Brake problem?

[kmclaugh]

I inherited a 67 Porsche 912 that has been sitting for about 3 years. I have gotten it running, but when I moved it out of the garage the brake pedal seemed very stiff, with very little pedal travel. Also, the brakes seemed to be partially engaged on all four wheels. Suspecting the master cylinder,
I started to pull it, but when I disconnected the lines, the pedal was able to move freely. There is some rust on the discs. How can I tell if the grabbing is just due to rust on the discs, or a piston problem in the calipers? Any ideas about other problems?

Thanks for your help.

Kevin

[Wayne 962]

Usually the pedal is not very stiff at all when the car has been sitting for a while. My suggestion would be to take the rotors, and clean all of the rust off of them. Then clean out the calipers (careful not to use anything that dissolves rubber on the inside seals). Also rebleed the system.

After you have everything clean, then you can start trying to troubleshoot your problem. Master Cylinders are so cheap ($99 through us) that it's probably worth replacing anyhow.

Hope this helps,

Wayne

[a1an]

remove the wheels and try pushing the pistons back by prying the pads away from the disks.

[Rick Becker]

After I purchased my '66 I found the brake hoses had deteriorated from the inside, preventing flow. Also, I personally like to change the fluid regularly and use Castrol LMA (low moisture activity) Dot 4 brake fluid to avoid rust.