Smokeysvette

OK here's my situation....
At times when driving my 92 LT1 Corvette the brake pedal seems not to have much pedal travel to stop the car but they work and stop just fine. Then at other times it seems that I have longer pedal travel (maybe a 1/2-3/4 inch difference).
Now, there is no pulling what so ever and normal stopping with both symptoms. (Just the pedal drops farther)
AT at first I though the master cylinder but the braking again is great with no difference even with hard stopping. Then I thought too that maybe I have a caliper sticking when the pedal is at the top but there is no pulling what so ever or a dragging feeling.
I checked all four rotors to see if one could be overheating such as a dragging caliper would do. Also when it was doing this I even felt the rotors and the all had about the same amount of heat being displaced.

It does it a different times and there doesn't see to be any kind of pattern..... Just some times the petal is right at the top and sometimes it's lower like a bad master cylinder but again the brakes work just as good as when the pedal is at the top. It stops great with no abnormal fade
This one has me stumped, I don't know to start rebuild/replace the brake calipers or replace the master cylinder first. For that matter don't know if either are bad because it stops great just as good both ways.

I prefer not to just throw parts at it and hoping I'll just get lucky.
BTW the pads are only about 1/4-1/3 worn if that.
Thanks again for any help. I wrench well though at almost 65 it's just not as easy anymore

cudamax

If its bothering ya Bleed them out real good and check the clearance of the rear pads to the rotors on the caliper side with the car on jack stands and all 4 wheels of and try and check-em while its acting up by running it with lug nuts on the rotors and running through the gears and running a while.
The rears have a lot to do with ur pedal height and I bet ya they are starting to hang up and if ya can pop out the caliper cly's and polish-em up and put them back together with new cup seal and clean and lube up the sliders and polish and lube up the pins.

gerardvg

Hi
It could be a result of worn wheel bearings or warped disc rotors, if the wheel bearing has play it can spead the brake pads into the calliper a little. Also check your brake hoses they can colapse inside restricting brake fluid return, bleed the brakes and make sure you have good fluid and no air in the system. Also check the brake callipers are not siezing.

I would do a gravity bleed, remove the bleeder valves and let enough fluid drain out till the fresh brake fluid comes through. Then refit and do the next wheel and so on, i find the brake booster tends to tear the diaphgragm with the full pedal travel while bleeding the brakes.

Good luck

Smokeysvette

I had jacked the car up and I could not duplicate the problem. When it does it, sometimes you have to drive it quite a ways. The first time was on a trip of a couple of a hundred miles then one other time drove it about 50 or so miles and sometimes it won't do it for weeks on end.
To me if a caliper/calipers were sticking the one that was, that particular rotor would be hotter from maybe from the dragging affect. But all rotors are all the same temp when it did it. Just to add info this is a fairly low mile car @50k and I don't drive it very often.
I'm going to have the brake fluid completely flushed and just maybe some trash has possibly may have gotten one gummed up. I did look at the fluid and it's not real clear so that might be a starting point. I think Also I'll replace the pads just to have a look at the old ones and get a look at the pattern wear.
Do y'all think I'm going in the correct direction? I'm always open to other idea's
Thanks again,
Steve (AKA Smokeysvette)
One question, do these cars have a ABS system? If so could that be a problem and would it give me a code?