brake pedal that is. after changing out my brake fluid today, i can stop my car although by the time i am stopped the pedal is on the floor. i do not see anysigns of leaking fluids. could this just be a lot of air in the system?

my local national chain mechanic said that just to hook the car up to a machine and bleed the brakes would be ~$100.00

any helpful thoughts? other than i did something wrong.

 

Bleed the lines.

Otherwise, check your master cylinder and calipers for leaks.

 

bleed ur brakes till u get pressure back

 

i got pressure. it just goes away after a stop.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by cifer6425 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i got pressure. it just goes away after a stop. </TD></TR></TABLE>

So you have a small leak, a bad cylinder, or a weak link in the clutch line most likely at the clutch damper. Look around in there and check for leaks...

Here's the whole clutch line:

 

i think its the brake system he's talking about hawkze, but same places to leak from, the lines, the hoses and calipers and master cylinder. if your pedal is hard at first and then starts sinking it is 100% most likely your master cyl.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by prelude_h22vtec &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> if your pedal is hard at first and then starts sinking it is 100% most likely your master cyl.</TD></TR></TABLE>

yes.

 

Ya, its the master cylinder. Just had mine fixed.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by prelude_h22vtec &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i think its the brake system he's talking about hawkze, </TD></TR></TABLE>

Oops, haha...same concept though, check the lines all the way to the wheels for leaks. Probably is the MC though...

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by prelude_h22vtec &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i think its the brake system he's talking about hawkze, but same places to leak from, the lines, the hoses and calipers and master cylinder. if your pedal is hard at first and then starts sinking it is 100% most likely your master cyl.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Hahaha, that's way for certain... maybe... almost...

yes

 

haha so i'm bad with words, so what? its FOR SURE the MC!

 

No. you can to advance auto and get a one man bleed, and bleed it yourself, which I do that all the time. But if your brake pedal still touches the floor, then your brake fluid is contaminated. If your check your master cyclinder of the brake fluid, and if it is gunky, like puffy and ****, then its been contaminated.

 

^whos this guy? your brake fluid is most likely not contaminated. it doesnt contaminate itself. the guy said he changed his fluid anyway.

 

well i seriously doubt my fluid is contaminated. i changed my brake fluid last weekend and just had my fluid change again today. the shop did say they found a lot of air in one line. the shop also said that the master cylinder was going bad. (just like y'all said)

considering i am driving the car cross country in a few weeks, i figure why not go ahead and replace it. better to replace it now while i have shops and tools accessible, then broke down in BFE land. while talking to the guy at auto parts store he said if i bench bled the master cylinder, i would not have to re-bleed the entire system.

is this true? it does not make sense to me, it seems like some air would still sneak in. any tips/suggestions?

thanks.

 

he's right if you bench bleed it you wont have to re bleed the whole thing.
air doesnt get in because if you do it right, there's no where for the air to go, the lines are already filled with fluid.
i just got one for $45 at advance auto
re-man with lifetime waranty

 

the master cylinder was much easier than i thought it would be. it seems like my pedal still has a lot of travel in it. maybe i am just imaging things now.

 

you can always bleed it more

 

I had the same problem. I would pump the brake, and all of the sudden it would just ease right back to the floor. I took a good look at the master cylinder itself, and there was corrosion/leakage around the MC and fire wall. Bench bleeding was a pain in the *** using the ol' school way with a vise and screw driver.....but it did the trick.
I than bled all of the lines to make sure, but it solved the problem.....and yes, I too felt that I still had air in the line.....Turned out it was just the paranoid feeling of not having stopping power.....and the mushy brake.
Glad that you've made the fix.......
to honda-tech, and all of the input!!!

 

I'd like to hear a little more about this "clutch damper", What's it's purpose and function???

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by cifer6425 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">the master cylinder was much easier than i thought it would be. it seems like my pedal still has a lot of travel in it. maybe i am just imaging things now. </TD></TR></TABLE>

if it goes to the same place and stops everytime, but is further down then it used to be you can adjust it. well if its like the clutch, you loosen a nut on the back of the pedal, turn the rod in a little, then tighten the nut again. you may have to do this a couple of times till u get it where u want it. just make sure you dont go to far...

 

Mine did same on silver 1 was master cylinder

 

your master is dead

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by shadow29485 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> I'd like to hear a little more about this "clutch damper", What's it's purpose and function???</TD></TR></TABLE>

It seems to just be a simple reservoir mechanism with a bigger output than input hole, which would just reduce the force needed on the pedal.