Re: '53 Cavalier brake problem

Posted by Owen_Dyneto On 2009/12/3 11:28:39

If not a vacuum failure, sounds just like plain and simple brake fade. If it gets bad enough the fluid will boil in the wheel cylinders and the pedal will drop to the floor, which many people mistake for a master cylinder failure. After the fluid cools the vapor phase recondenses and everything is normal again.

Brake fade when subjected to heavy braking and overheated is not uncommon with drum brakes, when I learned to drive, instruction on how to cope with it was part of driver education. Some things can exaggerate it; incorrect wheels which restrict air flow to the drums, excessive layers of paint on the drums inhibiting cooling, inferior linings (try metallics).