I found replacing brake fluid once a week and my '96 Ranger seems to be braking ok. I know I should not trust it fully.

I've been told I need new brake cylinders and drums for the rear, for about $5-600 at the Ford Dealer.

Any suggestions on the best way to go about this? Any special components that work better than others?

I was told Ford doesn't make the parts anymore, so what brand is best, etc.

Thanks

 

By brake cylinders you mean wheel cylinders?

They often don't get changed until they fail and start leaking brake fluid out, but I hear they should be changed every other brake job or something to that effect. Very easy to do. All you really need is some tubing wrenches and other basic hand tools.

$500-600 sounds very high. I got new wheel cylinders for my 94 for $9.99 a piece at O'Reilly auto, and I got brand new drums for, I think, $50 each.

You should probably replace both rear brake lines (from the splitter hose over the diff to each wheel) as well as both wheel cylinders (which should also come with new bleeders) as well as the brake shoes and hardware kit all at the same time... less headache later.

All of that could be done for WAY less than $500-600 with the help of your local auto parts store.

You should also check your front brake hoses for leaks as well as your master cylinder.

 

Also I have been buying parts from O'Reilly Auto for years after they set up shop here and the price and quality are hard to beat. But any brands your local auto parts stores have should be just fine in terms of price and quality- certainly cheaper than dealership parts.