I figured I would put these in the same topic to save space on here.

any help with this stuff would be awesome

question 1:

I just pulled the master cylinder off of my car,
as I was removing it, the line that includes the big bolt and banjo leaked some residual fluid which appeared to be pretty smooth and didnt look muddy.
the other line did not leak any residual fluid.
a video of me forcing action with it on the bench.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/98486293@N04/...57634495806387/

what are some things I should check to find out if I need to rebuild it or not? the pedal box is rusted into oblivion and I cant figure out how to get it apart but the master cylinder has almost no rust on it so I dont know..

question 2:

tomorrow a guy is delivering an SVX with a bad trans to me from richmond ca, (I live in the southern end of SF) for $600 total. pretty rad, considering the engine apparently fires right up and runs great. the dude has to move and needs it gone.

I have no truck, my dad has it in oregon. I have no towing equipment. if I pull the eg out of the thing and push the rest of the car into a parking space outside my house and just leave it, wont the city eventually impound, thus getting it out of my hair? I dont plan to transfer registration so they wont really have any records of me owning it. as long as the guy I bought it from doesnt get screwed for the deal Im down with letting the city get rid of it..

the reason I ask is the condition on which my mother lets me keep my 914 in the garage is that she can get her passat in it at night, so every time I finish working on it I have to jam the thing into the back of the garage with a 5 point turn. she doesnt want to give up her parking space for an SVX while I try to sell parts off of it so the sooner I can get it gone the better once I get the swap out of it.

thanks all

mitch

Master cylinder rebuild kits are pretty much a thing of the distant past. As a professional, I would NEVER rebuild a master cylinder. The liability is almost unimaginable. As a retiree, I still wouldn't do it. You're in CA. If you're gonna rebuild yours, I ask you to stay out of my part of the state and never drive on any road where I might be.

The Cap'n

I took mine to a scrap metal yard and got over $200 for it. Being heavy is a good thing when you sell it for scrap.

Bob

When I stripped my VW Passat, A wrecking yard came and picked it up for free. You must have a title (pink slip) to do this.

If you leave it the street, yes the city will eventually have it towed... But... If you live in SF, the car will get many parking tickets before this happens. The registered owner will get nailed for those AND it will hold up his/her license renewal. Bad JuJu if you go this route.

Call a wrecking yard and have it removed for free. It does not have to be registered to you but you must have a title to provide to them.

Hi Capn'
You have said this before I know. This was common and acceptable at one time. I am wondering what it is that you think will fail? Is it that people put the things together wrong, or is it the fact that people take a pitted old cylinder, hone it to satisfy their hopes, and then correctly assemble what will in the end not work? Or is it something else? Also, do you have the same feeling about rebuilt masters from the FLAPS? Probably not for a 914, but they are there for most other cars. I am really curious about what you think.
-Warren

exactly why I asked about this.
I will talk to some wrecking yards, I already had one tell me they wouldnt pick it up because there was no money in it so we'll see. thanks for the response.

as far as the master cylinder goes, Im thinking Ill just buy a 19mm 911 cylinder and do the upgrade. I have 911 brakes/hubs anyway so why not.

thanks all for the help.

The usual failure mode for Ate cast iron master cylinders (and other types, as well) is pitting, which is usually caused by water in the hydraulic fluid, which is a result of poor maintenance habits. I.e., operator error! Honing the cylinders enough to correct the problem is out of the question because the hones are as imprecise a tool as ever hit the market. Boring and sleeving works if new replacement cylinders aren't available, but one can easily spend more than the price of a new cylinder for those components still available. As for water pumps, master cylinders, CV axles, and rotating electrical devices, the failure rate in the case of low cost components is staggering, and most folks in search of "rebuilt" parts like that use price as a measure of value. Quality is far down the list. Witness the success of chain auto parts stores, where the percentage of the budget spent on advertising probably rivals the production cost of the parts being sold. I mean, just how much can a rattle can of spray paint cost? When you can buy a starter for less than the typical wholesale cost of the components that should be replaced, doesn't it raise a flag?

The Cap'n

[/quote]


The usual failure mode for Ate cast iron master cylinders (and other types, as well) is pitting, which is usually caused by water in the hydraulic fluid, which is a result of poor maintenance habits. I.e., operator error! Honing the cylinders enough to correct the problem is out of the question because the hones are as imprecise a tool as ever hit the market. Boring and sleeving works if new replacement cylinders aren't available, but one can easily spend more than the price of a new cylinder for those components still available. As for water pumps, master cylinders, CV axles, and rotating electrical devices, the failure rate in the case of low cost components is staggering, and most folks in search of "rebuilt" parts like that use price as a measure of value. Quality is far down the list. Witness the success of chain auto parts stores, where the percentage of the budget spent on advertising probably rivals the production cost of the parts being sold. I mean, just how much can a rattle can of spray paint cost? When you can buy a starter for less than the typical wholesale cost of the components that should be replaced, doesn't it raise a flag?

The Cap'n
[/quote]

Thanks. I may or may not have a rebuild kit for an ate cylinder coming from Germany. If it doesn't ever arrive, I don't. But I do have the 911 cylinder without pits and I have done this before with other cars, including learning my lesson about the honing.

I think I need a new starter. What the heck does *remanufactured* by Bosch buy me?

.....I was always told, & it sounds smart to me.......when it comes to
your braking system,DON"T SLACK & PLEASE DON"T PLAY AROUND!!!
(very critical area)

Well, I got a starter for my 47 Dodge truck (engine from a '66 Chevy Malibu, not my doing) from the FLAPS and it lasted almost 19 miles and 15 starts of the new engine before failing. It was real cheap. Maybe JEGs woulda been better - chrome MOROSO - I dunno. The truck is easy to crawl under.