Underlining the importance of proper diagnosis!

[Gareth Randall]

Just FWIW, today I had an object lesson in diagnosing things properly rather than jumping to conclusions. Fortunately, it all worked out OK for me, but it could have been expensive. It’s a long one, so bear with me…

I recently acquired a 2003 Ford Escape 2.0L manual (it’s actually badged as the Maverick in the UK, but it’s just a RHD Escape). The seller had had the engine cleaned before he sold it, so of course everything looked fine, but when I opened the hood a month later, the brake master cylinder was absolutely soaked in fluid.

My immediate thought was that I’d need to replace the MC, but I cleaned off all the fluid so that I could confirm the source of the leak. In the meantime I started pricing up replacement MCs, and discovered that the OEM Ford one was on back-order and nearly £600 ($830). The Maverick/Escape was never a big seller for Ford in the UK and was discontinued after the 2003 model year, so some parts are hard to find and expensive when you do, with virtually zero aftermarket support except for consumables.

As it’s just a rebadged first-gen Escape I could potentially source parts from the USA, where MCs are as cheap as $26 new, but I’d have to modify one of the brake lines, as the LHD MCs switch the location of one of the fluid ports to the opposite side of the cylinder to the RHD ones.

Anyway, I was expecting a potential considerable hassle and/or expense in replacing the MC, when I came across a recall notice for the first-gen American Escapes relating to a leaky MC cap causing fluid to drip onto the ABS HCU, where it could potentially cause corrosion or a fire. The UK Escapes, being RHD and with the MC in a different location with no electrical stuff underneath, weren’t included in the recall, but I checked my MC cap and what do you know, that’s where the leak was.

One $11 replacement cap later, and the MC is fluid-tight.

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