Leaking brake fluid? after trackday

[Walt]

Hi all,

I took my car to the local road course track (spa francorchamps) for a 25min session. When I drove in the pit I heard loud squeaking when turning (no brakes applied) so I parked and took a look at the suspension but I couldn't find anything wrong.

But then I noticed that my brake calipers leaked some kind of fluid. Both the front and rear calipers. The rear calipers dripped some kind of sticky fluid that already hardened because of the heat. The front was still wet when I got home but I couldn't remove it all with a paper towel.

Anyone knows if this is an issue with some kind of fluid leak or is this normal? My mustang ecoboost is stock and has no upgraded brake fluid.

See pictures.

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[NightmareMoon]

That resin stuff on the pads is not brake fluid. Brake fluid doesnt dry solid like that, it just evaporates.

The marks near the bleeder screw might be some brake fluid, IDK without seeing what they looked like before the session.

Usually brake fluid is pretty well sealed in the system or else you’d notice for sure (no brakes!). It doesnt usually escape, even a little.

Squealing after a hard or prolonged track session (25 minutes counts) on stock pads likely means you got your pads too hot and glazed them. Eventually they might wear through the glazed layer and quiet down, but the fastest way to remove the glazing is to take the pads off the car, hit the pad surface with some sandpaper or run them on a belt sander until the bright shiney spots are removed.

If your pedal feels mushy at all you probably have some air in the lines from boiling some of the brake fluid, and the brakes need to be bleed until air bubbles stop coming out.

 

[Thub]

The stuff that hardened is probably glue that was holding the pad shim on, the oil around the bolt holes is melting assembly lubricant. You're all good, no brake fluid is leaking.

 

[jacknifetoaswan]

That resin stuff on the pads is not brake fluid. Brake fluid doesnt dry solid like that, it just evaporates.

The marks near the bleeder screw might be some brake fluid, IDK without seeing what they looked like before the session.

Usually brake fluid is pretty well sealed in the system or else you’d notice for sure (no brakes!). It doesnt usually escape, even a little.

Squealing after a hard or prolonged track session (25 minutes counts) on stock pads likely means you got your pads too hot and glazed them. Eventually they might wear through the glazed layer and quiet down, but the fastest way to remove the glazing is to take the pads off the car, hit the pad surface with some sandpaper or run them on a belt sander until the bright shiney spots are removed.

If your pedal feels mushy at all you probably have some air in the lines from boiling some of the brake fluid, and the brakes need to be bleed until air bubbles stop coming out.

This is the correct answer on all counts, though I'd flush the fluid completely, rather than just bleed it.

OP, I'd flush that fluid ASAP, and before your next track day, change out your stock pads for something that can take a little more heat. Spa is a fast track with a couple really hard corners, and you're going to cook your brakes pretty fast coming into Les Combes, the Chicane, and La Source. Check out the ATE Type 200 fluid, at a minimum, and if you anticipate doing another one soon, get something like Motul RBF600 or Castrol SRF. For pads, you've got a lot of options, and you can run either a dedicated track pad (that you swap in/out for the event) or a pad that compromises between street driving and bite/heat dissipation for the track.

JR

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