **** out...
i thought the way i explained it was common sense!

QUOTE:This should be common sense. I suppose you could go without it since the 99's didn't come with it, but I wouldn't feel comfortable about it.

 

so you removed the majority of the old fluid in the reservoir and replaced it with new fluid? how's that not changing it again? lol

whatever you want to do bud. seems like overkill to me (and apparently every single other person who has posted in this thread).

 

I have seen many P/S coolers at the junkyard. But, all of them were aluminum. As far as the cooler vs. frequent oil change. I would have to go with the oil cooler. Keeping the oil temperature low has two benefits. 1. The oil will last longer. Heat breaks down oil. 2. The seals should last longer. Heat makes seals hard and brittle.

 

because as in just doing a drain n fill on an auto trans, you only get a percentage out with just one drain/fill, so you repeat the process over a period of days to make sure you get the majority changed!!!

 

Apparently like myself you may have a touch of A.D.D! If not, you missed few posts in this thread about p/s coolers ill quote a couple since you missed em!


Quote#1= As far as frequent oil change. I would have to go with the oil cooler also . Keeping the oil temperature low has two benefits. 1. The oil will last longer. Heat breaks down oil. 2. The seals should last longer. Heat makes seals hard and brittle.

Quote#2 This should be common sense(clean power steering fluid/cooler). I suppose you could go without it since the 99's didn't come with it, but I wouldn't feel comfortable about it.

 

Mods are on the prowl I see.....

 

ok i'll amend my contention to "the people who know what they are talking about and have experience with it."

you aren't going to win this argument. what you are doing is overkill, period. if you want to do it, have a blast, it's your money and time you're wasting. fine with me.

my point is that i have road raced these cars, at extreme temperatures, seeing oil temps as high as 274 degrees, and never, not once, have i had a problem with power steering fluid overheating. i guarantee i have put more stress on the power steering system in 2 laps on a road course than you ever have or ever will piddling around at 70mph on the highway or maybe doing some spirited driving on the back roads in your automatic.

is a power steering cooler fine to have? sure. do you need it? no. is turkey-bastering out your PS fluid 8 times so you make sure you change every single molecule of PS overkill? absolutely.

keep wasting your time, it's no skin off my back. but don't act like i don't know what i'm talking about and have no experience with this stuff.

the engineers got rid of it. guys with experience are telling you it's not necessary. you specifically asked the question more than once: "am i waisting (sp) my time".

Yes you are wasting your time.

 

Forgive me for resurrecting an old thread but the info here seems pertinent. My p/s cooler is leaking. I had Firestone replace the hoses, and the the leak got better for a while but didn't go away. Then I had a different mechanic replace the hoses. Same result. Took it back to him, and he tightened the hose clamps, which improved the leak but didn't eliminate it. I have an aluminum cooler, and my dad thinks that it's probably cracked and that's where the leak is coming from.

I most certainly don't road race, and my Maxima ('98) has 249k miles. The mechanic wants $170 to replace the cooler. Do you think it's fine to just remove the cooler from the circuit? That would save me a lot of money and trouble.

 

There were several people that posted about their cars not having the cooler, so there are lots of 4th gens that don't have one. Similarly, there is not a problem with the power steering failing in these cars. I think that after reading this thread, the deduction is that you can eliminate the cooler.

 

Thanks!