In this paper a model of a high pressure hydraulic system was developed to simulate the effect of increased internal leakages inside the hydraulic cylinder and the 4/2 way directional control valve and to calculate the main parameters of the hydraulic system under various loads through the use of leakage-simulating throttle valves. After the completion of modeling, the throttle valves that simulate the internal leakages were calibrated and a number of test runs were performed for the cases of normal operation and the operation with increased internal leakages. The theoretical predictions were compared against the experimental results from an actual hydraulic test platform installed in the laboratory. In all cases, modeling and experimental data curves correlate very well in form, magnitude and response times for all the system's main parameters. This proves that the present modeling can be used to accurately predict various faults in hydraulic systems, and can thus be used for proactive fault finding in many cases, especially when the defective component is not easily detected and obvious at first sight.