Leaky brake reservoir -non ABS

[Willy Wonka]

The little o-ring seals on my 87t16 brake reservoir seem to be letting go. I 've stabilized the plastic tank to the master cylinder with a plastic strap. Called the dealer they want $15 per seal.
Are there after market seals available?
I affected the seals when I removed the engine.

[MSOEMiller]

The same seals were going on my '87. I had to refill the reservoir every 4 days. I couldn't find replacements at the time, so I opted to replace the entire master cylinder and reservoir for about $115.

I checked local junkyards and it seems that all older Saabs eventually end up leaking there.

I spent more than I had to, but I got a new master cylinder for the price of a mechanic's labor to install new seals.

[cdaly]

Parts for saabs have a master cylinder seal kit that includes those seals. Not expensive, $35 shipped. http://www.partsforsaabs.com/product...oducts_id=1706

[Willy Wonka]

Thanks. Spent $29. http://www.saabcentral.com/forums/sh...t=40988&page=2

[MSOEMiller]

Well, knowing that . . .

Anyone want a leaking mastercylinder for the price of shipping? Your fix is explained above.

PM me.



Hey moderators, don't crucify me for not using the classifieds.

[kimmohietala]

I seem to have the same problem - a leaky reservoir seals. Can I remove the reservoir without removing the master cylinder? I was thinking if I can only replace the seals for the reservoir as the master cylinder itself seems to hold well.

[cdaly]

Yes, you can. You'll need to make everything very clean first though. The reservoir just pulls up off the cylinder but it's quite hard to push down into the new seals after. If you've got a manual gearbox, there's a connection to the clutch master cylinder from the reservoir also but you should be able to leave that alone.

You'll need something to catch spilled brake fluid. Don't let it drip on paintwork 'cos it will damage it. Flush any fluid off paintwork with plenty of cold water.

I'd suggest you give the area around the seals a good scrubbing with degreaser and a brass wire brush before you try to lift the reservoir to remove any flaked paint / rust which will otherwise get into the master cylinder.

When you have the reservoir off, carefully clean around the seals again to avoid flakes.

If you have the time to spare, make up some bungs for the reservoir to cylinder feed holes (the 2mm diameter ones below the seals) and seal them before the cleaning and seal removal. You know how silicone sealer hardens in the conical nozzle if you haven't used it for a while. Get two of these plugs of hardened silicone out of the nozzle and use them to plug the small holes visible through the middle of the reservoir seal.

Now you can carefully pry out the seals, clean the seats (you can probably flush the area with WD40 or such) and blow out (with compressed air or some such but cover up the hole with a rag so you don't spray brake fluid around your paintwork).

Dry the area carefully, install the seals (lubricated with brake fluid), add some brake fluid to the holes, remove the silicone bungs and push install the reservoir.

NOW BLEED THE BRAKES!!! Do this with a pressure bleeder and before you touch the pedal. Flush all the fluid through the system (2 litres will be plenty). It's not that much harder and you'll hopefully flush out any contaminants you missed while cleaning.