Hi guys,
I'm a little new to the SHO realm here. Last week I did a crank sensor, cam sensor, TPS, water pump, and power steering pump. This week I did the rear (struts, endlinks, soft brake lines, and hard brake lines to the bias proportioning valve in the rear, new pads, new calipers, new parking brake cables.) Adjusted the cable after bleeding rears. I figured I's get more the air out as best I could, and see how it stopped, and felt, before doing the 'sequence'.
I have a fair amount of rust underneath. The two valves on the bias block move freely. However it is not connected to the control arm. That mechanical link or connection is not made to the lower control arm.
2 years ago a 'mechanic' repaired two rear lines (turns out only from front (abs block?) to rear bias / proportioning valve block. From that block to rear brakes he did NOT replace, and I found they were shot and replaced them. He also did new calipers and rotors. Since then right rear audibly dragged and ABS light was on. I didn't take it back since I figured I'd just fix it myself when I got the time.
I did the rears recently, because I could feel they were hanging while driving (sat for a year), and they didn't release much after releasing the parking brake lever when I was done under the hood. and tried to push the car backward. So rears are bled, using anti siphon method (submerged hose in fluid). Parking brake is was auto adjusted correctly, and adjustment nut was run down till almost touching its mating bracket. Parking brake works perfect.
I took it for a test drive. And although having an 'OK' pedal before the drive, the pedal effort was insanely high to get any bite at all! Locking up brakes was certainly impossible, and I can leg press 750, out of shape.
I pulled the front wheels, and checked the guide pins. They were smooth and greased. I backed off the pistons, and had an asistant pump pedal until I could see piston extend about a 3/8 inch. I did this both sides. I then bled the fronts, starting with drivers side. Took it for a drive, and it was virtually NO better. It felt like bad brake fade while standing on pedal.
What should I be looking at next??
I put about one pint of new fluid through each caliper, normal bleed direction. I even put teflon tape around the bleeder threads (only). Should I make up a pressure bleeder for pressurizing the master cylinder reservoir, and try that? would that sufficiently bleed the ABS unit too?
could bias valve be the problem? Shoudn't front stop it 'well enough' to lock the fronts? It's terrible. Pedal isn't bottoming out or anything. I degreased rotors/pads too.
front break lines are factory, I think. I only got this car 12k miles ago, and the breaks were never this horrible, until I let it sit for a year. Could it just be friction in the front bores? I'm stumped.
feel free to email me directly too, or PM.
