"Deadcarnahans" > wrote in message
...
> >The only thing that gave me pause was the brakes. Geez, they
> >suck. Is it just because I'm used to power assist, or are they really
> >that bad?
>
> Drum brakes do suck. The 66s brakes should be upgraded. You can retrofit
some
> Granada front discs onto it yourself or buy one of the available kits on
the
> aftermarket.
> At the bare minimum the single reservoir master cylinder should be
replaced
> with a dual unit from a 67 or later for piece of mind.
>
> DC

Personally I prefer the feel of drum brakes, and they can actually stop a
car better than disks. The problem with drums, and why disks were adopted as
standard eventually was because drums hold heat in and will fade and become
very hard when decelerating rapidly from high speeds. Big drums or
drilled/vented drums and the problem is significantly reduced. For example,
on my '68 galaxie with 11"x2.5" drums I am good for one emergency stop from
~85 MPH and my brakes are just about done. Even then, slowing that last
10-15 MPH takes a lot of effort. Despite that the car still stops in a good
distance for a full-size car weighing about 2 tons. My point is the brakes
were good enough in '66 so they are good enough today. Drive accordingly and
there is no problem. Leave an appropriate following distance (which most
people don't do, but shoudl anyway), and basically just don't overdrive what
the car is capable of.

But yes, a dual reservoir master cylinder is worthwhile. I wouldn't say it's
something that 'must' be done with any urgency, but is definitely worthwhile
for a daily driver. More than likely you'll never have a problem where you
lose all hydraulic pressure, but in the event you do, you'll appreciate the
dual reservoir system.

Cory