I was talking with a fellow vette head last night about these brake systems , and the thought came to me to try to put together some basic tips to help . I will probably write a couple of these and see if they are of any interest to anyone out there . So lets start out with the master cylinder ! First it is VERY difficult to bleed this unit while on the car . The master cylinder is not level when it is installed ! You can verify this fact by simply removing the lid and placing a small level on it . This causes bubbles to be trapped !

It is very helpful to bench bleed the cylinder in a bench vise prior to installation to remove trapped air . This very easy to do ,,,, leave the small plastic plugs in place where the lines normally attach . Add CLEAN fluid to the reservoir , and just let it sit a bit . A brew is very helpful while watching . You will notice bubbles start to escape the small inlet holes in the bottom of the reservoir . You can sort of speed this action along the way by lightly pushing on the piston where the actuating rod would fit . Do this until no more bubbles appear .

You can now install the m/c . But another trap awaits you ,,, some how when you removed the lines to remove the m/c you always get more air in the lines where they attach ! By removing a front and rear wheel and pushing back the brakes padswith the aid of a small screw driver it will force fluid out of the calipers and clear the lines of any trapped air . BTW the m/c must be level to rid it self of any air that was trapped in the lines . This may sound a lot like greek to you , please do not hesitate to ask any question that needs clarification .

Geo

Me thinks this has the makings of a C3 Tips & Tricks entry!

Thanks Geo - keep 'em coming!

I will look around and find some caliper bore pics and try to get adam to post them for all of us to see . The internals of these systems get pretty bad due to moisture contamination .



geo

I sure welcome any tips on this subject. I am replacing my brakes in a few weeks as soon as all the parts arrive. Thanks for the help!

|UPDATED|3/20/2003 5:40:33 PM|/UPDATED|

good brake tips.

Excellent info Geo!