All,

I have a 2013 G37X Sedan at 66k miles. I went on a 10 day road trip where I rented a 2021 Audi Q5 and drove 1500 miles. When I came back to the airport where my G37X was sitting for 10 days, I noticed how hard the steering wheel was to turn. I felt like I had to use quite a bit of muscle. I can't tell if I just got used to the Q5 with the nice electric steering or if there is an issue with the PS in the Infiniti. However, I will say it "does" feel harder to steer then before.

Stupid question I'm sure but how can I tell/test if there is an issue with the Power Steering? For the record, I changed out the PS fluid roughly 1.5 years ago and the fluid is still at the full line. When I start the car and look at the PS fluid reservoir I do notice the fluid is moving around quite quickly even if I hold the reservoir still with my hand so I assume the pump is moving? I don't hear any noises from the pump that I am aware of. Perhaps I should try turning all the way to the end from left to right to see if there is any sound?

Thanks!

 

You can turn it left and right, and see if there is any whining noise. But, I personally think that after driving the Q5 it makes you think the steering wheel is a lot heavier than it was previously. This happens to me after driving my sister Macan for a day. You can also try getting a hold of a code scanner and see if you have a P0550 code. This code will not trigger the check engine light. Its a power steering pressure sensor which is located in the engine bay on the front corner of the passenger side.