PS is feeling a bit stiffer. Although I will do a complete flush (draining the old fluid via the short hose using a bottle etc) I watched the video below about the PS flush. He uses Transtune. Is it recommended in Passats?
Stiffer? More than likely from all the other stuff you've replaced in the last 6 months. You've done a complete overhaul of the front and rear suspension, along with motor mounts and such. You're probably feeling what the car drove like years ago, and since you're still having problems with engine vibrations, you're probably over sensitive to other issues.
The only P/S fluid you should ever put in your B5 is offical VW P/S fluid or Pentosin CHF-11S (NOT CHF7.1!). "Magic Fluids" like that Transtune should virtually never be used in any car unless it's a heap you are limping along for a little while longer.
x2. If "Transtune" was what VW recommended, they'd stock it on the shelf at dealers, recommend it in your owner's manual, and send you on your merry way. Pentosin CHF 11s ONLY, which is SPECIFICALLY designed for VW hydraulic power steering systems. If you're not paying the grandiose price of $17+ for a bottle of fluid, you're putting the wrong stuff in. The only time the power steering system needs to be diagnosed is when you start having excess play in the steering (after diagnosing the suspension checks out,) if the power steering pump starts to whine, or if you're losing fluid. For the most part, this system on the car is essentially maintenance-free.
After saying the above, I've only ever seen ONE person use something other than the recommended fluid to fix a leak in an older Audi. The results were fine, but as sirwired suggests, this was a car that he was trying to limp along. And after watching that Youtube video, I'm almost certain that the car he is working on is a slightly newer Toyota Camry. I'd be pouring in Toyota's recommended power steering fluid before I'd pour in a bottle of Autozones. That's just me I guess.
