1990 Honda Accord Calipers Stay Applied

HONDA ACCORD
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CHICONICS
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I have a 1990 Honda Accord with 209,000 miles on it, I just had all the brakes redone on it, but the front calipers seem to keep applying pressure. I noticed that there are two reseviors for brake fluid, one on top of the master cylinder and another small one to the right of that. What is the smaller one for?
Aug 1, 2006 at 12:21 PM
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BRUCE HUNT
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I would bet that you have manual transmission. The little one is the same fluid as the brakes but it is for the clutch. That is the master clutch cylinder and it hooks up to the slave cylinder on the tranny.
Aug 24, 2006 at 5:50 AM
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I do have a manual transmission. I took my car to a mechanic and they told me that there was contamination in my brake fluid and it was absorbed by the rubber components in the system. They told me that even if I had the fluid replaced, I would still have a problem with contamination. Is this true? They also told me that I would have to replace all rubber components in the system.
Aug 24, 2006 at 9:06 AM
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BRUCE HUNT
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It can be true. Given the age of the vehicle the rubber can be starting to deteriorate.
Aug 24, 2006 at 3:46 PM
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Suggested Repair

The smaller reservoir is the clutch master cylinder and uses the same fluid as the brakes. Contamination can be absorbed by rubber parts, so a fluid change alone may not stop the front calipers from staying applied; given the car's age, deteriorated rubber components may need replacement.

Conversation Summary

The owner of a 1990 Honda Accord with a recent brake job asked why the front calipers kept applying pressure and what the smaller fluid reservoir beside the brake master cylinder was for. The expert identified it as the clutch master cylinder reservoir on a manual transmission. A mechanic had said contaminated brake fluid was absorbed by the rubber parts and that replacing the fluid would not solve it. The expert agreed this can happen and noted that the rubber may be deteriorating with age.

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