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Break Fluid leak...

bosco01xj

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Lebanon, TN
hey guys. about a month ago i lost a lot of pressure in my break pedal. checked the fluid. it was bone dry. filled up the master cylinder. today i felt very little pressure when i applied the brake and my brake light came on. the leak is coming from my rear right wheel. not really sure on what to replace/repair. any suggestions would be great. i appreciate it.
 
Sounds like brake cylinder blew!!

Replace with new

Nick
 
hey guys. about a month ago i lost a lot of pressure in my break pedal. checked the fluid. it was bone dry. filled up the master cylinder. today i felt very little pressure when i applied the brake and my brake light came on. the leak is coming from my rear right wheel. not really sure on what to replace/repair. any suggestions would be great. i appreciate it.

Sounds like a break in your brakes. :D

Sorry couldn't resist. It sounds like you've got air in your brake system. With brake fluid coming from your right rear, chances are you've got a wheel cylinder that has failed. Don't drive it until you get it fixed.
 
remove your rear tire and brake drums and inspect the wheel cylinders for leakage do it by filling your fluid back up and have some one hit the brakes while you look at it
 
another question. should i bleed the system? never bled the system before so i'm not so sure how to do it.
 
another question. should i bleed the system? never bled the system before so i'm not so sure how to do it.

Find the leak whether it be a blown wheel cylinder or fitting or whatever, and THEN bleed the system.
 
remove your rear tire and brake drums and inspect the wheel cylinders for leakage do it by filling your fluid back up and have some one hit the brakes while you look at it

I don't recommend hitting the brake pedal while you have the drum removed. Makes a hell of a mess and you can ruin the brake cylinder. A bad wheel cylinder should be fairly obvious once you have the drum off. You'll hav brake fluid leaked inside there. Replacement brake cylinders are pretty cheap around $12, btw. Hardest part is getting the brake line off the back of it without damaging the line. If the shoes are soaked in fluid, replace them as well. Do both sides.
 
Here's the best way to bleed 'em from an old post.

I'll just copy and paste mine from an earlier thread, but this is for an evening bleed, not a morning one.

"That's why you don't bleed them that way. (and I'm not calling you stupid cause I did em that way for MANY years too). Called the kids or the old lady out and told em "pump it up and hold it down", and opened up the bleeder until the pedal went way down. There is a way easier way, but it takes longer. I use it whenever I replace brake cylinders or calipers, but mostly it's just to change the brake fluid, which I do whenever I change shoes or pads. Ideally you change brake fluid at least every other year. If you worked on old cars and saw rusty pistons, you'd know why, but people also say that old brake fluid boils and won't stop you right.

The best way is the GRAVITY method. The only problem is it takes a lot of beer and you don't want to drive right after. (CAUTION: YOU MUST BE 21 TO BLEED YOUR BRAKES THIS WAY!)

1.) Get the car in a position where you can open up the bleeders. I always like to break them loose with a 6 point socket being careful not to break them off. If you can, spray them with breakaway or similar a day before.)
2) Starting with the bleeder futhest away from the master (pass. rear), open it about 1 turn. You can put a little hose and cup on it if you want to keep the old fluid from running all over. Make SURE to keep the master cylinder topped off with fluid and DON'T let it get down to where air gets back into the master cyl. Let it flow this way until the fluid comes out of the bleeder clean. This will take at least 2 cups or so of brake fluid. Using gravity alone, you can drink 2 beers while topping off the master cylinder for the first corner. (CAUTION: Do not store brake fluid in beer cans or put beer into master cyinder. Drinking a little brake fluid however will probably not kill you. Beer in your brake lines might.) Snug up bleeder good when you're done.
3.) Proceed to drivers rear and repeat. It won't take as long because the long brake line has already been purged of the old fluid. So you have to drink your beer faster.
4.) Pass front. Drink even faster.
5.) Drivers front. Etc.

Patience can be substituted for beers, but that's no fun.

This prevents the rubber pieces from going any further than they are used to and self destructing.
:cheers: "
 
I also recommend removing the bleeder, cleaning it with a wire brush, smear the threads with antiseize and then bleed. That avoids sucking air past the threads.
 
thanks again guys for all the advice. especially the advice from winterbeater. haha. too bad i had the job done already. that does sound like the better way. had a friend come over and help. thought about posting a write up on how to replace your wheel cylinder but i got so tied up in the small project i forgot to take pictures. thanks again.
 
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