Help for my son - not a Stag

[ukbiggles]

Hi all

My son has come round today with his 15 year old VW Scirocco and he is complaining that his brake pedal is biting nearer the floor that it used to. The discs and pads are all OK. Is it likely to be that bleeding is required? His fluid reservoir is slightly less than minimum, but not low enough to have let air into the system.

Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance

Gord

[Colonel Mustard]

Hi Gord,

First thing I'd do is check for leaks. Look under the car and inside each wheel rim. Check under the brake pedal too. If there's no leaks...how good is the handbrake? If it too is coming up a bit higher than normal it may be that the rear brakes need adjusting. I'm guessing they are drums on the back and at 15 years old they should be of the self adjusting type, but the self adjuster may not be working.

If it's been a couple of years since the brakes were bled then it is good practice to bleed them anyway. Brake fluid is cheap. Check first that the bleed nipples are free as you don't want to snap one...maybe spray them in a penetrating oil and leave it a day or so?

Hope this helps

Chris

[ukbiggles]

Hi Chris

Many thanks, will give that a go.

Cheers

Gord

[StagnJag]

If the fluid is old, it probably wouldn't hurt to change it seeing as you are going to bleed the system anyway.

Rgds

Dave

[ukbiggles]

Chris & Dave, thanks for the suggestions. New fluid throughout and pedal much better. He's a happy bunny now!

Gord

[StagnJag]

Great stuff!