brakes dragging

Robert Reynolds > writes:
>
> What would be the more likely cause of calipers failing to release
> fully? A faulty master cylinder, or the valve under the car that
> divides the two sides of the vehicle?

Master cylinder -- in particular, the check valve.

As a longer shot, I had this happen on a Toyota truck years ago when
the brake booster rod was misadjusted.

1999 Plymouth Voyager 2.4L

The front brakes wore out prematurely because of dragging. I replaced
the rotors and the calipers. A few months later, they're dead again.
To be fair, my wife has been delivering pizza out of this van, but it's
still premature. Inspection reveals overheated pads once again.

The van has new calipers and properly greased caliper bolts.

What would be the more likely cause of calipers failing to release
fully? A faulty master cylinder, or the valve under the car that
divides the two sides of the vehicle?

Joe Pfeiffer wrote:
> Robert Reynolds > writes:
>> What would be the more likely cause of calipers failing to release
>> fully? A faulty master cylinder, or the valve under the car that
>> divides the two sides of the vehicle?
>
> Master cylinder -- in particular, the check valve.
>
> As a longer shot, I had this happen on a Toyota truck years ago when
> the brake booster rod was misadjusted.


Is it possible to change only the check valve? Or do I have to take the
whole cylinder off?

Robert Reynolds > writes:

> Joe Pfeiffer wrote:
> > Robert Reynolds > writes:
> >> What would be the more likely cause of calipers failing to release
> >> fully? A faulty master cylinder, or the valve under the car that
> >> divides the two sides of the vehicle?
> > Master cylinder -- in particular, the check valve.
> > As a longer shot, I had this happen on a Toyota truck years ago when
> > the brake booster rod was misadjusted.
>
>
> Is it possible to change only the check valve? Or do I have to take
> the whole cylinder off?

The hard (well, not hard, time consuming) part is bleeding the brakes
afterwards, which you'd have to do whether you replaced the check
valve or the whole M/C. I don't know what the price of a check valve
all by itself is (or even if you can actually buy it all by itself).

Besides, my impression is that you haven't actually diagnosed whether
that's the problem yet.

Joe Pfeiffer wrote:

>
> The hard (well, not hard, time consuming) part is bleeding the brakes
> afterwards, which you'd have to do whether you replaced the check
> valve or the whole M/C. I don't know what the price of a check valve
> all by itself is (or even if you can actually buy it all by itself).
>
> Besides, my impression is that you haven't actually diagnosed whether
> that's the problem yet.


Right.... that's why I was asking for suggestions. I'll check on it
tomorrow after work. Thanks for the info.

Don't know if this would apply if it's happening on both sides of the van,
but a collapsed brake hose could cause it to drag as well.

Mike


"Robert Reynolds" > wrote in message
...
> 1999 Plymouth Voyager 2.4L
>
> The front brakes wore out prematurely because of dragging. I replaced the
> rotors and the calipers. A few months later, they're dead again. To be
> fair, my wife has been delivering pizza out of this van, but it's still
> premature. Inspection reveals overheated pads once again.
>
> The van has new calipers and properly greased caliper bolts.
>
> What would be the more likely cause of calipers failing to release fully?
> A faulty master cylinder, or the valve under the car that divides the two
> sides of the vehicle?