brettb

So just as my heading says. I replaced my calipers 2 days ago and bled the entire brake system starting with bench bleeding the master cylinder first removed all air from it then bled each wheel in this order: passenger rear then driver front, driver rear then passenger front. But I have no brake pressure at all when I push the pedal it goes straight to the floor It'll pump up a little but when you take your foot off the brake it goes straight back to the floor. The fluid never got low I always topped it off and I bled each wheel until nothing but a solid stream of brake fluid came out and no air bubbles. Also the calipers are installed on their proper sides with the bleeder valve on top. My method of bleeding was the good old fashioned way of pressure bleeding with someone in the car pushing the pedal and me releasing the valve. So can anyone tell me what do I need to do to get my brakes working again? It is power brakes. Do I need to just bleed everything again and again and again like ten times or what? The entire brake system is new brand, first new rear drum shoes and wheel cylinders then new front brake pads and new master cylinder about a month ago and now new calipers (old ones guiding pins were seized shut but i lost all brake function when i replaced calipers. Any good advice would be great. Thanks

joe_padavano

You still have air in the system. Keep bleeding. A vacuum or pressure bleeder is the preferred way to solve this problem.

nofiveo

Why did you bleed the master if you were just replacing the calipers? It sounds like you've still got air in the system somewhere. When you bleed, start from the farthest cyl from the master and work closer. (RR, Lr Rf,LF) Once you start the bleeding process, only pump the brakes once when bleeding the rears..as in pedal down, hold pedal, open bleeder, close bleeder, pedal up repeat. Make sure you don't push the pedal so far down as to trip the proportioning valve. Also make sure the rear shoes are adjusted properly as that will cause poor pedal travel also.

brettb

Believe it or not the master cylinder was full of air bubbles when I bled it so I'm glad I did. The rear brakes are not the culprit they have been properly adjusted and they would not cause me to have no brakes at all the car literally will not stop on its own if the rear brakes weren't adjusted my front brakes would still function and bring the car to a stop. Thank you though for your help

JPMDaddy

you do need to bleed the whole system in the proper order...

Right rear, Left rear, Right front and finally Left front

brettb

So how many times do I need to bleed it? I know there has to be air trapped but nothing but solid streams of fluid comes out. Thanks... what would you do?

JPMDaddy

do you have a helper managing the pedal while you are opening and closing the bleed valve or are you using a 1 man set up - like a vacuum bleeder?

I've seen a car take 5-10 bleeds per wheel before

brettb

I have a helper. I'm just doing the old fashioned pressure bleeding. I don't use any vacuum kits never had luck with them so I do it manually. So when you say 5-10 bleeds per wheel is that 5-10 times in a row or is that 5-10times doing the rotation like all for wheels equals one bleeding?

JPMDaddy

starting at the farthest - bleed more than you'd think it would take - 5-10 times and then move on, your pedal action should start to improve as you work your way to fronts - its a long way from your master to the rears -

brettb

Okay sounds good I will try that and hopefully everything will return back to normal. I'll keep you updated. Thanks

JPMDaddy

once upon a time on an Alfa Romeo we mounted a caliper upside down on the rear - bleed valve was at bottom of caliper - we never did get that one to bleed right LOL

brettb

LOL I bet. All the air being trapped at the top. I've made sure all my bleeder valves are the top. I didn't want that to happen to me. I hate sitting at each wheel doing this. And brake fluid stains everything.

JPMDaddy

not that I would recycle it, but I try to use clear length of hose on bleed valve into a bottle of some sort and then toss it

brettb

Oh I'm already doing that. I have a clear hose I use for bleeding and a bottle still it gets on your hands or driveways. Rubber gloves just rip I use them still

oldcutlass

So basically your pumping the pedal until you feel pressure. Your release the valve and your helper hold it to the floor until you tighten it. Then pump them up until theres pressure and repeat. Then periodically refilling the MC.

svnt442

There is a valve on 1970 models with a button on it and if you don't press that when bleeding the system it will never bleed properly (I learned that the HARD way).

442mastercyl_zps7e25411d.jpg

redoldsman

I believe bleeding brakes on a Cutlass (and any other A body I guess) is one of the biggest PIA's you can have. I hate it. Pressure bleeding was the only way I could ever get the brakes to work right on my 72 Cutlass.

brettb

That's exactly how I've been bleeding. This is on my 1974 Oldsmobile 98 4 door hardtop sedan. I guess I'm going to get a gallon of brake fluid and just bleed this thing like crazy.

pizza442

That's new to me; what exactly 'trips'? What happens when it does? How do you reset it?