| Forum Home | ||||
| PC World Chat | ||||
| Thread ID: 139938 | 2015-07-26 21:14:00 | Brake imbalance 2002 Toyota Corolla 240 000km | Johs (17388) | PC World Chat |
| Post ID | Timestamp | Content | User | ||
| 1405447 | 2015-07-27 19:42:00 | Thanks everyone, going to try a few on the more basic stuff but will drop it into a brake specialist for the more in depth stuff. Will let you know is how it goes! Cheers for your time | Johs (17388) | ||
| 1405448 | 2015-07-28 07:00:00 | Thanks everyone, going to try a few on the more basic stuff but will drop it into a brake specialist for the more in depth stuff. Will let you know is how it goes! Cheers for your time Did you take it for a skid test to see which brakes are not working? |
prefect (6291) | ||
| 1405449 | 2015-07-28 11:03:00 | Had the same problem (rear brake imbalance) with my 1996 Toyota Sprinter (equiv to a Corolla). The problem was the same as dugimodo's (above). It is a valve that equalises the hydraulic pressure for both sides I think. $500 to replace the valve or $200+ to refurb the existing valve. Apparently another problem can cause this issue as well, when the lining of one of the hydraulic lines peels off and partially blocks that line. This can be checked reasonably easily I gather. If that isn't the fault you could move on to checking the state of the valve. Sorry I can't recall its name either. I had similar problem years ago with faulty RH front brake hose my Mazda 929 wagon. Had to get my uncle a mechanic to diagnose it. There was partial braking after foot was off the brake pedal. Had to replace the flexible hose. It had delaminated inside, causing a one valve type action. Fluid was slow to flow back to master cylinder. |
kahawai chaser (3545) | ||
| 1405450 | 2015-07-28 20:31:00 | Hi KC. My mechanic thought this needed to be checked out first as the more likely problem, before checking for problems with the valve. He had come across the delamination fault more often than problems with the valve, so it seems it may not be uncommon. Another issue came up for me - it was VTNZ who diagnosed the imbalance problem with their testing equipment. Neither my wife nor I had ever noticed it. Two different garages claimed they had fixed the problem only for me to be rejected again (twice) on return to VTNZ. It was only after the valve was refurbished that I got the WOF. It is a real problem that garages don't have the kind of equipment that VTNZ has to diagnose brake performance - the mechanic thinks the problem has been fixed when it hasn't to VTNZ standards. |
John H (8) | ||
| 1405451 | 2015-07-28 20:43:00 | It is a real problem that garages don't have the kind of equipment that VTNZ has to diagnose brake performance - the mechanic thinks the problem has been fixed when it hasn't to VTNZ standards. I suppose we should be grateful that VTNZ has high standards for the safety of ourselves and other road users. |
Greg (193) | ||
| 1405452 | 2015-07-28 21:40:00 | My concern is not about VTNZ's standards, which they claim is them simply applying the requirements of the WOF law. My concern is that mechanics don't have the same diagnostic equipment as VTNZ, which means you can get bounced back and forth between your mechanic and VTNZ when the former thinks they have diagnosed and fixed the problem because they don't have the means of determining objectively that they haven't. | John H (8) | ||
| 1405453 | 2015-07-28 22:10:00 | It might cost a little more but a decent mechanical repair business should offer to take it back to VTNZ for retesting themselves rather than leave you to do it and then have to bring it back. VTNZ don't charge for retesting. I got my local Toyota dealer to fix my brakes, they also got it retested and warranted before telling me it was ready to collect. I'd have been quite angry to get the car back and have it fail a warrant again for the same fault and I wouldn't be expecting to pay a mechanic again unless there was a very good explanation. It might be harsh on small mechanical businesses but I expect if I pay someone to fix something then that's what they do, if they don't have the correct equipment they should borrow/hire it or whatever or not accept the job in the first place. At the very least they should make sure to inform their customer they don't have the ability to test them properly. Brakes are not something that someone should "attempt" to fix or assume they have. They need to be fixed properly. I personally don't think any home repairs beyond the basic replacement of brake pads or adjustment of calipers etc should be attempted by an unqualified person. It's not just your life at stake it's the lives of everyone around you when you are driving on the road. Some safety rules are ridiculous and over the top, rules regarding brakes don't fall into that category. Some things are not worth saving money on. Even if you totally understand how the brake system works you still are unlikely to have the tools and test equipment necessary, especially if many mechanics don't even have them. Bodge up your engine repairs, bog over rust holes and hide them, stick a banana peel in the diff, but let a professional fix your brakes. |
dugimodo (138) | ||
| 1405454 | 2015-07-29 00:32:00 | It might cost a little more but a decent mechanical repair business should offer to take it back to VTNZ for retesting themselves rather than leave you to do it and then have to bring it back. VTNZ don't charge for retesting. I got my local Toyota dealer to fix my brakes, they also got it retested and warranted before telling me it was ready to collect. I'd have been quite angry to get the car back and have it fail a warrant again for the same fault and I wouldn't be expecting to pay a mechanic again unless there was a very good explanation. It might be harsh on small mechanical businesses but I expect if I pay someone to fix something then that's what they do, if they don't have the correct equipment they should borrow/hire it or whatever or not accept the job in the first place. At the very least they should make sure to inform their customer they don't have the ability to test them properly. Brakes are not something that someone should "attempt" to fix or assume they have. They need to be fixed properly. I personally don't think any home repairs beyond the basic replacement of brake pads or adjustment of calipers etc should be attempted by an unqualified person. It's not just your life at stake it's the lives of everyone around you when you are driving on the road. Some safety rules are ridiculous and over the top, rules regarding brakes don't fall into that category. Some things are not worth saving money on. Even if you totally understand how the brake system works you still are unlikely to have the tools and test equipment necessary, especially if many mechanics don't even have them. Bodge up your engine repairs, bog over rust holes and hide them, stick a banana peel in the diff, but let a professional fix your brakes. Agree - require extra care or refining for brake jobs.. Brake specialists, similar to the former Auckland Clutch and Brakes were well equipped for brake jobs. People that took their cars generally also had their discs or drums skimmed as well. Recently I replaced my discs, cleaned the caliper bore, clips with brake cleaner, etc and measured the rotors, knowing that I will simply replace them next time and flush out the fluid. I noted that my mag wheels remain visibly cleaner for much longer (> 3 weeks vs 3 days from old pads), as minimal brake dust from the new metallic resin pads (Bendix Calibre brand). |
kahawai chaser (3545) | ||
| 1405455 | 2015-07-29 07:20:00 | VTNZ have a brake machine and the garages only have tapley meters or equivalent , been around since the 20s. I had 3 Mazda Titan/Ford Trader hose trucks these are known as pigs to get equal braking until they changed the percentage from 20 to 30% equality. Soon learned to skid them on the gravel and correct could get them down to less than 10%. Sometimes swopped one brake shoe from each side or backed off the adjuster on the good one also swop drums even id nuts were left/right hand thread just to get it thru. Used to get them hot by drving with brakes on to the testing station, but bummer sometimes there was a far queue. |
prefect (6291) | ||
| 1405456 | 2015-07-30 20:31:00 | Hey everyone, tried a few things sliders, new pads, heavy braking around the neighbourhood, nothing helped. Ended up getting the mechanic to try and it ended up being he proportioning valve, and supposedly not uncommon for later model toyotas (2000 and onward). Thanks for the help. | Johs (17388) | ||
| 1 2 3 | |||||