Guest todao Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 I left the car garaged for a year and it started fine except all the fluid is out of the master cyl and the brake pedal is down to the floor with no breaks. Where should I start looking for the problem? How should I start looking for the problem? thanks Todd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pacerman Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 If the outside of your master cylinder is dry and your brake booster isn't full of brake fluid then you have a brake line, one or more brake hoses, or one or more wheel cylinders leaking. Or you could have a leaking fitting/connection but they don't just start leaking when the car sits idle. In that case it was leaking when you parked it. If you do find a leaking fitting you could see if tightening it cures the leak and then clean the area with brake cleaner and observe the results. You'll need to refill the brake system and bleed the system. If you find a wet area on one of your hard lines and it didn't come from a leaking brake hose, or fitting, the line is shot. Replace all the hard lines. If you haven't rebuilt the brake system in the last few years and the car sits a lot, I recommend that you replace everything, hoses, wheel cylinders and the master cylinder. Joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Schramm Posted September 4, 2011 Share Posted September 4, 2011 This is not meant to sound dumb, but you might look on the floor to wee where there might be a wet spot. If there is one on the ground, that is where I would start looking for a leak. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TexRiv_63 Posted September 4, 2011 Share Posted September 4, 2011 If the outside of your master cylinder is dry and your brake booster isn't full of brake fluid then you have a brake line, one or more brake hoses, or one or more wheel cylinders leaking. Or you could have a leaking fitting/connection but they don't just start leaking when the car sits idle. In that case it was leaking when you parked it. If you do find a leaking fitting you could see if tightening it cures the leak and then clean the area with brake cleaner and observe the results. You'll need to refill the brake system and bleed the system. If you find a wet area on one of your hard lines and it didn't come from a leaking brake hose, or fitting, the line is shot. Replace all the hard lines. If you haven't rebuilt the brake system in the last few years and the car sits a lot, I recommend that you replace everything, hoses, wheel cylinders and the master cylinder. JoeI agree with Joe, even if you find one obvious leaking location, take the time to check everything out. Unless you recently replaced all of the hydraulic system parts, pull all four wheels and check all the cylinders. If in doubt, replace it, take no chances on the brakes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rsd9699 Posted September 5, 2011 Share Posted September 5, 2011 Good brakes generally stay good for years. Bad brakes take advantage of the water in the brake fluid to do all kinds of ugly things. All good suggestions. Do the rubber hoses as well - take the booster off and shake the brake fluid out of it or better yet - get it rebuilt.Give yourself a brake - pun intended!Ron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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