Brake Fluid Reservoir

[bringselpup]

I'm losing fluid from the front reservoir. Just a little but the rate is increasing.
I'm looking everywhere for the leak. It has to be going somewhere. I suspect a wheel cylinder.

I just took off the right rear drum and found it covered inside with fluid. So as usual is this just another crazy Jeep thing? The front reservoir goes to the back brakes and the rear reservoir goes to the fronts?

[fredjacksonsan]

Yes; notice that the larger reservoir is for the front brakes, as this is where most of the stopping power is (and is closer to the diaphragm)

Should be a pretty easy repair to replace the unit that's leaking in the rear. I've done it with several vehicles. Just be sure to bleed it when you're done.

[bringselpup]

Would you just get a kit for the wheel cylinder or the whole cylinder?

[fredjacksonsan]

I'd open it up and see what was leaking. It's probably the damn, can't think of the word, but it's the cylinder that pushes the shafts out against the brake shoes. You'll need to remove the hardware/shoes/etc to get at it, and will probably need a line wrench (like a normal box-end wrench, but with a slot to go past the brake line) to make sure you don't strip the connection.

[bringselpup]

OK I looked online, the kit was like $2.99 and a whole cylinder was about $12 so I really can't lose by starting with a kit I guess. And what job wouldn't be right if it didn't expand in scope?

I might as well do rear pads on both sides if I'm going this far.

[fredjacksonsan]

"Any good job demands more than one trip to the auto parts store" Hah! Very true.

Yeah, might as well give both sides the once over so you don't have to worry about them anymore.

[Caribbean ZJ]

i had mine done in my 93 about 3yrs ago. Not too hard a job and i bought for both sides. Just bleed the system when finished though.

[bringselpup]

You guys were right, it's not that big a deal at all. I could tell from the beginning I was going to lose the steel brake line. No way was the fitting going to turn loose separate from the line so I went and got a new line and a tubing bender. A messy job but a cheap fix. The wheel cylinders at Advance Auto were only $10.33 ea.