Breaking problems, help please

[britdan26]

Hi all

I've got a breaking problem but I haven't got a clue what is causing it. It all started a fortnight ago when I noticed that my front pads were worn out and the discs were getting low so I decided to undertake the simple task of replacing them.

I completed this without problem. (Or so I thought) When I took her out everything appeared fine until the brakes started to warm up and the near side brake began to bind causing the car to started pulling to one side.

When I removed the wheel I noticed the dust cover on the caliper was slightly torn (About 1cm) but thought it was unlikely the caliper had failed so applied an extra coating of copper slip and ensured all channels where the pads should slide were clear and put it back together.

With the problem still present I convinced myself that the caliper was at fault and fitted a new one which brings me to tonight. Having just taken her out the problem is still present and I've run out of ideas as to the cause so if anyone has any suggestions I would be greatful.

[S7Paul]

Are you sure you re-fitted the spacers (thick washers) between the caliper and the hub?

[occasionaluse]

Just a thought - i had the same - thought it was a sticking calliper - changed calipers (upgraded brakes at same time) - after a short drive wheel was very hot - however it turned out to be brake line - if you are on rubber as i was they were acting like a one way valve (not letting fluid return) - changed to stainless and problem went away.

[britdan26]

Paul

You may well be onto something there. During the removal of both sides I don't recall any washers and certainly haven't put any back. (I'm not entirely suprised if parts are missing as its not the first thing I've found that has been missing a bit or two)

I presume these spacers should be on the mounting bolts for the calliper? Do you recall their thickness?

[britdan26]

Thanks Dave

I am on rubber hoses and was thinking about an upgrade whilst changing the discs. Looks like there is a possibility it could be sooner rather than later if Pauls suggestion doesn't work.

[ray_von]

britdan26 said:

Paul

You may well be onto something there. During the removal of both sides I don't recall any washers and certainly haven't put any back. (I'm not entirely suprised if parts are missing as its not the first thing I've found that has been missing a bit or two)

I presume these spacers should be on the mounting bolts for the calliper? Do you recall their thickness?

I think if the spacers were missing you wouldn't be able to mount the calliper onto the hub. On mine the spacers seem to be about 4mm wide so it's impossible to have the calliper fitted and not foul the disc. What depth disc have you fitted, there seems to be two(at least) 53mm & 58mm (although I seem to have 55mm )might be worth checking your old ones for variation

[andy-w]

britdan26 said:

When I took her out everything appeared fine until the brakes started to warm up and the near side brake began to bind causing the car to started pulling to one side.

I had the same problem.

All i did was strip the caliper again and gave everything a really good clean. It seemed to cure the problem but i am changing to stainless hoses as i was not convinced.

[Tobs]

As ray_von said check to see if your new discs are the same as the old - there seems to be a variety of offsets fitted depending on the time of day - which way the wind was blowing -etc when your car was made!

[britdan26]

Ok, so its all coming apart again and will get another good clean. I'm glad I've checked this posting at work, think I'll be borrowing the vernier for the weekend to see how the new parts compare to the originals.

The only thing that is confusing me is that if it is a problem with dimensions of parts should I have the same problem with the offside brake as well?

[andy-w]

britdan26 said:

Ok, so its all coming apart again and will get another good clean. I'm glad I've checked this posting at work, think I'll be borrowing the vernier for the weekend to see how the new parts compare to the originals.

The only thing that is confusing me is that if it is a problem with dimensions of parts should I have the same problem with the offside brake as well?

I had not changed anything on mine. All i did was to take the front calipers off on both sides just to clean them for something to do. Before i did this they were fine. After i did this the nearside front started to bind when in traffic. Same pads, same disc...never did find out why. The other thing that made me think was the brake pipes are very close to the exhaust manifold, but then if this was an issue it would have happened before.

[britdan26]

Thanks Andy

I am now wondering about the rubber brake pipes. They look like they may be original and I'm wondering if they could of partially broken down internally so there is a flap in the pipe acting almost like a one way valve. This could of been caused by me disturbing the pipe to change the discs?

If nothing jumps out as obvious this evening I think I may of found the excuse for an upgrade to the pipes.

[That Daddy]

britdan26 said:

Thanks Andy

I am now wondering about the rubber brake pipes. They look like they may be original and I'm wondering if they could of partially broken down internally so there is a flap in the pipe acting almost like a one way valve. This could of been caused by me disturbing the pipe to change the discs?

If nothing jumps out as obvious this evening I think I may of found the excuse for an upgrade to the pipes.

If your assuming that its one of your brake hoses then you may be right this happens quite often in the motor trade,and used to be a regular thing with the older car,and can be caused my someone crimping the hose with the wrong tools(molegrips etc)good luck,when it does it again go underneath with your 11mm spanner and crack open the nipple if fluid squirts out(under pressure) and the wheel turns freely then you have found the problem with the hose.

[britdan26]

Cheers Simon

The more I think about the hose the more it makes sense. At least I've got a few things to try over the weekend instead of just looking at it and scratching my head.

[occasionaluse]

It really does sound like the problem i had mentioned earlier with the brake hoses. They restrict flow - so pressing the brake pedal puts enough pressure to get the fluid into the caliper but the pressure going back is not enough - when things heat up the brakes bind - but fluid slowly leaks back so after sitting for 15 mins they were ok again. Changing the lines is easy - and stainless ones are cheap.

[britdan26]

Just wanted to finish the thread with a conclusion for anyone who searches for a similar problem in the future. It turned out to be the brake line that had failed internally as was suggested by Dave so thanks for that. Anyway, I'm off now for an extended road test.