the frame is probly coated in an "under coating" i do not know if brake fluid disolves that stuff..
you should really learn to do as much on a car yourself, rather than paying someone...

I've had my brake light come on once, that's how I knew it was brake fluid... and I've added fluid to replace what I lost.. so hopefully she'll be ok till the 1st of the month.

Heh, I told you I had leaks and kinks to work out... I thought this car was in good condition when I bought it... just my luck, two weeks later it starts falling apart. My first car did the same... after two weeks, alternator went, then had to replace brakes, then alternator went twice more.. the last one actually made contact with my hood and made my car lunge and act like it was dying out... I popped the hood before it could set fire or melt the hood seriously... only made a small bubble in the hood. After this, the brake lines cracked on my way from Vegas to Salt Lake City... Stayed in St. George, Ut for the night... when I went out in the morning, brake fluid all over my wheel, tire and the ground. I was out of fluid completely. Had to drive that back to vegas at 40mph w/ hazards... outside the city limits, we hit traffic.. Had to use my gears and ebrake... it was scary and nerve wrecking, but managed to not hit anyone.. after that, I was done and got rid of it.

I used to do all the work on that car... and the alternator kept failing cause I had the amp for the speakers overloaded... :dunno: It's been 10 yrs since then and I haven't needed to do auto work since... so I've lost my year and a half of autoshop skill from HS due to lack of practice. I'm also more of a learn by seeing and doing kinda person, so I'm trying to observe the repairs when possible and I try not to ask too many questions so they can do their jobs, but it's all I can do since I'm sure their garage won't let me work on it myself.. If I could afford an automotive trade school, I'd seriously consider it... but I can't even afford to fix my car once and for all.

It can be tough when you've got a car with a lot of problems and no cash or nowhere to work on it or a general lack of know how.

I've got the know how, just no money and I live in a 1 bedroom apartment with no garage or car port... and we're not allowed to do anything more than check our oil in the parking lot.

I got my car where it's at through using the garages and driveways of friends and family members. Turboing the car and doing the head gasket were the hardest things to arrange.

Unlike you, I knew from the first minute my car was a pile... Bought it for $300. It didn't run, had been in a wreck and had also seen a power slide into a curb (had to replace EVERYTHING in both passenger side wheel wells).

yup, that's my situation... 2 bdroom apt, no garage.. I'm sure I can do more than just check my oil... but my know how extends to brake jobs, alternators, and basic understanding of some of the parts and components on the car.

I still don't think she's a pile... but I think the work I've had done since I've had her has tainted her. First one was auto shop that wanted to fix stuff that was new or didn't need fixing. Even wanted $450 each control arm before they'd replace the bushings to do my wheel alignment.. when I had the brakes done and the wheels came off, the control arms looked like new... I wouldn't be surprised if this shop set my distributor up to snap the shaft since it happened 4 days later.

Between the time it was at this shop and she died for the distributor issue, I did have my brakes done... all 4 wheels' pads and front rotors were replaced, rear rotors were turned.. so I wouldn't be surprised if they guy didn't release pressure before pushing the caliper piston back... thus creating the leak I have now... the only thing I knew of wrong with my car was the coolant smell, but even having it parked for weeks, never saw coolant touch the ground.. so that should be a fun leak to check for :\.

You don't need to release any pressure when compressing the calipers. There really shouldn't be much as there aren't any check valves in the system on our cars. The hoses see a lot more pressure than that when you're using them as it is. What they could have done to damage them would be either allowing the calipers to hang by the hose or bending the old hose too hard.

I do feel your pain though... finding a good mechanic can be hell. These days I couldn't afford a car if I wasn't doing my own work.

Found the leak... sort of... I'm not sure what it is cause the label is very worn on it... but the fluid is coming the big cyndrillical drum that is mounted to the firewall and connected to the brake fluid resevoir.. the leak is coming from the pipe's connection with said drum... so can only imagine that drum is full of fluid that has leaked out in there :'(

Edit:
Looking at the TSRM, looks like it\'s my brake booster? now if I can just figure out what the internals look like and see what kind of nightmare I am faced with... I can either be saddened or relieved...

Edit #2:
After speaking with some more mechanically inclined individuals, my suspicions of the booster being flooded were completely debunked... as was my impression the issue came from the booster. Since I can stop the car with normal effort, rather than having to shift down thru gears and stand on the brake to stop, going to go with the master cylinder as the culprit.. now I just need to find a place to get one... not only does the Autozones here have none in stock, they don\'t even have a vendor to order them from :\.

If the fluid is leaking into the booster, the master cylinder is the most likely culprit. It\'s not very hard to fix and can be rebuilt with a kit from NAPA which includes a new plunger and replacement seals.

Ah, just saw your edit... either get a complete master cylinder or a rebuild kit which comes with everything, not just seals. A full cylinder is preferable.

yea, I think I\'d rather just pay up the few extra bux and get the whole master cylinder... the luck I\'ve been having, I\'ll fix the seals and something else on it will fall apart. LoL... thanks for the help, again, Cre... it is much appreciated.

make sure to put brake fluid in the master brake cylinder and bleed it before you put it on the car...
most master brake cylinders come with a set of bolts to bleed it before installattion.
first time i done it put it on first... what a fuckin mess,

also i suggest when bleeding system after. put a rubber tube to go on your bleeder bolts on the calipers into a cup full of brake fluid.. that way there is room for "some error" and if the peddle is accidentally let off a bit, it will only suck up more fluid not oxygen...

wish you luck, i myself got a master brake cylinder for 75$ new

That\'s $75 Canadian I hope...

Definitely want to bleed the whole system after install and make sure the piston is lubed before you put it in... heh, that sounded dirty... :p