No brakes!, Brake pedal went to the floor Options

[mburkhart]

So I was out for a cruise around the neighborhood the other day and things were going great until the brake pedal went to the floor. I was able to pump it a few times and restore pressure and crawled home in a low gear. Each time I used the brakes the pedal would go to the floor until I pumped it a few times. Scary!

Once home I looked under the car and inspected the soft lines at each caliper but they looked fine and no leaks. The brake fluid reservoir is still full. I'm not sure where the problem is.

What should I be looking for?

[mepstein]

Master cylinder

Look for fluid under the pedal assembly in the car.

[fiacra]

Master cylinder

Look for fluid under the pedal assembly in the car.

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif) If you are not finding any obvious failure at any of the other point in the system then almost certainly a seal in your MC has failed. This is consistent with a sudden brake failure. In my experience a slow buildup of condensation will cause more gradual symptoms, such as a progressively worsening spongy feel to the brake pedal. As Phil pointed out you may not see any leaking of the MC with an internal failure, but you also might find fluid around the pedal assembly. Brake fluid is nasty stuff and it was astute of @brant to recommend refurbishing the pedal assembly if it has become fouled with brake fluid. Because it's easy for me to spend your money, I also recommend you get a Motive pressure bleeder. You've already seen Ian's @iankarr video on replacing the MC and he also has one on bleeding the brakes with the Motive. You need to order the one that comes with the European adaptor (0100 I believe). This is also one of my least favorite jobs as it does require some contortion to get things hooked up and I HATE working with brake fluid. If it has been a while it's also a good time to replace all of the rubber hoses and fully flush the system. If you didn't already know it, you've just discovered how important your brakes are to your safety and this is one of those jobs that you just have to do before it becomes a problem. As you can see a failure of one component of the braking system should lead you to consider refurbishing the whole system. Again, easy for me to spend your money AND time! Wear gloves, safety glasses, and keep lots of rags handy.

Glad you made it home safely!!!!