Over the weekend my Brake light came on and the fluid was nearly empty in the master cylinder. I refilled the fluid and I checked around and found a leak at the rear right wheel - fluid is leaking from behind the brake housing/cover.

I want to purchase the parts in advance so I don't need to hitch a ride to the store once my vehicle is jacked up for repairs. What parts should I obtain for this repair? I don't see any leaking hoses between the cylinder and the wheels - wherever the leak originates is behind the wheel (I haven't pulled off the wheel yet).

I'll also replace the drum brake pads while I'm at it. What special tools do I need for this job?

Thank you for your help!

I'll say you need to replace the wheel cylinder, easy fix then blled system. while your at it replace old brake fluid with new in entire system and you should be good. there are no flex lines on the back so thats why I say wheel cylinder. good luck and let me know what happens:smokin:

oh ya no special tools the rear hold down springs that are holding the shoes on can be done with pliers but if you don't feel good about that ask for a holddown spring tool. you should also replace the rear hardware on the brakes too. both sides and since you replacing 1 wheel cylinder do the other.

I would just like to add, be careful with the brakeline and be sure to soak the line with some PB Blaster and work the fitting back and forth. - this is incase the line is rusted.

You were right - the wheel cylinder was shot (totally rusted - fell apart when I took the brake drum off). I replaced the cylinders on both sides - no big problem except the brake line was rusted to the fitting and (even with PB Blaster) I twisted the steel hose off of the fitting. It took three tries to get the right brake lines. I recommend the dark green steel kind, as they can be bent into any shape without a tubing bender. CHECK THE FITTING SIZE. That was my first problem, as the same size tubing comes with different fitting sizes. Once I got all the brake pads (front), shoes (rear), cylinders, hardware, and other parts installed I bled the system, replaced the fluid, and the brakes work well.

One more thought - I definitely recommend using the "spring removal & installation tool" on the drum brakes. The guy at Autozone said "you don't need it". A mechanic walked in and said "you definitely need it" - best $8 I spent that day (other than the parts I installed, of course!).

Thank you for your help!