after taking the car off the road for the winter..the last couple of days of proper driving iv got a sever problem with my brakes...i thought at first it could be the calipers..but could it be the master cylinder causing the pistons failing to retract?..or is it maybe as simple as a siezed caliper..

symptoms are braking from 60+ causing severe judder(i know its not warped discs because on a hill the car doesnt roll back or forward when the brake is released+ theyr only 5k yo) also if i use engine braking rather than braking i dont get the judder when i do use the brake..if that makes scence..

thanks

forgot to say the drivers side wheel is actual burning to the touch (makes me think its a caliper problem)

Had a similar problem,

First possible cause.....whats happening is the piston/s in the drivers side caliper is not releasing and starts to bind the brake. The cause in my case was that the flexible rubber hose at the caliper was shot, ie the inside of the rubber brake hose was perished and was acting as a one way valve. I would apply brakes and the brake fluid would apply pressure to the caliper as normal but when I released the brake the pressure could not return because of the perished inside of the hose. If left over some time without applying the brake it would free itself as the pressurised fluid slowly returned to the master cylinder.

You will probably find if you remove the hose you will find it partly blocked. Try replacing the flexible brake hose on that caliper.

 

Second possible cause.....It could also be a seized piston in the caliper.

 

Good luck.

hi mate..the hose has been replaced with a copper pipe

Hi bud, not familiar with a flexi copper brake pipe, I am on about the flexible rubber pipe/hose, the one that flexes when suspension goes up and down and when turning the steering as your caliper/hub move.

cheers

Had a similar problem,

First possible cause.....whats happening is the piston/s in the drivers side caliper is not releasing and starts to bind the brake. The cause in my case was that the flexible rubber hose at the caliper was shot, ie the inside of the rubber brake hose was perished and was acting as a one way valve. I would apply brakes and the brake fluid would apply pressure to the caliper as normal but when I released the brake the pressure could not return because of the perished inside of the hose. If left over some time without applying the brake it would free itself as the pressurised fluid slowly returned to the master cylinder.

You will probably find if you remove the hose you will find it partly blocked. Try replacing the flexible brake hose on that caliper.

 

Second possible cause.....It could also be a seized piston in the caliper.

 

Good luck.

 

Yeah ive had that aswell. took me ages to figure it out.

 

I would say it just proberly a stuck piston or the brake pad its self. My pad had jamed its self at a funny angle a few months back.

Hi bud, not familiar with a flexi copper brake pipe, I am on about the flexible rubber pipe/hose, the one that flexes when suspension goes up and down and when turning the steering as your caliper/hub move.

cheers

 

yea its not flexi copper..it just soft copper pipe

(a friend made it for me when the guy i got the car from pretended he was a mechanic split the caliper riped the rubber flexi pipe and "convieniantly" forgot to reseal the caliper)...anyway got the caliper off today the seals n that seam ok just fixed them up as best as i can...recon theyl last a couple of weeks tops.

i start a new job on monday so i need the car desperatly..itll do till i get my first pay

Hi,you still havn't told us where this copper pipe is attached to???if it is fitted to the caliper remove it post haste and fit a proper flexible hose before it fractures and you do you and your motor and even worse some innocent pedestrians with kids and don't let your mate anywhere near you car in future!!!

Edited April 1, 201213 yr by KOPE

Hi,you still havn't told us where this copper pipe is attached to???if it is fitted to the caliper remove it post haste and fit a proper flexible hose before it fractures and you do you and your motor and even worse some innocent pedestrians with kids and don't let your mate anywhere near you car in future!!!

the copper pipe replaced the flexi from the iner arch to the the part that joins to the flexi hose-to caliper

is that ok..are any innocent pedestrians with kids gonna be injured..mate in not an idiot and the guy that made the copper pipe and resealed the caliper for free is a good mechanic be hard for him to work on my car now though as he lives over 100 miles away

Sorry for the misunderstanding but from your description you had replaced the damaged hose with a copper one because the one that comes through the inner wing to the hose coupling is normally bundy tube.

Your car looks nice though,lots of updated bits,undo the bleed nipple and see if there is any pressure in the caliper if there is it is probably a perished hose if not it's somewhere in the caliper sticking.

Although you say it's not it does point to a warped disc or a steering joint.

Edited April 1, 201213 yr by KOPE

took the caliper off yesterday it was the piston that was stcking..all sorted no more judder

Good job,it's nice to have a happy ending.

Great stuff!!!!!!!!!!

yeah .. i like a happy ending :ban:

cheers guys.

Glad you got it fixed mate - seized calipers/pistons are common on the 300zx. Especially after almost 20 years of hard use!!

 

An over-firm pedal feel is also a sure indication of said seizure; it can be confused with the feeling of "good brakes" as there is very little pedal movement - yet braking ability is actually poor.....

 

.....I have had my calipers replaced with new OEM items and the difference is amazing. Sure I could have gone with a big brake upgrade, but since my car is nor far from stock, I didn't see the point. But with the new calipers and Brembo replacement discs/pads, it is aparent just how good the 300zx brakes actually were from new, despite our thoughts now the cars are 20 years old!

 

Richard:cool2:

Glad you got it fixed mate - seized calipers/pistons are common on the 300zx. Especially after almost 20 years of hard use!!

 

An over-firm pedal feel is also a sure indication of said seizure; it can be confused with the feeling of "good brakes" as there is very little pedal movement - yet braking ability is actually poor.....

 

.....I have had my calipers replaced with new OEM items and the difference is amazing. Sure I could have gone with a big brake upgrade, but since my car is nor far from stock, I didn't see the point. But with the new calipers and Brembo replacement discs/pads, it is aparent just how good the 300zx brakes actually were from new, despite our thoughts now the cars are 20 years old!

 

Richard:cool2:

 

the caliper in question has been a bit of a problem since i got the car so dont know what smooth working calipers are like.

still stops well enough but not quite as well as id like from 4 pots