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On 2 Nov 97, Greg Merritt wrote:
> At 2:03 PM -0500 11/2/97, Greg Merritt wrote:
> > Whew! Kisten's just off to work in the '71; my fingers are crossed...
>
> ...and she came back home about 5 minutes later. :(
>
> It's *going* fine--it's the stopping that's the problem.
>
> Braking has lots of pressure, but is very hard--and the brakes
> don't grab very well. Have to push awfully hard, and the car
> doesn't come to a stop quickly--especially at greater speeds. Also,
> the pedal doesn't return all the way to the top--the last half inch
> or so just doesn't happen.
>
> The car hasn't hardly been driven in the past couple of weeks due
> to the "going" problem. I thought it might be stuck calipers (even
> though they're new as of summer). Jacked up the front end & popped
> off the wheels; I was able to slide the pads & pistions back into
> the bodies very easily with channel locks. I hopped inside the car
> to pump the brakes back up & bring the pads back into contact with
> the rotors... the pedal went to the floor & didn't come back up!
> After working it back & forth a couple of times, it pumped up
> again--the pads contacted the rotors. I shot some silicone
> lubricant onto the pedal cluster (actually did that *first*), but
> that didn't seem to help. The braking may be a tad better, but the
> problem is still basically there. (Doesn't help that we've been
> driving a car w/ excellent brakes--the '69.)
Silicone lubricants are great for almost any application except for
metal to metal (for which they are terrible!)
> I'll check the rear cylinders next--my gut feeling is to bleed the
> brakes. Could there be crap in the lines that makes the braking
> effort excessively hard? Corrosion that got worse while the thing
> sat mostly idle for a couple of weeks? Could anything besides a
> crusty, dry, corroded pedal cluster prevent the pedal from returning
> fully to the top?
Pedal must come back to the top to allow the MC to "vent" each time.
Try bleeding and you will see where your problem is. DoT 3/4 brake
fluid should be completely flushed and replaced every year or two
anyway. That's why I have been a long time proponent of DoT 5
silicone brake fluid.
You have other problems, however.
Jim
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Melissa Kepner Jim Adney
Laura Kepner-Adney
jadney@vwtype3.org
Madison, Wisconsin
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