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Sat Nov 01, 2003 11:55 pm

Hey fellas -

Just bought a new MC For my 70 Squareback. I replaced it because I was getting zero stopping power (and listened to the machanic when he said it was bad). I installed it just fine but when I try to bleed the air out there is a never ending rush of little bubbles out the front calipers - on both sides. The rear bled just fine. I have looked for drips and leaks on/around the MC and lines into the MC and can find none. If there are no leaks, where the heck is all the air getting in????? Anyone experience this before? BTW, the front disks are all brand new (1 year old but no longer the originals) - from the mech I mentioned earlier.

](*,)

Sun Nov 02, 2003 12:14 am

Is the Car jacked up in the front when you are bleeding? You could trap air that way. Are the bleeders at the top of the caliper or on bottom? On Ghias you can interchange them which will make the bleeder at the bottom trapping air at the top. I don't remember how T3's bolt on?

Sun Nov 02, 2003 12:19 am

Actually, it is jacked up in front... Great idea - thanks! As far as the bleeders go, there are two nipples - top and bottom. I am bleeding from the bottom because I assumed they were "after" the top ones in the flow of fluid.

Sun Nov 02, 2003 12:48 am

I forgot about the dual bleeders. :oops:

Sun Nov 02, 2003 6:00 am

i can think of two other possibilities: just because a part is new doesn't mean that it is ok, believe me it happens. 2ndly, there "has" to be free play between the push rod and the master cylinder(about 1/2 an inch) or you will be "never" bleed the air out.

Sun Nov 02, 2003 1:18 pm

Try using the top bleeders, as the bottom ones are for flushing the system.

Sun Nov 02, 2003 1:48 pm

Thanks to everyone offering their wonderful advice, I finally have the brake system flushed and free from air! This is fantastic, but... The brakes are no better than before! I still have to pump the pedal to get any pressure. No leaks, no air, brand new MC - what else could be causing this? The pads seem to be in good condition. Could it be the rotors? Maybe the wrong ones were installed before? Thanks to everyone again - if it weren't for all the great members here, I don't know what I would do!

Sun Nov 02, 2003 1:56 pm

You are using old pads? How are the rear brakes?
nik

Sun Nov 02, 2003 2:57 pm

The pads are not new, anyway. I will check them even though the mechanic told me they were fine. Since he also said the MC was bad (which I now believe it wasn't) I am beginning to think that if I want to make absolutely sure it is correct I need to do it myself (Duh :shock:). It's too bad these guys cant even be trusted with the simple stuff.

Sun Nov 02, 2003 3:01 pm

I live in Everett, who is your mechanic?
nik

Sun Nov 02, 2003 8:20 pm

nik wrote: I live in Everett, who is your mechanic?
nik

Man that just sounds wrong. J/K
If your back brakes are out of adjustment that would explain a lot.

Mon Nov 03, 2003 4:31 am

Butters wrote: nik wrote: I live in Everett, who is your mechanic?
nik

Man that just sounds wrong. J/K
If your back brakes are out of adjustment that would explain a lot.

I was just curious as to where he may be taking his VW to get fixed. If someone is giving bad mechanical advice and or work, would be best for myself and others to stay away.
nik

Mon Nov 03, 2003 8:06 am

I have been going to BowWow - they have done great work so far. I have a feeling they gave an opinion before really looking into it is all. I will check the rear pads next weekend. I am (obviously) really new to this - are drum brakes pretty easy to work on?

I also wanted to let everyone know what happened with the bleeding... There were a couple things I had overlooked. The first was that there was a small leak in the hard piping where it transitions to rubber hose into the brake itself. I had to let it sit overnight and leak enough to form a puddle in order to find it. What also helped was lowering it down off the jack stands (thx MEANIRISHMOFO), and using the top valves before the bottom ones (thx BobNotch). Now I am on to the brakes (Thx Nik!) - I am amazed at how much there is to learn for one relatively simple job. It is definitely fun though! The more I work on this, the more I am loving it... Thanks everyone! :D

Mon Nov 03, 2003 8:41 am

I find disc brakes a 1,000x easier to work on than drums. But the drums are nothing to be afraid of. Just make sure that you follow a manual and that everything is put back the exact same way it was before disassembly. The brakes are very vital and something that needs to be worked on carfully and have close attention payed to.
nik

Mon Nov 03, 2003 12:31 pm

The hardest part of the rears is getting those 2 screws out of the drum, as most of them have the center stripped out and are rusted in place by now. A hammer and chizzle on the edge gets those loose though. The next hardest is getting the drum off the hub. Use a hammer and bang around where the seem is to help break it loose (you should also back off the brake adjusters too). Just remember, you DON"T need to remove the big nut like you would on a bug. :D I hope this helps.

Mon Nov 03, 2003 2:29 pm

The metal of those screws is soft enough that I was able to drive a slightly larger hex driver into the hole. The banging as I drove it in probably also helped to break it loose.

Tue Nov 04, 2003 6:08 am

why dont you try to just adjust the rear brakes. the rear brakes give you most of the pedal. just remember this little saying "if it was left up to me right it down" in translation when you spin the adjusters with the screw driver the end of the handle go up on the left on and down on the right. if that makes any since.

Sun Nov 16, 2003 4:26 pm

i had that same problem, well i still do kind of, i was going through a bottle of brake fluid a day, found out it was leaking behind the pedal assembly from the master, so i put in a new master, still a lot of pedal travel, it was my rear brakes, and since they are so damn old and i plan on putting discs in the rear, i did the newbie fix, i just pull up the brake and let it down slowly until the car rolls freely and POW a tight brake pedal, problem fixed. i hope there is nothing wrong with this idea. :shock: