Rorie

Active Member
New brake servo and master cylinder. New brake pipes to the front, but discs and pads haven't been changed (good condition).

Brake pedal travels a long way before the brakes come on. The pedal actually hits the floor!

I've bled the brakes several times and doesn't seem to have any more air in them. The car pulls up straight when I hit the brakes.

… but the pedal is on the floor!

So, can I adjust the pedal? I looked in the manual and cant see anything about it. Would it be the push rod in the master? I know I can do this for the clutch....

Thanks
 
What year is it.
Does the pedal travel improve after pumping it, you may have air in the abs pump/system if fitted.
 
There is a lot of travel on the pedal before I get any hardening of the pedal. I think I may have a bit of air left in the system, but I would have still thought the pedal would have been higher up before it works?

Adjusted up? Do you mean dry brakes? They are discs on the back as it’s a disco rear axle (I think), so assume I don’t need to adjust here?
 
If you have changed the MC etc then it’s highly likely the rod is out of adjustment.

You need to set a specific clearance on the push rod that the pedal pushes into the MC. It sounds to me like you gap is to big and pushing the pedal take away lot of travel before the ‘slack’ is taken up.

It’s all in the Haynes manual or the LR maintenance book, or goggly
 
Yeh ok, that's what I was wondering. But I couldn't find anything in the workshop manuals I have (checked each edition that I have) in respect to adjusting the master cylinder....

so if I adjust the rod in there, it should sort the 'hitting the floor' issue. I'm also going to bleed the brakes again now that she's been out for a drive to get rid of any remaining air.
 
The amount the the pedal should move before the rod starts pushing the master's piston is only 3 to 5 mm. It is important there is some play though or fluid may have difficulty returning to the resevoir and brakes sticking on. If you move the pedal by hand it is possible to feel the point the rod contacts the piston.
 
I measured the clearance by putting bluetack on the end of the rod, then pushing the pedal then measuring the thickness of bluetack lol
 
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Must make sure it's not too tight as it might seem fine to test but after abit of a drive and it heats up, the brakes start locking on and you get the smell of clutch lol
 
You can take the master cylinder off the servo and gently bend it away - there's enough flex on the pipes so you don't have to undo any of them. Then you'll be able to see a rod peeping out that pushes on the plunger in the master cylinder. If you wedge the brake pedal down it will stick out further so it'll be easier to get a grip on it. I find my Disklok steering wheel lock is ideal for the job. Then you can screw the rod in and out by gipping one bit and turning the other. It's hard to describe but when you look at it, it'll be obvious. If you make it longer the brake pedal bite point will be higher. You need a bit of 'slack', because, as mentioned above, the brakes may feel fine when you've freshly adjusted them but will start binding after a few miles. If you play around with it, it should be possible to find a happy medium, assuming no problems elsewhere.
 

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