No brakes

[MSN Member]

From: Eric  (Original Message)
Sent: 11/29/2000 10:15 PM

The other day, as i was running the engine and generator (once a week) , i stepped on the brakes, and suddenly, i have none at all. this is bad. any ideas here? im thinking vacuum, but i cant even figure out how to check the brake fluid. found the booster, finally, but any ideas would realy help here.



From: RVmec
 
The Master Cylinder is most likely under the drivers seat. Access over the front left tire. Does the red brake light come on on the dash?



From: Eric 

No warning lights come on at all , when the brake is applied, it just goes straight to the floor with very little resistance. no difference if the engine is on or off. It had a nice firm pedal two weeks ago, but now no pedal.



From: Cousin Eddie 

If your brake pedal is going straight to the floor with no resistance then you probably have lost a great deal of fluid. You should look around each wheel from the backside for any sign of leakage. Chances are you have a ruptured brake line (metal) or a brake hose (rubber).  Over the years moisture builds up in the fluid. This causes the fluid's boiling point to be lowered and can cause corrosion in the lines.
When I bought my 75 Brave 2 1/2 years ago one of the first things I did was to replace all the brake hoses and all of the fluid. 



From: RVmec
Sent: 12/2/2000 11:26 AM

You can follow the lines from the master cylinder to the wheels and see if you have leaks along the way. Brake lines can rust from the inside out or outside in. If the lines need replacing it's a good idea to put DOT4 brake fluid in the system. If you completely redo the whole system and everything is cleaned out of fluid, DOT 5 is a better choice, but it doesn't mix well with old fluid. DOT5 is a symthetic with a high boiling point, works real well. It is a good idea to change brake fluid every few years to get the condinsation out of the lines. 



From: Eric 

Now ive got to order brake lines from someplace..i did find a sticker denoting my rig as a "D27C. Ive looked at the brake lines and cant see any leaks. i plan on opening up the master and filling , then trying again to find the leak. seems to open with a large bolt, is this the right place?? Definately want to replace the lines and flush the system.  i may decide to enlist a pro to install the new lines (when i find them) .



From: Eric 

got the master cylinder open today and filled it up. had to snake a tube down from the grille and duct tape a funnel to one end. once i got it filled, i was able to get good pedal pressure out of it. appears i may have a leaky wheel cylinder in the right rear. What should i expect parts and labor to be on this at a truck repair shop? pedal is holding so at least i can drive it over.
the good news is the brake lines and some of the hardware all look fairly new.



From: RVmec
Sent: 

Find a good truck shop and ask them. You would be best off if you do the whole thing. The rear brakes on that unit are what they call internal brakes. To get to them they have to remove the rear wheels and then the rear axles. There are two wheel cylinders on each rear brake. Then to reassemble they have to put in new grease seals and replace the axles. Have it all done and done right the first time.  Four wheel cylinders, 2 grease seals, new shoes and maybe springs too. Don't want to open it up again right away. I'm guessing $6-800. Again depends on the area. Sometimes on that old a rig they may tell you they can't find the parts, if so check with a Parts City or Advance Auto Parts they seem to be best for getting old vehicle parts. Order parts for a Dodge M-400. They sometimes say no if you ask for Winnebago parts. There are other suppliers around if you get into that problem. I took mine into a truck grage because I didn't have gagues to check the system out. They said I needed a master cylinder the only one they could find was $385. I told them to let me check around I'd let them know in the morning. I went to Advance Auto Parts, a bendix dist., and bought a new one(not rebuilt) for $100 and took it to them.



From: Tammy 

I had trouble with my brakes so I can at least tell you where the brake reservoir is.  In my case it is over the front left wheel..Look for what appears to be a rusty box.  The top of the box is held down by a wire that snaps off. Push is back with considerable strength.  There should be a rubber seal of sorts on the "cover" of the box.  Make sure that this is in good shape. Then you can feel with your fingers, cause it is hard to see, whether or not there is fluid in there.  There are 2 chambers in mine,  the smaller one goes to the back brake. Put in DOT brake fluid until it comes up to where the seal would touch it... then you need to have someone assist you to bleed the brakes.  We were very concerned that we would not be able to do that without snapping off the things you have to open to do this, but we didn't.  They were very rusted, but work better now for having been opened that first time.



From: Eric 

Im my case the master was in the same location, however it didnt open in the standard manner. it has a large circular plate secured by a large bolt on top instead. once i got the sediment cleaned off it (so it wouodnt fall into the master when i opened it) , it was just a matter of finding a large wrench to crank it open. the thing i likesd about the set was that i was able to bleed out the excess air by tighening "almost" so it was airtight, then pressing brake to bleed off any excess air and cranking it down to seal after. worked almost like a regular brake bleeder in that manner. hard to fill that thing though, needed to snake a tube down  through the grille,and tape a funnel to the high end, there just isnt much clearance between the master and the floor of the rig.



From: bikerken 

IF you want to upgrade to dot 5 all and I mean all of the dot 3 or 4 must be removed. This is all brake lines,porportioning valves,master and wheel cylinders. If any dot 3 remains its goin to get gummy and sticky.  If the MH is driven every month or so and brought up to temp the dot3 will work for years however if a leak occures moisture will gwt in and cause corrosion. 



From: M J 

A previous owner of my rig had cut an access door in the floor under the drivers seat directly above the reseviour. I cut my carpet to allow access to the hole (plugged with the piece of wood that was removed topped by a piece of steel - I simply lift this assembly up and out of the floor to have direct access to the cover of the master cylinder). My unit has a bolt (9/16) that I remove allowing me to lift off the cover. I have been blessed in that I've had no brake problems - but checking the fluid level is a regular ritual before I ever drive my rig.



From: theo 

get a cheap pair of 6ton jack stands...call a mobile tire service out to your home. they will jack up your rig and remove your wheels for you.for a price of course.them lugs probably havent been removed for years.... set the rig up on the stands.. put the stands under each side of the axle near the shocks...now what you should have are whats called "full-floating" axles... once the wheels have been removed for you...just remove the 6 to 8 small nuts or bolts at center of hub....that holds the axle in place..remove the axles.....now you remove the huge spindle nuts possibly 2 of them ..one after another..now you should be able to remove the drums...and...wow there are your shoes and wheel cylinders:)
you should be able to use most auto tools...except for the spindle nut and the lug nuts. once you have installed your new wheel cylinders.install your new shoes..here is an easy way to bleed your brake system....only needs one person and no special tools...fill up the master cylinder....make sure all bleed screws are closed.....now open passenger-side bleeder screwjust a little bit ..just enough to start dripping.....let "gravity" bleed for 3 minutes...tighten it up.....refill master cylinder....open driver-side bleeder..let drain for 3 minutes....make sure you never let master cylinder get dry...tighten that one now....now open passenger-side front bleeder screw...let drain for 3 minutes....close it up now open driver-side front bleeder screw...drain for 3 minutes.lock it up....now make sure you dont touch the pedals while doing this....put the drums back on....axles back in....rims back on.....if you can make your rims tight enough then do it...if not call the road crew again..tehy will tighten up your lugs..and take your rig off the stands.. tell them what you are doing  and they might set up a schedule to come back and tighten your wheels...you will save a WHOLE bunch of cash....now you can check your brakes...WOW..these babies are TIGHT



From: Dncgbear 

I bought a 83 Minnie Winnie(Dodge chassis) from a private party in September. Pretty good cosmetic shape, but several problems with the drive train. When driving for ten minutes after sitting for several days, the front end would start shaking like the tires were out of balance, This would get progressively worse until the whole vehicle would be vibrating. The previous owner had replaced the master cylinder, vacuum assist, and front brake pads.  In 400 miles the front pads were 75% worn and the rotors were scorched.  When the new master cylinder was installed the system was only partially purged. A different type of brake fluid was used and the old fluid and the new fluid were incompatible. The seals in the master cylinder became soft and sticky. After applying the brakes the master cylinder would not release, causing the brakes to be partially on at all times. Rotors would heat up and warp causing vibration that got progressively worse.
Solution. Replace master cylinder, hoses to the front brakes, new front brake rotors, new calipers, new pads. Cost $1102.00.
Lesson learned. Make sure that you use the right fluid. If you have your oil changed and they need to add brake fluid, make sure it is what is in there already.



From: UluzYarx
Sent: 2/11/2004 3:17 PM

My sixpence says that your brake fluid leaked away through a fault.
If you are lucky a pipe bas broken - rusted through.
If you are unlucky a wheel cylinder has gone.

Try refilling with flesh fluid.
Press the brakes a few times.
Crawl underneath to see where the fluid drips.
Fix it before you drive anywhere.

All the best - Dave