16 replies to this topic

[77lx308]

OK first off this is not my car - but a mate who is a little non computer literate - so forgive me if I cannot dash out to the car and check something.

 

He has a very nice LX with all the good fruit - 308 - HQ rims and brakes. (standard torana stuff as far as I am aware)

His problem is this - he completely looses all brakes on full lock - then as soon as he comes off lock - 2 or 3 pumps and he is back up to full brake pressure.

 

He has had his calipers checked and has been advise everything OK - he is not loosing fluid anywhere.

He (and others) have looked for lines that might be getting fouled on full lock (crimped etc) but can find nothing.

 

So far no one has been able to give him an idea of what the problem is or how to fix it.

Any one got some ideas?

 

Any help will be greatly appreciated cos so far he has thrown $ at it and no one has been able to sort it.

 

[rexy]

The calipers are hitting at full lock, pushing the pad and piston in.
Had the same issue on my hatch.
The history you have given is typical of this.

[fuzzypumper]

My first idea would be to change the caliper hoses regardless.

Does it happen on full lock in both directions?

[S pack]

His calipers are hitting his upper wishbones which push the piston in and cause loss of brakes.

Which calipers does he have? Photos will help

 

The calipers are hitting at full lock, pushing the pad and piston in.
Had the same issue on my hatch.
The history you have given is typical of this.

Agree.

[Torananut]

Had this happen to me. I ground a bit off the edge of the wishbone where it was hitting to give it clearance and have had no problems since, and that was in the min 90's. It was only on the drivers side that I had a problem.

[limo]

are the calipers on the front  as per standard  LX? that  reads like the problem when calipers on back of disk which is standard for  HQ

[77lx308]

Thanks for the ideas guys - we suspect that (as per usual) you folks are right with the calipers and wishbones colliding.

Going to take a little work to sus it out now that we know what to look for.

Worst case scenario we believe that going back to standard height front springs will help the problem (he has lowered front and normal height rear)

 

Once again thanks for all the ideas - will update when we get a chance to test the theories with a result

[mick_in_oz]

I'd argue that changing the springs will not solve the issue, it may help a little in some situations, but in others with a situation when there is a need for suspension compression and full lock they will still touch. There should be clearance through the full travel of the suspension regardless of the compression or steering angle.

 

The solution as used on A9X was to clearance the caliper.

 

Presumably there are obvious witness marks of the interference on both the calipers and upper arms. It should be easy to clearance in the correct spot.

 

Better still, if everyone's keen, would be to pull the springs, loosen the upper and lower arm bolts and manually put the suspension through ALL of its travel at lock and see how much clearance you have, or have created after some trimming so that you know its right rather than simply assuming. I'd also remove the bump stops while doing the checking to make sure you still have clearance with the little extra travel that will be available.

[rexy]

Changing springs is unlikely to fix this issue.

Beaten to it again!

Edited by rexy, 31 March 2016 - 09:19 PM.

[TerrA LX]

Agree above calipers hitting on full lock, ol mate ended up in a telegraph pole after a gutter to gutter full lock fishtale.
VERY DANGEROUS.
If nothing else is fixed then fit steering stops to prevent.

[77lx308]

Steering stops is another good idea - probably never notice the turning circle diff! And a lot safer - thanks guys!

[Warwick]

Seen the same problem with HQ brakes fitted to an LC - you could see the calliper pushing back in just by lying under the front of the car while someone turned the wheel on to full lock.
A girl I worked with had a new boyfriend and the first time she drove his car out of the car park she nearly had a serious prang. Of course it was an unapproved backyard conversion. I made comment that's why the authorities are so strict about brake mods to stop dangerous cars being on the road. Apparently I had no idea what I was talking about and it wasn't dangerous at all....

[Warwick]

It also amazes me that no one was able to advise your mate of the cause of the problem, it would be the first thing that you'd check out given the symptoms.

[Heath]

Not the most elegant solution but it will at least be safe.

 

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My advice would be remove the springs and shocks, get the car on a hoist and take off material in the relevant areas to maximise your clearance at full lock and different positions between the range of full bump and full droop, and if you still have something that's hitting, make a curved lock stop that acts as a bit of a cam, that may mean you have full lock sitting on the flat, but not when pulling into a driveway etc.