brake question

Post by **bogbasic** » 29 Apr 2006 10:47 pm

I have replaced some parts of the braking system on a 360 including the long metal pipe (front to back), rubber hoses and one calliper and bled the system. However, its impossible to make the wheels lock up (only tested at low speeds). I doubt it will get through the MOT like this. Is it likely to be air in the pipes or something else, any clues very much appreciated.

Post by **pettaw** » 29 Apr 2006 11:08 pm

how hard is the pedal? If its soft I would suspect air, if its hard something's seized.

Website · Post by **antiekeradio** » 30 Apr 2006 04:59 pm

the brake pressure to the rear wheels is limited; it is supposed not to lock up

if the pedal is quite stiff and the decelleration is allright (hard stamp=nose on dash) there doesn't seem to be a problem

Post by **IvanAE86** » 30 Apr 2006 08:39 pm

How far did you drain the brake fluid while working on the car? If the master cilinder was empty at any point you will most likely have a hard time getting all the air out of the system..

Post by **bogbasic** » 30 Apr 2006 09:15 pm

Hello, the pedal is hard and the deceleration is pretty sharp so perhaps its OK. I did drain the brake fluid completely but I spent a couple of hours bleeding loads of brake fluid through to get rid of the bubbles. Perhaps I'll chance it with the MOT. The 1.4 seems to lock up more easily - is that a common finding??

Website · Post by **antiekeradio** » 30 Apr 2006 10:53 pm

on any car with a seized up pressure limiter, the rear brakes lock up far more easily.

don't really think there is a big difference between the B19/B200 and B14 brake pressure limiters...

Post by **IvanAE86** » 01 May 2006 03:53 pm

The problem with master cilinders is that you cant really get them perfect without bench-bleeding (running flexible tubes from the outlets back into the reservoir). I've once spent 15 minutes on just the master cilinder to get it free of all the tiny air bubbles. Made a noticeable difference in pedal feel.
I'll look into that pressure limiter on my other car (corolla), still have problems with the rear locking sooner than the front does..

Website · Post by **antiekeradio** » 01 May 2006 04:41 pm

on some cars you can have a problem with someone in the past having used wrong sized brake cilinders; the diameter of some types is different (depending on year/model) so you might want to check that too