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& disks and they both look fine. 6mm left on the pads and about 2mm wear on the disks, although I couldn't find the minimum thickness limit listed anywhere... Haynes says it's stamped on the rotor, but I couldn't see it. 
'brake booster' as described in the Haynes manual and that appears to be ok. If there is air in the system the brake pedal will feel spongy, not firm, and will tend to have a fair bit of travel in it when you apply the brakes. They normally drag a bit once you have problems, and this will cause them to get hot and this can be one way of finding out which one is giving the problem. hth.spudgun wrote:Hi gary,
My money is on the brake calipers being stuck though.
Go for a bit of a drive, around 12 miles or so and once you have stopped feel each wheel for one that is warmer than the other, its normally quite noticable, and see how you get on from there.
I had the front up on jacks today and the front wheels spun ok, but it did sound like the pads where rubbing against the disks, but I know there's a fine line between what's normal and a stuck caliper. They could be full of muck or rusty. Have a look at the rubber gaitor on the piston if its split it will let alot of crap in. my money is on the sliders being stuck causing the brakes to apply proper pressure to one side of the disc only. if it was the pistons sticking you would get no brakes. as it was an advise at the mot then this would indicate they were both working and reasonably evenly.crazylegs wrote:the front brakes normally give no trouble.
...wild thought - the brakes are servo assisted... If the pedal is hard with the engine running it may be your servo isn't seeing vacuum....or is leaking....- when the engine catches and starts turning over the brake pedal should move down slightly and feel a little softer - if it doesn't then the servo may not be seeing vacuum....also - are you finding your engine idles unusually highly? If so then there may be a hole in the diaphragm of your servo which is letting air in - which spoils the vacuum in there hence little or no servo assitance - but also flows in to the engine when idling and allows it to idle at higher revs than normal.Blokey wrote:
Just a couple of thoughts to check on.
B.
- I noticed it when moving in traffic, I've always thought it was normal...........yup - mine does that when I press the brake pedal and if it's idling and I pump the brake pedal the revs rise and continue to stay high while the brake pedal is being pumped, I think that's normal, or at least it's what mine does and that has no problems.- it sonds like the servo is ok then....have you noticed the brake pedal settling down when you start the engine? If it does then the servo idea is blown out of the water.Blokey wrote:
Ho hum
B.
- I did all the test listed in Haynes, pressing the pedal and starting the engine (it moves a small amount) repeatly pressing the pedal with the engine running and checking that the pedal travel doesn't increase with each press (which it doesn't)- which would make sense as the test indicated they where only 50% effective - but that could just be the default MOT error message. 
Its not a difficult job to do, but when you do have a look make sure the rubber boots havnt any holes in them, this will let dirt & brake dust into the sliding links & will cause them to seize, oh & dont use copperslip either, just use a good quality grease. Jinxy----if one pad of the pair is worn more than the other then it is DEFINITE that the sliders are seized.,why not 'copperslip'--?"idle up" circuit kicks in when the brake lights come on, perfectly normal on a MK1.Black is not a colour ! .... Its the absence of colour
Tony jinxy froude wrote:Im with Kev on this one, we've seen it so many times on various MK1's we've had, i have to do my own about every 6 months otherwise they seize.
- Is it just a case of taking the calipers off the car and cleaning them up? unbolt the calipers and it will all become clear. you should be able to swing them free of the disc. its a simple job well worth everyone doing as a part of a service.johnp wrote:
But,Tony,just one question
Copperslip + brake dust = Seized links, Anna & Garrick taught me this last year & to be honest, although i still do mine every 6 - 8 months they are not as bad as they were when i was using Copperslip, hope this helps, cheers, Jinxy I'd be tempted to remove the pad/caliper carriers and the securing clips then bash off all the old pad material, rust and road muck that can build up. This gets behind the clips that secure the pads and can jam them up. The pads should slide easily into the carriers without needing the application of significant force. If you're running dusty pads (Pagid etc) I'd do this every time I change the pads. 
(Ens ), some brake pad manufactuers put quite thick paint on the backing plates, this can cause them to stuck solid in the pad retainer grooves, just file them slightly & they should move freely when in place. Jinxy The brakes are the same design as the Mk1 (apart from the handbrake 
) and there were NO issues with fitment of the EBC Black pads I bought, I even got the shims back on. 