Help needed with a vx astra

[MWT5]

Hi I'm having a nightmare with our astra mk4 diesel were planning to go camping tomorrow so I did all the usual checks fluids etc noticed the level on the master cylinder was on the minimum so topped it up did probably 25 miles got close to home and the brake pedal started to drop slowly under pressure from my foot checked level again to notice it had dropped to the minimum mark again checked for leaks on the master cylinder and the abs both dry checked all callipers front and back all ok when I jacked the car up on the passengers side under the floor of the car there is a aluminium radiator or cooler about where the front passenger seat is this has blue plastic pipes going to it and is sopping wet with brake fluid? As is the floor of the car from the cooler to the back anyone know what this cooler is for?
Cheers mark

[t5 stealth]

check underneath the master cylinder,
under the bonnet,
where it bolts on to the servo,
at a guess id say the rear seal has failed and is losing fluid either into the servo or the fluid is running down the bulkhead and going down the pipework,
brake pipes will be metal or copper,
fuel pipes are the plastic blue ones you see,
so id say its leaking down the body onto the pipework,
check where the master cylinder bolts onto the servo and see if its wet below the master.

[MWT5]

check underneath the master cylinder,
under the bonnet,
where it bolts on to the servo,
at a guess id say the rear seal has failed and is losing fluid either into the servo or the fluid is running down the bulkhead and going down the pipework,
brake pipes will be metal or copper,
fuel pipes are the plastic blue ones you see,
so id say its leaking down the body onto the pipework,
check where the master cylinder bolts onto the servo and see if its wet below the master.

Just rechecked the master cylinder and servo both bone dry no sign of leaking fluid this now starting to wind me up think I need to get it to a ramp to try and see where it is coming from.
Any ideas what the cooler is for is this to cool the diesel before it goes to the injectors?
Thanks t5 stealth

[t5 stealth]

yes the cooler thing is on the fuel side so not brakes,
also have you checked inside the car under the pedals as if the fluid is going inside the servo it may not be filled up enough yet to leak into the car through where it fixes to the pedal,but if it does then the carpet may be damp or oily from the brake fluid,

if you hold your foot on the brake with some force does the pedal sink away to the floor or does it hold up,


and you say you just checked the servo etc,
did you get your hand up under the servo to see if its wet there where it bolts to bulkhead, as you might not be able to see it but you can get a finger in deeper than where you can see...... (dont be rude lol)

[MWT5]

yes the cooler thing is on the fuel side so not brakes,
also have you checked inside the car under the pedals as if the fluid is going inside the servo it may not be filled up enough yet to leak into the car through where it fixes to the pedal,but if it does then the carpet may be damp or oily from the brake fluid,

if you hold your foot on the brake with some force does the pedal sink away to the floor or does it hold up,


and you say you just checked the servo etc,
did you get your hand up under the servo to see if its wet there where it bolts to bulkhead, as you might not be able to see it but you can get a finger in deeper than where you can see...... (dont be rude lol)

Lol
Just been out to the car the pedal sinks to the floor when pressed hard,checked behind servo can't feel any fluid and carpets are dry

[t5 stealth]

it maybe you have a fractured or corroded brake pipe then,
all i can suggest is to clean up what fluid you can see and then get someone to push pedal while you look under car to maybe see where it leaks from,if its pushed hard enough then you may see it spurt from pipe or joint,

[nobananas]

Another possibility is that it isn't the brakes leaking but the clutch slave cylinder in the gearbox bell housing (or possibly the clutch master). The clutch master shares the same fluid reservoir as the brakes, if you look at the reservoir you should see a pipe come off the side, this supplies the clutch master cylinder and is situated in such a way that if there is a leak on the clutch side the level will drop only so far as the supply pipe so it doesn't compromise the brakes if there is a problem on the clutch side. The foot brake pedal on most diesels will creep down (often to the floor) if you hold the foot brake down with the engine running but doesn't always mean there is a fault (it's because the engine has a mechanical vacuum pump rather than using engine vacuum to operate). Have a look around the bottom of the bell housing and you should see brake fluid around that area if the clutch concentric slave is to blame

[MWT5]

it maybe you have a fractured or corroded brake pipe then,
all i can suggest is to clean up what fluid you can see and then get someone to push pedal while you look under car to maybe see where it leaks from,if its pushed hard enough then you may see it spurt from pipe or joint,

Think I've found the leak it is behind the cooler got a torch and could see the pipes are really corroded my wife pushed the pedal and I could see the fluid leak over the top of the cooler.
Pain of a job but at least I know were it's coming from.
Thanks.

[t5 stealth]

Another possibility is that it isn't the brakes leaking but the clutch slave cylinder in the gearbox bell housing (or possibly the clutch master). The clutch master shares the same fluid reservoir as the brakes, if you look at the reservoir you should see a pipe come off the side, this supplies the clutch master cylinder and is situated in such a way that if there is a leak on the clutch side the level will drop only so far as the supply pipe so it doesn't compromise the brakes if there is a problem on the clutch side. The foot brake pedal on most diesels will creep down (often to the floor) if you hold the foot brake down with the engine running but doesn't always mean there is a fault (it's because the engine has a mechanical vacuum pump rather than using engine vacuum to operate). Have a look around the bottom of the bell housing and you should see brake fluid around that area if the clutch concentric slave is to blame

i was assuming its a manual clutch,ie cable not hydraulic....
and he says the fluid is all under the front under driver feet area on pipework under car ?..
so i ruled out the clutch theory lol

[t5 stealth]

Think I've found the leak it is behind the cooler got a torch and could see the pipes are really corroded my wife pushed the pedal and I could see the fluid leak over the top of the cooler.
Pain of a job but at least I know were it's coming from.
Thanks.

well done mate,
all you gota do now is fix it lol.

[MWT5]

Another possibility is that it isn't the brakes leaking but the clutch slave cylinder in the gearbox bell housing (or possibly the clutch master). The clutch master shares the same fluid reservoir as the brakes, if you look at the reservoir you should see a pipe come off the side, this supplies the clutch master cylinder and is situated in such a way that if there is a leak on the clutch side the level will drop only so far as the supply pipe so it doesn't compromise the brakes if there is a problem on the clutch side. The foot brake pedal on most diesels will creep down (often to the floor) if you hold the foot brake down with the engine running but doesn't always mean there is a fault (it's because the engine has a mechanical vacuum pump rather than using engine vacuum to operate). Have a look around the bottom of the bell housing and you should see brake fluid around that area if the clutch concentric slave is to blame

Nobananas this was my first thought clutch what a nightmare of a job that is . Luckly the bell housing is dry the leak is one of the rear brake pipes behind the fuel cooler.
Thanks.

[nobananas]

Think I've found the leak it is behind the cooler got a torch and could see the pipes are really corroded my wife pushed the pedal and I could see the fluid leak over the top of the cooler.
Pain of a job but at least I know were it's coming from.
Thanks.

Damn sight cheaper then having the box out !

[t5 stealth]

Damn sight cheaper then having the box out !

so true,
does my head in with the focus and mondeos aswell,
nothin but trouble hydraulic clutch...lol

[nobananas]

so true,
does my head in with the focus and mondeos aswell,
nothin but trouble hydraulic clutch...lol

Trouble is they're all like that now. Add to it those stupid dual mass flywheels and you may as well add wing-nuts to the bell housing for quick removal !. Even my 850 has a concentric slave cylinder because it's got a 70 series box in it !

[t5 stealth]

Trouble is they're all like that now. Add to it those stupid dual mass flywheels and you may as well add wing-nuts to the bell housing for quick removal !. Even my 850 has a concentric slave cylinder because it's got a 70 series box in it !

dont even get me started on duel mass flywheels.
:)

[nobananas]

dont even get me started on duel mass flywheels.
:)

Whatever happened to the old Vauxhalls where you slide the input shaft out and pull the clutch out of the bottom of the bellhousing ?. Fantastic bit of design, whole job done in a half hour, that's progress I suppose !

[t5 stealth]

Whatever happened to the old Vauxhalls where you slide the input shaft out and pull the clutch out of the bottom of the bellhousing ?. Fantastic bit of design, whole job done in a half hour, that's progress I suppose !

yeah they should of kept that idea on the vectra,now you gota remove subframe aswell....as you say......progress,
its a concorde moment lol,

sadly most cars are concorde ....man has reached its peak,now we just make crap. :)

[MWT5]

Just an update the pipe was corroded underneath the cooler where it goes into the clip to hold them to the floor have repaired it so only one day late for camping lol
I have never seen brake pipes so corroded on a car that is only ten years old they were like brake pipes off a car 30 years old?just shows how cheaply they make newer cars.
Thanks guys with your help.
Mark

[Vikingxl]

You could always park it in brum city center and get it torched!!

[t5 stealth]

Just an update the pipe was corroded underneath the cooler where it goes into the clip to hold them to the floor have repaired it so only one day late for camping lol
I have never seen brake pipes so corroded on a car that is only ten years old they were like brake pipes off a car 30 years old?just shows how cheaply they make newer cars.
Thanks guys with your help.
Mark

thats good you sorted it,
i would check the other pipes before you do a long drive,
and brake early on your way to your holiday,then atleast if you have a brake issue you will know before you need to depend on brakes.