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I went to Budget Brakes yesterday to get my brakes checked yesterday. I replaced the pads and rotors since both were under legal standards, and it came out to just over $300 (also got my drums cleaned, but they offered it free with a coupon). One thing they also found was the master cylinder, which they said was prone to fail. The technician showed me the dried brake fluid around the master cylinder, but never explained anything else about my car (he claimed it was a common issue on Taurus; he had a '96 with the same problem) other than the symptoms of a bad master cylinder (spongy pedal, emergency stop when fail, makes brake pedal lower), the symptoms which I took with careful consideration. I declined to have it done since it was approximately $177 with labor, but he said to have it done soon. I was thinking last night and I wondered if that had been a previous problem that had been fixed before I bought my car. The fluid in the reservoir is hard to see from the outside but seems to stay at the same level. I even did a quick check today by shifting into neutral and stepping on the brake pedal several times, but I noticed nothing leaking around the master cylinder or under the car. I think I saved myself $180, thoughts?