This is the first time I've flushed my PS fluid, and I must say that some of the information on this board about this procedure lacked some important caveats, at least in my case.

Here is the gist of the job, step by step:

1. Get a length (4' is probably about right) of 1/2" clear vinyl tubing, and a proper bucket or other receptacle to collect a couple of quarts of the old fluid. The bucket doesn't need to be graduated or clear because really you will just be looking at the color of fluid through the tubing.

2. Get a turkey baster and suck out as much of the old fluid as possible from the reservoir and put it into the bucket.

3. Disconnect the upper (return) hose from the PS fluid reservoir, and put about an inch of one end of the vinyl tubing inside the end of the return hose. It should be a tight fit. Put the other end of the fluid into the bucket.

4. Fill the reservoir up with new fluid.

5. Have a friend start the car and turn the wheels all the way left to right while you keep the reservoir (hopefully) topped up. Tell your friend to shut the car off when you see nice new red fluid in your drain tube.

6. Reconnect the return line to the reservoir and top off the fluid to the correct level on the dipstick.

OK, here are the problems that I encountered that hopefully I can help somebody else avoid:

1. First of all, let me emphasize that when you are disconnecting the return line hose, be VERY careful because the plastic that the reservoir is made of is not the strongest in the world, and is probably old and brittle. Save yourself the trip to Pick-n-pull in the freezing cold to get a new reservoir by CUTTING OFF the return hose. Don't use a lot of force to try prying the end of the hose off of the connector or you could end up separating the connector from the rest of the reservoir like I did. Or you could squirt some PB Blaster and try twisting the hose around the connector to loosen it before you try to pull it off. The safest way, though, is to just cut off the last inch of the hose, which you will probably want to do anyway when you put the hose back on.

2. Some of the information on this board has mentioned that when you are flushing the PS fluid, it comes out at a reasonable rate. This DEFINITELY was not my experience. Perhaps the people who have written this have an older, weaker pump. At any rate, when my helper turned the car on with me standing with fluid and funnel at the ready, the fluid IMMEDIATELY shot out and within three or four seconds was sucking air. It came out so fast that it was impossible to keep any amount of fluid in the reservoir with the funnel. I had to pour it straight into the reservoir, and it was touch and go at that. The fluid had so much air in it that it really was frothy. I had my helper/fiancé turn the wheels a few times, and then had her just shut the engine off. Then I reconnected the hose and topped off the reservoir. I waited a few minutes for some of the froth to settle out of the fluid, and then turned the car back on and turned the wheels all the way left and right a few times to bleed off all the air in the system.

3. Don't let the lower end of your vinyl tubing, the end that should stay in the bucket, curl up and out of the bucket because it's cold and stiff and trying to spring back to its original curled up shape. Clamp it against the side of the bucket somehow, or else like me you could end up with a half-gallon of fluid all over your new garage floor because while you were distracted with keeping the reservoir filled and shouting instructions to your helper, the tubing snuck up and out of the bucket.

I don't mean to scare anybody away from doing this fairly simple maintenance item. It's just that the flushing process isn't as calm as, say, bleeding brakes. You will likely not be able to keep fluid in the reservoir at all times, and will probably get some air in the lines, but that's OK. Just bleed the air out later by racking the wheels all the way left and right a few times each. I had a gallon of fluid, and used about half of it.

The change in feel in the steering in my case was a noticeable improvement.