Ok, bad pun..

But seriously, I have had this braking problem for almost a year now. In a nutshell, my rear brakes were not working properly, and my left front brake would grab. Anti-lock brakes are non-functional.

Pads were thin, and rotors were worn past discard width, so I repaced pads and rotors all around. Didn't help. Next, I had the front calipers replaced, on the advice of a fellow car buff. Seemed to help for a week, or it could have been my imagination. I still got the left front to lock up before the rest of them. Rear brakes didn't seem to work at all. Since I didn't do the caliper work myself, I decided to bleed the entire system myself. That seemed to do the trick. A while later, I had complete brake failure while driving it. Pedal to the floor, no stopping. Fortunately, traffic was light and I coasted into a parking lot. I checked the master cylinder and the fluid was very dark, the front reservoir was almost empty, and the rear was overflowing. so, I thought to myself "great, a seal must have given out". I had the car towed home and went out and got a reman master cylinder. Replace the master cylinder, bled the system and started her up. Braking was a lot better, but still not what I expected, and a whole lot less than what I experienced with the C3 I once owned. Left front still grabs and squeals when I hit the brakes hard. Two months later, brake failure again, in an intersection where I was turning, so I didn't crash and burn. Opened the hood, and the rear reservoir would squirt when I touched the lid, the front almost empty. So, I took it to a "Corvette specialist" and he was telling me it was my power brake booster. I didn't think that sounded right at all, but even after arguing, he insisted that was the trouble, and wanted to charge me $650 to replace it. So, I got a reman and did it myself. Bled the system. Brakes were really working well, so I thought maybe I was wrong. Then the brakes went to hell again, and I could only stop if I shifted the car into neutral. The rear brakes were not working at all. So, I replaced the reman mastercylinder with a new Napa one. I replaced all the fluid. I also found a leaking bleeder on my left front, so I repalced it. Now I can actually stop at a light without holding my breath and wondering if I am going to hit the car in front of me. The car still does not brake like it should though, especially when cold, which I can't figure out why that is, but it is. Until the car gets good and warm, I shift to neutral when I need to stop. The rear brakes just don't function like they should. And to add to the fun, I can hear and feel the left front caliper wobbling as I drive, which stops when I tap the brakes.

I am at my wits end with this. I am thinking about replacing the rear calipers now, or attempting a rebuild. I also heard a rumor that 88 Vettes have a slave brake cylinder as well? I have to confess that I have never dealt with a slave cylinder, let alone know where it is or how to check it. Also, is there air in the antilock brake system? I had heard that could need bled as well. What about the distribution block? I dunno.. this thing is a whole lot more complicated than the second generation Firebirds I used to work on :banghead: .

So, and ideas? This is my daily driver, by the way, so I am hoping for something that won't take more than a weekend to do. Any and all suggestions are appreciated.

 

Sounds very frustrating :banghead: , but you seem to have the grit to keep at it until you make it right. I don't profess to be a brake expert, I'm just a backyard mechanic, but I'm wondering if you've changed out the brake hoses. Could a leak from the inner hose to the outer lining be causing some of these symptoms? I don't think that it would explain the weird master cylinder/reservoir problems, but it could account for sticky calipers, poor braking and a spongy pedal.

I've become the poster boy for replacing brake hoses sooner rather than later. I had one blow out on me while during a panic stop on the highway :eek:.

Good luck

 

:cheers: This is frustrating...sounds like you have changed everything but the brake hoses and I wouldn't rule that out just yet.

I am curious about the fact that the front reservoir drains down while the rear fills up...does it overflow?

Also. you did not mention the ABS system. Is it working? Do you hear the test "GROANS" emanating from the control system after you start to move the car?

I am no expert, but I have had my 88 brakes apart several times (converting to C5's now), there is no slave cylinder. Unless you friend is referring to ABS

I would open up the rear compartment where the ABS resides and see if you see fluid. If you are loosing fluid, it is going somewhere.

As to hoses...a hose with a ruptured inner wall can cause one side of the system to react differently than the other, but it won't cause loss of fluid.

If you want to discuss this further, e mail me

 

I believe I have changed everything possible except for the rear calipers and the hoses/lines themselves.

My ABS is not working. The light on the info center is on. Several months ago, I would get intermittent groaning from the rear of the car when I first backed up. I assumed that was the ABS gearing up. That seemed to be weather dependant as well. Like the ABS didn't want to work in the Winter. It hasn't functioned at all lately, but I was not as concerned about that, thinking the regular brake system should still function without the ABS. I also thought I would take care of the ABS once the regular system was working properly.

Maybe they are really more integrated than what I thought. I'll have to send you an email Jackdaroofer, and see if I can glean a little info from you, because I am lost when it comes to working on the ABS.

As for the reservoir, before I replaced it with the new one, the front would drain, and the rear would spill fluid if I messed with the cap at all.

And I think I'll start scrounging around for hoses...

 

Just a thought, you've probably already done this but, check the brake lines that go from the master cylinder to the ABS. They run right along the frame on the drivers side. If someone ever jacked the car along there, the might have pinched a line.