VN Brake Faliure

[Doctor Sodways]

Ok, so i searched the forum, and couldnt find anything similar to my problem.

The other day, i reversed my car out of my driveway to go to uni, put my foot on the brakes, and they were rock solid with very little movement, but didnt do anything, so i stopped the car with the hand brake. I put my car back in my driveway, went inside to arrange another method of transport to uni and work, and came back out. I put my foot on the brake without the engine running and started the engine, and now, i have really really spongy brakes. I replaced a leaking brake line on my front caliper a little while ago and when that was done, all the lines were checked, i cant see any brake fluid anywhere under or on the car, and there is plenty in it.

Can anyone think of what it may be, i have a suspision that it may be the master cylinder saying thats enough and crapping itself, but could it be anything else?

Cheers

[Hairy Eater]

spongy usually means there's air in the brake lines somewhere....... did you bleed the brakes after fitting the new line?... it takes 2 people to bleed the brakes unless you have got a power bleeder like mechanics use.... If you dont know how to bleed brakes, just ask here and i'll explain...

[Divvo]

Could be sticky caliper (slider or piston) or vacuum problems with booster Have experienced both - put in new pads and did not clean crap off pistons before sliding into caliper and it got stuck making brake real hard, then when it moved it stuffed the seal and no real weeping of fluid was obvious but it took a bit of air in every time I used the brake. When vacuum went I had iffy brakes and little bit of white smoke as the fluid was escaping down vacuum line into manifold.
Both on my VL.

[Doctor Sodways]

yeah, the mechanics did the line for me, that was a month or two ago though, and that was and still is on my mind as to the spongyness, but the firmness is what really scares me, i can stop with spongy brakes, but being rock solid, it doesnt want to stop at all

Cheers

[redcedar]

take it backto the mechanic and tell him to get it right !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[noah_73]

take it backto the mechanic and tell him to get it right !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

How do you know it was the mechanics fault? This is a simple thing to do (brake lines)! This problem shows up 1 to 2 months later and you happen to know exactly who is at fault. You are one reason there is a shortage of mechanics around.

[Doctor Sodways]

Yeah, i know the mechanic and trust him, and the guys he employs, so ill go and see him about it, but im not gunna go in guns blazing and blaming him.

And i have come to the conclusion that the only time my brakes really firm up and have trouble working is when the car is going backwards. And as for the spongyness, my old man drive the car and said they felt fine, so, its an interesting problem

Cheers guys

[Hairy Eater]

when you said HARD... is the brake pedal hitting bottom of its travel length?.. the brake pedal should only go in 1 to 2 inches ....

[Doctor Sodways]

yeah, rock solid, maybe 1cm movement, but as a said before, ive worked out it doesnt happen when moving forward, its only after ive reversed the car. I went for a faily long drive yesterday and stomped the brakes a few times and it pulled up fine, and locked the front left once when i went real hard, but i cant work out what it is, it does move the one to two inches and i can get it to the full length of the travel. I have my dads 4wd for a few days so i can mull it over and see my mechanic when he returns from his sun drenched hawaii surf trip (B@stard!)

[Doctor Sodways]

Huzzah!

Problem solved, after drving to uni today, a 5min drive, i lost brakes again and they went rock solid as i pulled into a carpark, so i was wrong, it didnt only happen in reverse, but i called the RAA after my lectures and they came out and had a look, it turned out, that a vacume line was loose, due to old age and becoming more stiff than it originally was, so, once my car cools down, ill remove the old, and put the new one back on with new clamps as well, thank christ its fixed though

[ProMaX]

actually i posted something like this in this exact forum about 3 weeks ago :\