brake problems i give up now!!!

[steve_k]

https://tenor.com/view/anxious-gif-10850662

have you been looking through my window? because that's me right now

[steve_k]

well i better update this,

took the car for mot at a local place this week.

sad to say it failed on a couple of bits (well it has been off road for 9yr's), the main one being the fact the front brake lines were all one continuous length from the M/C to the caliper & despite the fact that there were rubber grommets in the brackets in the wheel well the line passes through he was concerned about them rubbing & splitting, even though the rears are exactly the same.

so, a set of new bulkhead AN fittings are on the way & then off for test again.

mind you the guy who tested the car is know to be a bit of an arsehole at times & it can be luck of the draw depending what kind of mood he's in on the day.

[E30Derbyshire]

So near, but yet so far. Can someone please give Steve a break….

[steve_k]

So near, but yet so far. Can someone please give Steve a break….

tell me about it

it'll get there i come hell or high water.

[martauto]

How did the brakes perform ?

Mart.

[steve_k]

How did the brakes perform ?

Mart.

not too bad, he reckons they need to bed in a bit more,

[martauto]

How did the brakes perform ?

Mart.

not too bad, he reckons they need to bed in a bit more,

But you have solved it mate

Mart.

[steve_k]

How did the brakes perform ?

Mart.

not too bad, he reckons they need to bed in a bit more,

But you have solved it mate

Mart.

hopefully i have, could still be teething problems.

[fixedwheelnut]

[steve_k]

well those new AN fittings for the front wheel well's should be here sometime today & providing it aint oo hot i'll get them fitted, rebleed again & try to get the car back in either this week or next week depending on how busy the garage is.

[martauto]

Do we have an ending to this truely epic story ??

Mart.

[steve_k]

Do we have an ending to this truely epic story ??

Mart.

hopefully soon

[steve_k]

well i'm back to square one again.

turns out one of the 2 90 degree unions i was using at the M/C has decided to split on me, this is the type i mean.

https://www.carbuilder.com/uk/90-degree ... at-m10-x-1

one goes to the rear line, & the other goes to a T piece for the front lines.

so, out they both came & have been replaced with a pair of banjo bolts same as used on my mates e21 with the same M/C & servo.

on the subject of the M/C i noticed a slight dribble of fluid on the servo, so took the M/C off & sure enough it looks like one of the seals inside has gone, so straight on the phone to the dealer i got it from, waiting to see if i'll get a replacement or a refund.

pissed off???? just a little.

[steve_k]

well time for an update, only a small one but an update none the less.

the stealers admitted fault with the M/C & agreed to replace it.
well the new one is due to be delivered today so soon as that gets here i'll be bench bleeding it then getting it fitted & the whole brake system bled again & trying the brakes.

so, fingers crossed it all goes well.

[martauto]

Hope it all goes well for you Steve, nearly there mate !!

Mart.

[steve_k]

well ive fitted the new M/C (after bench bleeding it twice), bled the brakes a couple of times (twice with a pressure bleeder & once with my dad pressing the peddle),

peddle now feels nice & firm, no leaks (that i can see or find).

now the thing is with the engine running i can press the peddle down a few inches & then it goes hard & i take this as a good sign, what's everyone else think?

just got to charge the battery (caught the side lights the other day) pump the tyres up & drop it off the axle stands then fingers crossed when i try the brakes.

[steve_k]

just been & checked, with the engine off i can press the peddle down about 1.5" before it goes hard & won't go down any further, again a good sign??

[E30Derbyshire]

Sounds positive Steve

[martauto]

Sounds positive Steve

Sounds bloody fantastic at long last Steve
Cant remember but did you get a test on it ?

Mart.

[steve_k]

Sounds positive Steve

thanks just waiting for it to stop raining & i can drop it down & try it out.

[steve_k]

Sounds positive Steve

Sounds bloody fantastic at long last Steve
Cant remember but did you get a test on it ?

Mart.

yeah i took it for a test but now i've got to pay for a full one again as it failed on a few little bits, soon as it stops raining & the battery is charged & tyres pumped up i'll drop it down & try the brakes again.

[steve_k]

well i'll hopefully be testing the brake again tomorrow.
but in the mean time i'm waiting for a new battery charger to turn up.

so, i dodnt know why i did it but i decided to wedge the peddle down as far as i could (jack handle & block of wood against the seat) & see if i could turn any of the front wheels by hand & i'm happy to say that with the peddle depressed by abou 3 inches the front wheels wouldn't turn at all.

so again i'm taking that as a good point.

just wish amazone would hurry up with this new charger.

[steve_k]

well after a few days of being rained off the job i finally get a chance to drop the car down onto it's wheels.

when i had the car on the stands, i started the engine with my foot on the brake pedal & it would drop slightly.
also with the engine the peddle would only go down about half way & felt very firm.

so to toady i dropped the car down, had my foot on the peddle & started it up, again the peddle dropped slightly,
so i put it into reverse & (gingerly) backed along the drive,

i pressed the peddle & the car came to dead stop, let the peddle up & backed up a bit more & tried again, dead stop again, so i took it forward & did the same again, again a dead stop, all the while with a firm peddle.

only problem i found was a slight vacuum leak, which i assumed was coming from the check valve at the servo,

i dug about in the shed & found a small universal one way/check valve, so i put that in the vacuum line (& left the one at the servo) & tried the brakes again,

glad to report that the peddle was still nice & firm & the brakes had plenty of bite, i just think they need "bedding in" a bit more.

but with the extra check valve in the vacuum hose the peddle would go solid with the engine off same as it does on my daily (58 plate vectra c).

the car should be going in for MOT again sometime next week (as soon as he's got a gap) so i'll be trying it out on the drive to make sure alls working as it should be.

[martauto]

I have no words mate



Mart.

[steve_k]

I have no words mate



Mart.

thanks mart, getting there slowly slowly, just been outside & tried them again, still a little soft on the peddle but they seem to be getting there.

[BenHar]

Great news.

(It's pedal, by the way.)

Ben

[steve_k]

Great news.

(It's pedal, by the way.)

Ben

thanks, spelling never was my strong point

[fixedwheelnut]

Great news.

(It's pedal, by the way.)

Ben

thanks, spelling never was my strong point

Well done Steve great to get it right in the end

[steve_k]

Great news.

(It's pedal, by the way.)

Ben

thanks, spelling never was my strong point

Well done Steve great to get it right in the end

thanks, the end is finally in sight.

[E30Derbyshire]

Fantastic news Steve, fingers crossed for MOT day!

[steve_k]

Fantastic news Steve, fingers crossed for MOT day!

thanks. same here.

[steve_k]

a little update.

not had chance to re mot the car yet (next week hopefully) due to the weather, family problems & looking to move closer to me son (viewing new places).

i noticed the other day the the throttle body had 2 vacuum ports, one blocked off & one for the servo, well seeing as the brake peddle was still a little soft (but not by much) & i remembered that some 325i's that had the same TB used both ports for the brake servo vacuum.

so i dug out a Y shape hose connector & some more vacuum hose & i connected the whole lot up & used both ports on the TB.

tried the brakes again & they now feel a lot lot sharper with more bite & a firmer peddle.

i guess i'll find out at the mot if it's improved them, fingers crossed.

[steve_k]

well after suffering a long(ish) illness the past month or 2 (polymyalgia rheumatica & trigeminal neuralgia, what a combo ) i've finally been able to get back on the car,

well while giving it a once over to get the mot jobs done & hopefully get it back on the road at long last, i checked all the brake unions as i had changed the fronts to mk2 focus st225 (asbo) calipers & 315/320mm as i was given a set for free/gratis/for nowt, & they were all bone dry, no fluid loss, but the oedal was slightly soft/spongy,

well i don't know why but i decided to check the non return valve & hose from the servo to the TB,
when i pulled the valve out the servo the grommet came with it & dropped on to the floor, no that says to me that the grommet was loose in the hole & could be leading to a vacuum leak of sorts.

anyway, i had a dig in the big box of bits in the shed & found a new grommet, valve & spare e90 servo, then it started to pee it down, so i came back inside & tried the grommet in the servo with the spare valve, & surprise surprise it was a nice, snug tight fit, pushed the valve into place & it's safe to say it wont be going anywhere for a while,

so, depending on how i feel tomorrow & if it's raining or not i'll try the grommet in the servo on the car & try it all again.

i say about it causing a (small) vacuum leak because of how easily the grommet popped out & dropped off the valve.
got to be worth a try at least.

[steve_k]

well i'm still struggling with this little issue.

a brief history of whats been done so far & whats been used.

after finding ot that my hi-spec billet four piston calipers had seized on one side i went looking at upgrades instead of returning to standard brakes.

the braking system currently consists of the following.

non abs.

front brakes, mk2 focus ST225 front calipers, fully rebuilt with new pistons, seals & dust boots, brass slide/guide pin bushes, new speed bleeder nipples, mintex pads & 312x25mm mk5 golf gti front discs (pcd changed to 4x100),
braided steel lines,

brand new bmw e9x brake m/c (from bmw after the one before from them was faulty) M10 female to M12 male adapters & M10 AN fttings with braided steel lines,

e9x brake servo (from a low mileage e90 330d),
new check/non return valve, new vacuum line to T/B.

rear brakes, braided steel line from M/C to new adjustable (screw type) bias valve,
braided steel line to new rear T piece,

braided steel lines from T piece to rear calipers.
new rear calipers with brass slide/guide pin bushes, again, mintex pads,

full an fittings all the way through.

i used the st225 calipers as i was given them by a friend of mine so couldn't really say no could i?

after the problems i had before i took it all apart again, made sure all the lines were clear & free from damage (dents etc),

when i put it all back together i had help from my ex father in law (modified historic rally driver who built his own rally car, a 1.8t engined mk1 golf), & on his advise used PTFE paste (not tape) on al the unions same as he had done when rebuilding his rally car braking system, left it the required 60hr's after assembly to cure, refitted all the calipers, pads & discs, refilled it with dot 5.1 fluid.

bled the system several times (pressure bleeder, 2 man method, 1 man bleeder/ezibleed one way valve, gravity bled, & vacuum bled) got all the air out the system,

now the problem returns,

when i press the peddle with the engine off several times it does not go solid/hard on the 3rd push same as it does on my daily (a4 b6 1.9tdi),

with the engine running it's still the same, but it take a lot more effort to stop the car,

i'm at my wits end with this now, i really don't know what else to do or check.
i've checked & tested the servo, thats working as it should, M/C was bench bled before fitting, all the unions are bone dry so no leaks.

i'm at a loss.

[martauto]

Hear me out mate, Try fitting stock calipers and see if anything changes.

Process of elimination, if not then master cylinder ,then other stuff until things do change.
I know it`s a load of graft but maybe bit by bit is the way to go?

Mart.