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steering fluid in brake reservoir - topped off

crossmax03

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Boulder, CO
ok so i'm a dumbass ...

anyway, 2 days ago i topped off the brake reservoir with power steering fluid, about 1/4 inch to bring it to the full line. drove less than 200 miles on it.

do you think it's possible it hasn't mixed in yet ?
and maybe i can siphon out the reservoir and add fluid and keep doing that a couple times til it's out ?
 
ok so i'm a dumbass ...

anyway, 2 days ago i topped off the brake reservoir with power steering fluid, about 1/4 inch to bring it to the full line. drove less than 200 miles on it.

do you think it's possible it hasn't mixed in yet ?
and maybe i can siphon out the reservoir and add fluid and keep doing that a couple times til it's out ?
I'd suck it out, and do a full bleed, and repeat.
 
Just suck it out of the top. But aren't you due for a full brake fluid renewal anyway? If it's been two years, it's time. Brake fluid attracts water. It's the cheapest thing you can do to maintain your brake system internals.
 
Plan on replacing all rubber hoses, calipers, wheel cylinders, & master cylinder now. They will all be junk, it's just a matter of time, so start saving up.
 
Oh, and you will need to flush the entire system.
 
could see the line separating the two fluids. the steering fluid floats on top. so i sucked it out, poured more fluid in, sucked more out, etc ... several times.

this weekend maybe i'll flush the entire system it's probably not a bad idea anyway
 
could see the line separating the two fluids. the steering fluid floats on top. so i sucked it out, poured more fluid in, sucked more out, etc ... several times.

this weekend maybe i'll flush the entire system it's probably not a bad idea anyway
keep in mind the brake system was not made to use petrolium based products . 200 miles doesn't seem like much, BUT there will be some breakdown of any & all rubber components.
 
How to flush out your brakes:

If you want to do it in the morning, coffee CAN be substitued, not for the brakefluid, only the beer.

€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.

"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: "
 
Hey, man. I hate to tell you this, but silent_bob is right. I know flushing everything is a quick, cheap attempt to rememdy your situatuation, but it's not the solution. You will need to replace every component with any rubber parts in your hydraulic system. It's a much more expensive route, but you might find that expense favorable to a brake failure driving down the road...
 
Ya, I agree. You will need to replace all the components of your brake system. It doesn't matter if you could see the fluid sitting at the top, the fact is you used your brakes, so there could be PS fluid down in the rubber hoses that can't get back to the reservoir. This will then eat away, and you will lose your brakes.

Adam (reelbigdundy87) was just telling me about this happening the other day where he works. Some guy put ATF in his brakes, and wasn't happy when they told him they had too replace his entire brake system.
 
Man, I love when people do this! Entire brake system overhaul. I have seen people get lucky and only need to replace the Master, It actually takes some time for it to make its way past the Master. Don't try and avoid a new master no matter what, you will die!
 
A break system that is not leaking do not use break fluid the way the engine does oil. That means the fluid will not work it's way down to the wheel cylinders etc in 200 miles. In other words, I doubt the oil have made it into the wheels at this time. Maybe it has mixed/begin to mix in the master cylinder.

I will disconnect the lines at the master cylinder and drain it completly, add break fluid and attempt to expell it through the open ports. Then a complete empty, bleed/flush of the break system will be required.

I do not agree with the nay sayers that the entire break system is doomed :explosion because of a couple ounces of oil. Having said that, I would do a flush of the entire break system before I drive another mile.

My $0.02
 
Lots of good replies to this one. Thanks for that.

How many of you experienced it yourself? -- versus 'your buddy told you ...'

I may bite my tongue for what I'm about to say, and I may not:

I actually bought a master cylinder to swap mine , as FordGuy says some people get lucky.

But i'm gonna chance it. I returned the master cylinder. ripped the reservoir off my current cylinder and dumped the shit out, cleaned it thoroughly.

Sucked all new fluid through after replacing the reservoir (with new fluid it in of course).

Will keep ya posted on what happens.
 
I've seen it easily a hundred times, having worked it the auto aftermarket for many moons. It usually is the result of leaving the fluid in there and having a leak (which draws fluid throughout the system), but you can be fairly certain that the gasket on the master cylinder cap will begin to swell and probably the internal seals on the M.C. piston soon thereafter. If you flush the system, you're better off using denatured alcohol and compressed air to blow everything out. It's a crap shoot after that if the petroleum based fluid has made it's way beyond the M.C.
 
Does anyone here realize that power steering hoses are made of rubber too? Seems like they hold up pretty good! If you are so paranoid (which I don't think you are) every day before you drive your heep, pump the brakes really hard to see if they still work.
 
Does anyone here realize that power steering hoses are made of rubber too? Seems like they hold up pretty good! If you are so paranoid (which I don't think you are) every day before you drive your heep, pump the brakes really hard to see if they still work.

You realize that they are NOT the same? Do you see power steering hoses used in the brake system?

As silent_bob stated, the seals in the brake system are not meant to be used with Petroleum based fluids.
 
You realize that they are NOT the same? Do you see power steering hoses used in the brake system?

As silent_bob stated, the seals in the brake system are not meant to be used with Petroleum based fluids.


100% correct.

The compounds used in the rubber is very different to that used in the breaks system. Pertoleum products causes break rubber parts to deteriorate quickly. For the OP hopefully he only added a few ounces of power steering fluid and it have not had time to mix/contaminate the brake fluid there by saving on expensive repeairs down the road.
 
Does anyone here realize that power steering hoses are made of rubber too? Seems like they hold up pretty good! If you are so paranoid (which I don't think you are) every day before you drive your heep, pump the brakes really hard to see if they still work.

as are condoms, so by your logic, they can be used for brake lines?:eek:
 
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