Very little pressure or None on brake

[dragonlord76]

My 92' vigor will not brake correctly. Very little pressure or none at all when I press on the brake (hand brake works). I replaced brake pads, bleed, and fill up fluid. Nothing seem to help. I am think there might be a leak somewhere but not sure. Any suggestion? Thanx

[killerB]

Check the brake master cylinder, it may be leaking.

[shawnhu]

Are you referring to softness in the brake pedal? Unless you put a pressure gauge on the brake lines, I don't know how you would be able to determine pressure.

If you FEEL that the brake pedal is not PUSHING back when you press on it, then it's a good indication that there is air/water in the lines, or that a cylinder has failed. It's also possible that you are leaking the fluid away.

So first, check if there's a leak, and get that fixed before proceeding. If there's an external leak(fluid leaving the system), then you should see the brake master cylinder reservoir deplete after some time. Keep an eye on it, and see if it's leaking, externally.

If it's looking good, then you'll want to do a proper bleeding of the system. The proper sequence to bleed the brakes on a Vigor is RR, FL, FR, RL. Having a helper in this process helps a lot, and opening and closing the bleeder bolt is good practice to not let air back into the system.

Finally, a popular problem that occurs with Honda's is the brake master cylinder going bad, internally. The piston seal inside, fails and causes an internal leak. Fluid doesn't leak out of the system, but instead, back into the master cylinder. It will flow past the seal, and allow the brake pedal to sink to the floor. An easy test for a failed cylinder is to hold the brake pedal down without the car started, and take note of any sinkage of the pedal, down to the floor.

Good luck with your repair.

Shawn

[dragonlord76]

Thanx guys, especially Shawn for all that typing. Exactly as you described. While driving and apply the brake to stop or without the car stated, at the initial stage of applying the brake, the brake feel stiff then slowly sink to the floor. What I notice when I pumping the brake continuously, the brake seem to have pressure but when I stop, it sinks. I did have to refill the brake fluid before because the ABS and Brake light come on. After refill it works no problem and light indicator gone as well. Hmm...I bet you are right? It is the Brake Master Cylinder. Damn, I just spend about $150 to replaced brake pad and distributor o-rings and misc....now this.

Do I have to buy a new Brake Master Cylinder or just the seal? Do you know any online guide to replace it? Thanx

John

[shawnhu]

Unfortunately, there are very little resources for BMC rebuilds that I know of for this car. However, the BMC is compatible with Accord BMC's with similar years, up to 97 I think. Honda used this BMC on a few of their models, both Acura and Honda. You can shop around, using the this part#46100-SM4-G54.

Good luck.

Pep Boys also carries rebuilt BMC's and they sometimes offer lifetime on their items.

Shawn