Master Cylinder @#%($&%*!!!

Well, I have hit a roadblock.  The wheel cylinders have been replaced, bearings repacked (Thanks Dave Curry!) and everything looks great ... except when you step on the pedal the brakes lock.

The wheel cylinders and pads definitely needed replacing.  One side was weeping ever so slightly out the seal, and there was a lot of rust.  Everything came out looking and feeling pretty good, but after bleeding them I was having a really hard time getting them adjusted.  I would have them where I thought they needed to be, Dave would depress the pedal, and the wheels would be locked up again.  This is after enough pedal presses that the pads should have had time to adjust/center themselves.

The feel of the pedal is also not so great.  There's a lot of pedal travel before it encounters the resistance of the master cylinder, and when you do, you have to push harder than I would expect for it to stop the wheels.  Then, at that point, the wheels are locked, and the only way to unlock them is to open the bleeder valve and let a little fluid out.  Thereafter the wheels pins nicely (until you hit the pedal again).



So, I think it's going to be time for a master cylinder.  Part price seems to vary.  I'm looking at German made parts.


Thing Shop: $120
JBugs: $59
Chirco: $89


I'm thinking about ordering from Chirco because the guys there have been so insanely helpful to me on the forums.  I need to compare shipping, and I don't want to wait another entire week, so I'm probably going to do 2 or 3 day.


Changing the master cylinder doesn't look too bad, but I currently have a far more pressing item to fix: the air conditioner on my Jeep Liberty Renegade has siezed and is smoking, making the vehicle undrivable except for very short trips (and with the windows all rolled down).  So that's the project for Thursday - don't expect any Thing updates for a few days (sorry).


Update: the master cylinder apparently needs to be bench bled.  Here's the procedure:


http://www.vw-resource.com/bench_bleed.html


Looks like it will require a lot of patience to pull this off.

Wrong Shoes!

Advance Auto Parts gave me the wrong brake shoes.  Actually, in a box of 4 shoes, only 1 of them was wrong. It had one less spring hole, and it was the one I needed.  I took the parts back to the store, and they pulled another box off the shelf - and it also was not a matching set!!!  We were able to put the the two boxes together and give me one, complete, nearly identical set (lining color was slight different on one, but composition supposedly the same).  Either way, they fit, and the brakes are reassembled but not the axle bearings and drums (yet).

The brake line is dry (as in empty).  I'm a little concerned by this, maybe it takes more pumping than I think it does.  Hope to solicit help to figure that out.  (Obviously, can't bleed them until everything is assembled and adjusted).

Cleaning and Waiting

Still waiting for my brake parts.  While I'm waiting I decided to try to clean up the drums a little, and I was very happy to find them to be in excellent condition.  There is still a little surface rust on the drum surface, but no pitting or grooves, and no real signs of wear.  Gave the bearings a good fresh coat of grease, but other than a little time with a wire brush (which is mostly cosmetic) there's not a ton to do here.  Hopefully brake parts get here soon.

Braking News

You're wondering: is it good news, or bad?  Well, it's a bit of both.  First the bad news.  The front brake shoes, which looked pretty good from the side, didn't look so good when I took everything apart.  Plenty of pad left, but what was there was cracked, pitted, and brittle.  My prediction is that the back shoes will be in similar condition.  I won't tackle that until the front ones are finished (for starters, I don't have enough jack stands).

The good news is that the brake hardware cleaned up very nicely using the multimedia blaster and ultrasonic cleaners at work:

Outlook is that I will get my wheel cylinders and new hardware on Monday.  I will probably use all new hardware, and keep the above set as extras.  (Why not?  I'm planning on this set of brakes lasting a long, long time!)

Right Front Brake Disassembled

Tonight I disassembled my front right brakes.  It went much better than the left side, mainly because I knew what I was doing.  The biggest problem was the top adjuster star nut (same one that was horribly frozen on the driver's side).

The brake hardware is not in terrible condition, but it's all pretty rusty.  I marred the adjuster nut a little trying to get it off (it was really frozen).  Tomorrow it all goes into the ultrasonic cleaner, and we'll see what comes out.  Regardless of how it looks, I am inclined to change out all the springs, adjusters - I already have new kits on the way.

The wheel cylinder is pretty rusty.  I find it hard to believe it moves very freely, though this brake did seem to work better than the left side.  Unlike the left, I didn't see any seepage under the seal.  I'll replace it anyway.

Brake Trouble

I got my Thing inspected.  It failed only because of a broken windshield wiper motor.  I have since fixed the motor (more on this later) ... but on the way home from the shop, the front left brake locked.  I'm not sure if it was the stress of its first car full of people, or "Mechanic's Entropy," but as Rytek pointed out the star adjuster nuts are VERY rusty.

I am probably going to replace the adjusters and wheel cylinders all around, and bleed the system.  I will decide once I get a look inside.  Step 1, though, is to get the drum off.  I have been on Step 1 all day.

VW Thing Fun and Maintenance

When I was a kid my dad gave me an oscilloscope and a function generator.  This started me on a journey that turned into a career.  I love what I do, but it's all in the world of electronics and software.  I'm mechanically challenged.

I bought this 1973 Volkswagen Thing for three reasons.  First, I have thought they were cool since my friend Eric and I used to gawk at them on Long Island as teenagers.  Second, opportunity arose - I found this old thing on Cape Cod, within driving (well, towing) distance, almost all original and in pretty good condition but needing some attention here and there.  Finally, I want to be a little less "mechanically challenged."

This is supposed to be a hobby, a learning experience, and oh yeah something fun to drive for the brief but wonderful Rochester summer.

I'll try to make it interesting.  :-)

--Chris