Brake and Clutch Reservoir

[TONYT25T25]

Checked the Brake and Clutch reservoir today and level has dropped a few mm below the Max mark, I cannot remember the last time I checked it but not to long ago and have not been driving much.  Intention is to monitor it to see if it drops again.  I have checked external pipes and cylinders, brake master, clutch master, front and rear brakes external connections and cannot see any leaks.  What is normal for fluid level drop over a period.  If it drops again at the next check, intend to take rear wheels off to check brake slave cylinders inside of wheel drums, and if no leaks there, then remove the clutch slave cylinder to see if any internal leaks there.  Is this the only way of checking for leaks in these areas and would I be wasting my time and effort.

[Oldiebut goodie]

Surely the level drops due to wear of the pads etc?

[TONYT25T25]

That was my thinking initially but over a period of time and more use than what it has been used for recently which is not a lot, need to monitor it more closely this time after refilling to MAX.

[Mocki]

Weeping brake slave ……

[TONYT25T25]

Changed them about 7 years ago after failing an MOT so will check again.  I remember when they failed last time or one of them failed the MOT garage quoted me £250 quid to rectify.  Bought two from GSF for £28 and fitted myself.  Needless to say did not use that Garage again.

[TONYT25T25]

Whilst checking for leaks, noticed that the clutch master cylinder was very rusty, appeared to be surface rust the kind you can brush off and what you would expect for an item exposed to outside elements.  No leaks visible or even trails of leaks and limited access prevents a good view but do not understand why a unit on the inside of a vehicle could be affected like this.

[Forden341]

I had a similar situation a few years back, turned out to be the clutch slave cylinder. No external evidence but when I pulled the rubber boot about on the pushrod I got a wet arm!
Probably worth popping the drums off too just to be sure the cylinders haven’t failed, I’ve had cheap ones go bad after a couple of years. Buy cheap, buy twice as my old Nan used to say!
Worth a look.

[TONYT25T25]

Thanks, will start with the drums to see if any evidence inside there, I have been looking at images of the clutch slave cylinder and as you say the leak could be hidden within this area around the boot which sits inside the housing.  Closely monitoring level after each drive to see if it drops. Is replacing the clutch slave cylinder straight forward it looks as if you undo the feed pipe and a couple of bolts and pop the new one with no adjustment needed apart from a bleed afterwards.  I will take a look below the clutch area a bit more closely to see if there is any seepage there but cannot remember until i take a closer look if there is any room for a leak to appear.

[multisi]

When changing the slave, look for the holes in the sides of the mounting bracket, put a large bolt through which goes under the slave mounting bolt which will stop the bolt from dropping down, that bolt can awkward to put back in .

[TONYT25T25]

Sri, dont fully understand until I get a better look at it, but thought the bolts just undo, then you replace with new unit and put bolts back in.  Just had a look at the haynes manual, I can now see the two nuts at the top, thought initially that the bolts just screwed in through the cylinder and into the body.  So these two are removed which of course will allow the bolts to be removed from the bottom, i can see the fiddling needed to replace now.

[TONYT25T25]

So had a closer look today, no sign of a leak from the Clutch Slave cylinder gave the boot a bit of squeeze and could not feel anything untoward there as mentioned above by Forden, tempted to stick a pin in it to see if anything drips out though.  Had a good look around front and rear brakes and no evidence there either, although not taken brake drums off yet to check there, if the brake slave cylinders were leaking wouldnt I be able to see some evidence at the bottom or inside the wheels as have given a good look and no sign of any drips.

[Forden341]

Don’t put a pin in it, you should just be able to poke a bluntish small screwdriver between the boot and the pushrod. Any fluid in the drums is often just absorbed by the brake dust if it minimal, that can also sit within the boots for a while too though.

[TONYT25T25]

Thanks again, good advice.  Monitoring level at the moment in reservoir to see if any dramatic drop before going ahead with the rear brakes check properly. I normally check before each drive now just to make sure.