nubiannupe

TerranoNZ - Hmm... master cylinder wasn't something that I considered being an issue, since the brakes seemed to gradually get softer (normally associated with wear-and-tear). But to answer your questions, I've never locked up the rear brakes. Come to think of it, I've pretty much never slammed on the brakes at all. As for stopping ok before, I'd have to say no. But that's only because of the progressive brake failure I mentioned before from normal wear and tear. If memory serves me, we haven't had a brake change in close to two years (when we purchased the Pathy). There's no kinks in any of the lines that I can see. There's no visible leaks that I can see (other than a leaky power steering reservoir - but that's an entirely different post. LOL), and the pedal doesn't necessarily feel firm at all. GhostPath - Master cylinder, huh? I'll try bleeding it and see what happens. Thanks for the input, fellas. I'll break out the wrenches again and update with what is happening.

So, my wife decided that I need to change the brakes on the Pathy this weekend. Seeing that I've done brake pad replacements on many other cars (including my Maxima) in the past, I figured this would be a piece of cake - I'm thinking an hour and a half, tops. Hoping that someone can give me some advice or point me in the right direction, because how much more wrong could I have been on that assessment!! Just to give you a little history on the Pathy at this point, the truck's brakes have been really loose lately. By 'loose', I mean that the pedal travel was waaay farther than it normally had been up to this point. Almost to the floor. And as of the past week or so, the 'brake' and 'anti-lock lights in the dash would come on intermittently. So I got everything that I needed, took the Pathy to my friend's garage (I stay in an apartment, so no garage of my own), and got to work. Here's a rundown of how I got to where I'm at (and keep in mind that some of the wording is from a 1994 FSM) : Blocked off rear wheels (because I decided to do JUST the front brakes) E-brake on (just in case...) Removed driver front tire Verified that the reservoir was full Opened air bleeder valve Removed the two torque member fixing bolts from behind the caliper Disconnected the union bolt holding the brake hose to the caliper (two copper washers came off as well) Pulled the entire caliper assembly away from the rotor Popped the old brake pads off from the caliper assembly Pressed the pistons back into the caliper assembly by hand, since I did not have a c-clamp Installed the new brake pads Put the caliper assembly back onto the rotor and seated it Replaced the union bolt and brake hose, along with the copper washers Reconnected the two torque member fixing bolts Closed the air bleeder valve I repeated this procedure with the passenger-side front tire, as well. After I put everything back together, I once again made sure that the reservoir was full-up and proceeded to bleed the entire brake system starting with the passenger rear, driver rear, passenger front, driver front. No ABS, so that was not an issue. Here's where the issue came up. Back brakes bled fine. Got to the Passenger front, but no fluid came out of the bleeder valve. Went through the bleeding procedure at least 5-7 times, but still nothing came out. My friend suggested that the caliper may have frozen, but I wasn't gonna give up on it just yet. Removed the brake hose from the caliper and verified that fluid was coming out of the hose (which it was). Also checked that both the holes on the union bolt as well as the aire bleeder valve holes were not obstructed. Did this for both front calipers. Re-bled the entire system again, but the same thing was happening - no fluid coming out of the air bleeder valves up front after pumping the brake pedal a few times and holding it down. Just on the off chance that my friend was right, I went ahead and bought a new caliper for the passenger front side. I installed it, and re-bled the entire system, but still have the same results as before. Is there something I missed or failed to do (or not do)? Frankly, I'm stumped at this point, and unsure what to do next. But I know I have to do something, as this is my family's only means of transportation to school/work. So, in a word... HELP!

Did you ever find a host for your copy of the FSM? If so, where is it located?

I'm kinda curious about that, also. I've run out of gas two different times, and the light didn't come on (although the gauge read right - stupid me for not paying attention) I'm wondering if the bulb might be blown out...

I got it!!