Brakes went out

[fudge]

Hey guys, my brakes have always been rather bad. I have good brake pads, we thought the reason my brakes were so bad was because 3 out of the 4 bleeder screws are gone and the holes are sealed or they are rusted tight with the screw heads off. We were unable to bleed my brakes.
Anyways, last week I was driving and I had pressed down on my brakes a little bit harder than usual. I felt the brake peddle lighten and it felt easier to push down. After that happened the point I had to press my brake pedal down to slow my car down was lower and barely slowed my car down. When I tried pushing the brake pedal to the floor my car started turning left, which I think means my brakes were only working on the left or working much better on the left. I switched to driving extra slow and down shifting/hand brake to slow down and stop.

After that day I parked it and haven't drove it since. I moved it a couple feet where it was parked and when I tried the brake pedal I don't think the brakes engaged much if at all, I had to use the hand brake to stop.

I do not have much free time at all this time of year so I can't do an aspire brake swap like I want to. Though maybe waiting a month or so to do that is the best option. My question is when I get the time to go check it out what should I look for? My dad thinks it's a problem with the brake lines and he said maybe one has a leak or something like that. I want to get braided brake lines!

Come to think of it I haven't even checked my brake fluid level. What do you guys think?

[jfd64]

It sounds like a bad power brake booster

[fudge]

It sounds like a bad power brake booster

I just looked up that problem and how to test it and went out and tested it. I think that may be the problem. I can push the brake pedal basically all the way down with not much resistance when the car is off. Something I noticed while outside just now was that my brake lights were staying on and not turning off. I had pull up on the brake pedal to get the brake lights to go off.

[FestYboy]

Ok so you have done no basic diagnosis and are asking for random guesses...

Check fluid level
Look for wet spots at the rear of the crossmember, at each rear drum, and at the pass throughs at the front fender wells.
If all is dry, replace the master cylinder.

[WmWatt]

After working on the brakes you'll need to bleed the lines which you can't do with the nipples broken off. (They get rusted in place and break when people try to force them out.) That will mean replacing your front calipers, about $20 each here in Canada, and not a difficult job. I don't know what to do about the broken rear bleeder nipple. You will probably have to replace the drum which from what I've read here can be a problem with exposed rusted bolts. A Haynes manual from an auto parts store is a good investement for maintaining the car. Good luck with it.

PS I was once able to bleed a front with a broken nipple by bleeding from the rubber hose connection, assuming there was no air below that. You could try that before replacing teh calipers but they should eventually be replaced.

[1990new]

I just looked up that problem and how to test it and went out and tested it. I think that may be the problem. I can push the brake pedal basically all the way down with not much resistance when the car is off. Something I noticed while outside just now was that my brake lights were staying on and not turning off. I had pull up on the brake pedal to get the brake lights to go off.

The symptoms you describe lead me to believe that you probably have a bad master cylinder. They describe to the T the problem I was having with the brakes on Rosie recently (I had put new rear wheel cylinders on her earlier this year).
When the cylinder walls inside the master cylinder become pitted, the fluid begins to leak around the seals and causes the pedal to sink as the fluid gets behind pistons. A bad booster and bad master cylinder can cause similar symptoms but a bad booster usually is not the reason for the pedal sinking. So you could have a problem with both. I know that the booster on Rosie has problems also because of the force required to depress the pedal and I plan to replace it before long, but for now replacing the master cylinder solved the sinking problem.
Air in the lines will also cause the pedal to sink but if you have a good master cylinder you can pump them back up quickly and they will sink slowly as you keep pressure on the pedal. The sinking feeling is different when the master cylinder is bad as the pedal doesn't return as quickly.
With the broken off bleeders, sound like you could use new calipers and wheel cylinders too. If I had a situation like you describe, I would replace all the hydraulic components to get those brakes back in top condition.

[WmWatt]

Correction: $40 for caliper, $20 for rotor. Sorry about that.

[firebush357]

You might as well replace the rear Wheel Cylinders as well if the you can't bleed them. They are light $4 on Rock Auto. I had to use a dremel tool to grind down the opening a bit to make mine fit but after that they work fine.

[1990new]

Your snowfall there in VA is a lot less that further north so you may be able to get the bolts out of the wheel cylinders ok. They go through the backing plate and screw into the wheel cylinders and you are going to replace the wheel cylinders anyway so if need be just cut the heads off the bolts.. New bold should be pretty easy to find..I don't think the cylinders come with new bolts.

Getting the brake line out of the cylinder can also be a problem. Soak the area around the wheel cylinder bolts and the brake line with pb blaster every day for a few days before you plan to try to remove them. Also use a small wire brush to clean away as much dirt and rust before you spray them with pb blaster.

[ryanprins13]

Replace all calipers and wheel cylinders first as you need to replace them to be able to do a master cylinder anyway. Then bleed them and test before replacing the master cylinder. That would be my reccomendation. On the new ones put a SMALL amount of anti sieze on the bleeder screw and when the bleeding is done put some thick grease around the threads. Its a common thing that they snap off. Brake lines in the rear can be a pain too. So try lots of penetrating fluid as mentioned. If they dont come out easy use heat. If that doesnt work hopefully you have a way to get a flaring tool and bushing.

Sent from my SM-G920W8 using Tapatalk

[WmWatt]

If he bleeder nipples don't turn with moderate force (it dosen't take much to break them) you can heat them with a propane torch for 60 seconds. When I did it I used a flattened tin can to shield the rubber parts from the flame. Be quick before they cool which they do fast and they should turn. If they stop turning don't force them, just re-heat and turn some more, repeat until they come out.

[fudge]

Thanks for all the responses! Tonight was a good night to check it out in between the rain. I popped the hood and the brake fluid reservoir was completely dry. Now the brake lights don't come off at all unless I am pulling up on the pedal so I took the fuse out. Do you guys know the size of the bleeder valve screw?
jfd64 offered to sell me a brake booster and master cylinder for $50.
I don't want to change the calipers because I plan on swapping brakes in the spring or summer.
I plan on getting 4 wheel cylinders off of rock auto.
Braided brake lines sounds cool too!
If I change the brake booster, master cylinder, wheel cylinders, and brake lines is there anything else I should do?
you guys are the best!

[Team Lightning]

If you plan to upgrade the brakes and have a bad master cylinder, upgrade it. You will need it with the aspire/Rio swap.

[FestYboy]

Ok, so the master is dry... Where did the fluid go!?! Fix that problem first. Then worry about upgrades.

[firebush357]

You will only need 2 Wheel Cylinders but as mentioned above you need to find out where the fluid went and fix that problem first. Fill up your reservoir and start pumping the brakes to find out where it is leaking.