valvoline maxlife, power steering fluid Options

[ghostdog]

anyone know about this stuff? a friend gave me a bottle after realizing his car doesn't have power steering

I know our cars use atf by specification but I figured I'd ask anyway

thanks

[97GTinKC]

Its just power steering fluid, probably no better or worse than any other regular power steering fluid. Valvoline has a very aggressive(?) advertising agency.
I'd get some Amsoil synthetic ATF and flush/refill the power steering system.

[Bigmeanbulldog55]

Yeah, I've always been told that there's no difference in steering fluid. Just as long as it thick enough not to leak, and you only have to worry about that if you have a problem in the first place. Is there a difference in any brake fluid?

[ghostdog]

sorry if I was unclear. I want to make sure its safe to use. it says on the bottle it works with some imports however it has a explicit warning against using it in honda vehicles. don't really understand why that would be and if it also applies to our cars

and re: brake fluids, yes there is a difference depending on dot rating. it affects the boiling point which matters in driving situations where the fluid gets really hot (eg: auto-x)

[Digndoug]

Id say call a dealership.. they should know or have somthing sayign whats good or ok to use.

[FAQdaWorld]

My guess is that if you call a dealership, they are gonna say dont use anything but toyota oem products, installed by toyota technicians ($$$)

[ghostdog]

alright, thanks for the replies guys. maybe I'll try emailing valvoline and see what they have to say. better safe than sorry, and I'm also curious what the honda warning is about

[Bigmeanbulldog55]

Honda just use a different steering fluid than everything else. Go to the auto parts store and look at the choices, there's a seperate one for honda. I'm not sure why though.