There is now a puddle of brake fluid around the passenger side rear tire. I can see where the fluid ran down the back side of the wheel.

The car has been sitting all Winter. (Since mid December)

What could have caused the leak?

I have only had the car since November 03 and the previous owner claims he replaced all of the calipers within the last year along with the master cylinder.

It could be a couple of things. Since it has new calipers, there could be a leaking seal, a bleeder valve may not be completely closed, a brake line could be leaking or a number of similar things. It may not be serious, you just need to check things out in a careful, deliberate manner.

Try jacking the rear of the car up and watch what happens when a second person pumps the brake pedal. That may be the simplest way to find out.

I had the same thing on the RR. I am not a mech, and the serious stuff I leave for the pro's. I did replace the caliper with a new style, SS, O=Rings, etc.
After finished, a couple of days later, it was leaking also. So I thought. Dampness coming down the dust shield, little leaks to the floor.
If it was leaking, it stopped. Seems the more I drove it, the less fluid there was, and now there is none.
I think from all the bleeding I did, there was a lot of residue fluid left over, and could only go one way, down.
Working fine, and I would not be afraid to tackle the other 3 if need be.
For you pro's reading this, I know that both calipers should have been replaced, but the LR and the fronts arein excellent condition.

I won't gripe about changing only one caliper. Okay maybe a little. But my biggest concern is that you flush clean fluid through all 4 calipers and the entire brake system. The dirt and contamination inside the system is what causes most failures. If it got one it will work on killing the other 3 calipers. Flushing the system can save you a lot of grief in the future.

Ken Styer

|UPDATED|3/4/2004 2:17:24 PM (AZT)|/UPDATED|

I wouldn't rule out a line. especially the rubber line to the caliper. On cars that age, rust does take it's toll on the steel lines too. If you need to replace the steel lines, I highly recommend the pre-bent from a vette vendor.
Styer is right too, it may be as simple as a loose fitting or bleeder.

What is really interesting is that the fluid was pretty clean not all discolored like I have seen in other cars.
The car lived all but the last two years in Texas and is relatively rust free. Maybe the flexible line was dry rotten and finally gave it up.

Is this leaking something that I should expect? The brakes worked great before I put it away for the Winter.

On my newer cars with anti-lock brakes I take the car in and have them power flush the system. Is that something I should do here too?

I have found a complete set of all the correct calipers for my car.. should I consider changing them all since I do not know what quality the calipers are on the car?

The ones for sale are completely rebuilt and resleeved with a lifetime warranty. How much should I pay for a good original set of calipers rebuilt?

I have never done brakes on a Vette. How big a deal is it? I have done front disc and rear drum on my GTO.

Thank you! This forum and the people in it are amazing with all the support!

Bill

If you've done drum brakes, vette calipers should be a "no brainer" to you! By all means flush. Styer has a couple of good posts on this. This way your sure you have a clean system without a "cocktail" of fluids.