CANT PASS INSPECTION-BRAKES

[StangLover159]

Well I have a 89, 2.3 L convertible that's kind of a project car for me and my dad...the only problem is we can't get it to psss inspection. We replaced the rotors, calipers and shoes on the front and the shoes, and springs on the back and got the drums cut. we took it to get inspected, and we failed because the back right brake wasnt working, there wasnt enough pressure so it was uneven. the other 3 were perfect. so we tried several things to fix it-we cleaned out the brake line, got new new proportioning valve and master cylinder-you name it we've done it. we took it to the local ford dealership and they said everything looks fine (they have no way to test the brakes tho) and to just keep replacing parts till soemthing works (lotta help they were for 70 bucks! ) our only hope at this point is to hope theres some air n the line that'll work its way outward after driving it awhile, and we'll ust have to keep bleeding i guess, but i'm pretty sure thats not the problem... what could be up?

 

[dawsonsdaddy49]

ok

ok on the rear brakes did you check the wheel cyinders ? look inside the lil plastic boots for excess moisture !

also you may wanna stop at somplace like a midas or car X and see if they have a brake flush machine... or power bleeder

you have any other questions just ask !

i do the damn brake inspections for the company i work for !

 

[StangLover159]

we replaced the wheel cylinders too, thanks! we'll have to check out some other places for the brake flush thing, thanks for ur suggestion

 

[khal101]

What happens if you adjust that right rear brake out so far that its almost impossible to fit the drum on it? That will put pressure on there. Also you could just bring it to another inspection place and have them inspect it. Some inspectors are more lenient than others.

Now to actually fix your problem: If I remember right, there is only one brake line that goes to the rear then its split off to two sides right? Disconnect the line from the right rear wheel cylinder to see how much fluid comes out when you hit your brakes, then do the same for the other side. If the fluid that comes out is even then your issue is in the right rear brake itself, if its uneven then you know that you have a clogged line at the rear axle when the brake line splits. There isnt any reason to waste money on a porportioning valve. That won't fix your problem.

 

[StangLover159]

What happens if you adjust that right rear brake out so far that its almost impossible to fit the drum on it? That will put pressure on there. Also you could just bring it to another inspection place and have them inspect it. Some inspectors are more lenient than others.

Now to actually fix your problem: If I remember right, there is only one brake line that goes to the rear then its split off to two sides right? Disconnect the line from the right rear wheel cylinder to see how much fluid comes out when you hit your brakes, then do the same for the other side. If the fluid that comes out is even then your issue is in the right rear brake itself, if its uneven then you know that you have a clogged line at the rear axle when the brake line splits. There isnt any reason to waste money on a porportioning valve. That won't fix your problem.

We did that, we the brake drum was on so tight we could smell it when we stopped. That didn't do a thing There are only 3 inspection places in the entire state, and theyre spaced really far apart.

You are correct about the brake lines. We already did thta too, and it turns out the back right line after the split was clogged up a bit, so we cleaned it all out, and thta also did nothing. The last resort was the proportioning valve and master cylinder, and we have yet to inspect it with those on cuz the brakes are really spongy, we figured there's still air n the lines that we havent been bale to bleed out yet, but we're workin on that

 

[Keasbey]

we're workin on that

Good Luck dude!

 

[gibson89LX]

Well I have a 89, 2.3 L convertible that's kind of a project car for me and my dad...the only problem is we can't get it to psss inspection. We replaced the rotors, calipers and shoes on the front and the shoes, and springs on the back and got the drums cut. we took it to get inspected, and we failed because the back right brake wasnt working, there wasnt enough pressure so it was uneven. the other 3 were perfect. so we tried several things to fix it-we cleaned out the brake line, got new new proportioning valve and master cylinder-you name it we've done it. we took it to the local ford dealership and they said everything looks fine (they have no way to test the brakes tho) and to just keep replacing parts till soemthing works (lotta help they were for 70 bucks! ) our only hope at this point is to hope theres some air n the line that'll work its way outward after driving it awhile, and we'll ust have to keep bleeding i guess, but i'm pretty sure thats not the problem... what could be up?

Jiminy Christmas, where in the hell do you live that the inspection goes THAT deep? All I gotta do is shove hoses over my tailpipes

 

[Stinger]

What are you using the clean out the brake lines?

I've had this problem (well actually both back brakes) refuse to work as well. I can remove the line at the back and no fluid will come out when I step on the pedal...I have been unable to find the problem though. I think it's a clog in the line but I can't find the clog.

 

[StangLover159]

Jiminy Christmas, where in the hell do you live that the inspection goes THAT deep? All I gotta do is shove hoses over my tailpipes

delaware they have a brake machine where you have to accelerate then slam on the brakes, and you get a computer printout to say if u passed or failed.

we used brake cleaning spray and an air compressor to clean them out

 

[svoman2300]

Sorry no help for you but damn in my state as long as you can afford the insurance and tag your car can be held together by bubblegum and paperclips.

 

[misslightning]

Matt(351wcoupe on here) is getting his inspection license soon. He told me to ask what they did to check the brakes?
You mention all 4 wheels...Did they actually pull all of them?

 

[Ray III]

have you looked at the other side for a problem? If one side takes too much fluid while it is being actuated, it renders the other side ineffective. Might even be possible that that side is applying enough force but is doing something to affect the application of the other side... First off make sure the backs are identically adjusted and equally greased/use the same effort to move the shoes.

 

[Ray III]

Also do your OWN brake test -- barrel down a straight road firmly holding the wheel straight, when there is no traffic around YANK the ebrake on as hard as you can without locking the rear wheels. Repeat the test using the service brake.

If the car pulls to the side opposite the trouble wheel, and did so during the ebrake test, you have a mechanical problem in the drum, if it only happens when you apply service brakes, it's a hydraulic issue. (brake cables MUST be both in good condition for equal application with e-brake)

If it does not, call BS on the machine they tested the car on, and make them prove it is properly calibrated or take that trip to another inspection station.

 

[StangLover159]

we had already done our own home brake test as you suggested, but it didnt pull to either side.

we failed again today...this was the first time we went after installing the master cylinder and proportioning valve. the mechanics have no idea what's going on they juts tell us to go to a diff. test station thats 2 hours away, even the ford dealership said that, so it feels kinda hopeless...

but tonight we decided to take another look, and we took the wheel cylinders off and it seems that they might have no been working right, so we took em apart and put em back together, this seems to have made a change, but its hard to tell until we go sit in line for another 2 hours to try the machine...
thanks for all your suggestions!

 

[StangLover159]

Matt(351wcoupe on here) is getting his inspection license soon. He told me to ask what they did to check the brakes?
You mention all 4 wheels...Did they actually pull all of them?

well if delaware and only one other stae are the only ones with this dumb ass machine ( ) so hopefully he wont have to go thru all this, all other states are more leniant, usually they just check to make sure all the parts are in the right place. but i explained the brake test earlier, and unless ur car is fairly new, it is difficult to pass. so they dont actually look at the brakes, they just get the computer readout and send you on your way...

 

[Ray III]

They seriously don't look at the brakes? That's a hell of a way to inspect the car. A lot of help a brake force test is going to be in telling you whether the linings are about to separate from the shoes or something.

 

[351wcoupe]

They seriously don't look at the brakes?

Yeah too many times people say "inspection"

Everybody needs to remember its actually "Safety Inspection"

 

[Willy0314]

if your brakes are spungy, you'll never get enough presure to pass the test. Did you bleed out the master cylinder when you installed it? or just fill it with fluid. When you bleed the brakes are you doing them properly? I belive its pass. rear first, then driver rear, then pass front and driver front last. Also if you run the master cylinder out of fluid when your bleeding the brakes, you'll have to rebleed the master cylinder. You might have a pin hole in a line someplace thats bleeding off presure, or a kink in a line for that matter. I'd make the trip to the other station, and if they dont pass you, go to auto zone and rent a double ended flareing tool and run all new brake lines. You've done most evreything else.

 

[StangLover159]

yea we bled correctly, and finally fixed the brakes!! the rebuilding of the wheel cylinders was what did it, and we passed with a perfect result, thank god this is over!!! thanks for all your help