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Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor

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Old 01-28-2003, 07:08 PM
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Default Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor

It's 110 degrees here today, and when I was out driving before when I braked the pedal would slowly go all the way to the floor. It didn't run out of brakes, but it must have come close. It did the same thing one day last week when the temperature was also over 100.

Could this be the brake fluid boiling? Or maybe I have a problem with the master cylinder seals? How do I tell?
Old 01-28-2003, 07:10 PM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor (OzzieAccord)

Replace/Rebuild the master cylinder.

Its got to be hotter than 110 to boil brake fluid.
Old 01-28-2003, 07:13 PM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor (niedejb)

Replace/Rebuild the master cylinder.

Its got to be hotter than 110 to boil brake fluid.
I would have the fluid flushed and bled. Old fluid if it gets contaminated with water, etc will not build good pressure and loses it's heat tolerance. If that doesn't work, then what he said.
Old 01-28-2003, 07:19 PM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor (RaceTilIDie)

yep theyve got it....i had that problem, replaced fluid and it was all good.
Old 01-28-2003, 07:23 PM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor (niedejb)

Replace/Rebuild the master cylinder.
No way dude. If its a random thing and not all the time, its gotta be the fluid and not the MC.
Old 01-28-2003, 07:28 PM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor (Wont be beat)

How would the fluid all of a sudden go bad?

Its the master cylinder.
Old 01-28-2003, 07:35 PM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor (RaceTilIDie)

Replace/Rebuild the master cylinder.

Its got to be hotter than 110 to boil brake fluid.

I would have the fluid flushed and bled. Old fluid if it gets contaminated with water, etc will not build good pressure and loses it's heat tolerance. If that doesn't work, then what he said.
I agree, brake fluid is super cheap so you might as well just try flushing it first.
Old 01-28-2003, 07:57 PM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor (niedejb)

How would the fluid all of a sudden go bad?
Its 110 degrees. He brakes hard. Fluid boils and looses its properties. Pedal sinks to the floor.
Its the master cylinder.
He just said the flushed it and its all good. A master cylinder cant be good one minute and bad the next and good the following.
Old 01-28-2003, 07:57 PM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor (p0pe)

I agree, brake fluid is super cheap so you might as well just try flushing it first.
Already done. Look up.
Old 01-28-2003, 09:30 PM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor (niedejb)

How would the fluid all of a sudden go bad?

Its the master cylinder.
Replace MC. Fluid wouldn't be affected so harshly by ambient outside temps..."slow pedal to floor" is classic piston-seal-blowby


[Modified by RotaryBzzz, 10:31 PM 1/28/2003]
Old 01-28-2003, 10:11 PM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor (OzzieAccord)

i had SAME problem w/ my 90 accord(SOLD, now have 02 accord). i had to flush out all the oil and 'refill'. worked for me, got better. but when it got hot, it sinked AGAIN! so... for now just change oil.. or just rebuild or change master cylinder...
and try not to use A/C.. helps out little...
good luck

edit: btw, the bodyshop guy told me i had bubbles in brake fluid


[Modified by accordblk, 7:12 AM 1/29/2003]
Old 01-29-2003, 08:02 AM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor (accordblk)

Arrg! Everyone listen up. I'm gonna say this one more time. An MC cant go bad one day, and be perfectly fine the next. If it goes, it goes, and you pedal will not be normal again until it is replaced. It doesnt have 'random sinking attributes.'

WBB, who enjoyed driving 50 city miles with a fuxored MC.
Old 01-29-2003, 02:08 PM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor (OzzieAccord)

I also think it has to be the master cylinder. I had a similar problem with my '94 GS-R and '86 Integra. It was the master cylinder both times...the pedal would sink almost all the way to the floor...low temp stock brake fluid should easily be able to hold up tp 110 degrees.
Old 01-29-2003, 04:16 PM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor (Wont be beat)

Arrg! Everyone listen up. I'm gonna say this one more time. An MC cant go bad one day, and be perfectly fine the next. If it goes, it goes, and you pedal will not be normal again until it is replaced. It doesnt have 'random sinking attributes.'

WBB, who enjoyed driving 50 city miles with a fuxored MC.
Gennady, I'll take you up on that. It happened to my dad's car (95 EX Sedan). The master cylinder wasn't able to hold pressure after a few minutes of driving, and the pedal went straight to the floor.
Old 01-29-2003, 05:20 PM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor (F22Turbo)


Gennady, I'll take you up on that. It happened to my dad's car (95 EX Sedan). The master cylinder wasn't able to hold pressure after a few minutes of driving, and the pedal went straight to the floor.
Brandon, you are right about your dads car but read the original post, he says that it only does it only if the temp is above a hundred and has happened only twice in two weeks, thats more of a roten fluid problem than a MC problem

Gennady is right to, it would be a repetitive thing also, like your dads car would ge to emp then fade the same everyday he drove it right? I believe Gennadys point is that it cannot happen once a week
Old 01-29-2003, 07:30 PM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor (urbanlegend21)

Gennady is right to, it would be a repetitive thing also, like your dads car would ge to emp then fade the same everyday he drove it right? I believe Gennadys point is that it cannot happen once a week
Actually, it happened to me first, I had an incident. My dad didn't believe me.....about 2 days later he gives the car to my mom and the same thing happens. The car was fine during the few days after it first happened. Also, there was little or no braking ability.
Old 01-30-2003, 05:57 AM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor (urbanlegend21)

Gennady, I'll take you up on that. It happened to my dad's car (95 EX Sedan). The master cylinder wasn't able to hold pressure after a few minutes of driving, and the pedal went straight to the floor.

Brandon, you are right about your dads car but read the original post, he says that it only does it only if the temp is above a hundred and has happened only twice in two weeks, thats more of a roten fluid problem than a MC problem

Gennady is right to, it would be a repetitive thing also, like your dads car would ge to emp then fade the same everyday he drove it right? I believe Gennadys point is that it cannot happen once a week
I had the same MC leakdown in my '95 GS-R. It didn't happen all the time, it happened more often when it was really hot, especially in traffic when it was even hotter under the hood.

Since it didn't happen all the time, I refused to believe it was the MC. After flushing fluid a few times, it still did it. When I got a new MC it was fine. Just because it doesn't happen all the time, that doesn't mean it can't be the MC.
Old 01-30-2003, 06:39 AM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor (JimBlake)

your fluid overheating can create blowby in the MC, remember it thins out as it heats, pushing past seals in the MC and ruining it

this is a simple case of cause and effect, the cause being what I am talking about and the effect being the MC going bad
Old 01-30-2003, 09:56 AM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor

low temp stock brake fluid should easily be able to hold up tp 110 degrees.
Yeah, no ****. But you mean to say that your brakes are at ambient temps while driving and braking?

You get a for effort.

your fluid overheating can create blowby in the MC, remember it thins out as it heats, pushing past seals in the MC and ruining it

this is a simple case of cause and effect, the cause being what I am talking about and the effect being the MC going bad
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Old 01-30-2003, 12:39 PM
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Default Re: Help! Brake pedal sinks to the floor (JimBlake)

Thanks for all the input guys. Jim's experience is identical to mine. Now that the days are only 75 to 80 degrees, the pedal is completely normal. It's only happened twice as I mentioned on 100 degree plus days.

I guess it is a sign that the MC will need attention some time soon, but at least I know what it is now.
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