craaaazzy

iTrader: (9)

help guys,
i've lost as to why my car pulls to the driver's side when braking. i've already done the following:

1. alignment done professionally
2. bled entire system
3. installed new master brake cylinder and bled entire system
4. swapped pads from one side to the other
5. replaced front passenger side caliper and bled caliper
6. checked wheel bearing preload and both are similar
7. tire pressures are the same

suspension consists of illuminas and coilovers
previous owner had already installed RB sway, poly bushings, SS brake lines, new rotors, replaced wheel bearings.

the car drives great when accelerating and coasting. only under braking does it pull to one side...the harder i brake, the more it pulls to one side.

anyone have any ideas???

craaaazzy

iTrader: (9)

also just attempted the following with no success:

8. loosened the front sway bar support plates, went for a drive. still the same issue. tightened them back up once i got back, car on the ground.

i'm at a loss as to what's going on with my brakes. please help.

craaaazzy

iTrader: (9)

ok, noticed something while loosening/tightening the sway bar support plates. the front end of the passenger tension bar was longer on the passenger side than it was on the driver side. i checked the FSM and spec is to have .42inches of the tension rod sticking out. i'm estimating the rod is actually sticking out about 7/8 of an inch.

could this be the cause of the problem? if so, once i put it within spec, how much is my alignment going to be off since the control arm is now going to be pushed back about .45 inches? i really don't want to spend another $100 on a 3rd alignment.

craaaazzy

iTrader: (9)

this is what i'm talking about:

NCross

iTrader: (18)

What about the proportioning valve? Sticky caliper?

snivley whiplash

iTrader: (4)

I had this problem in the past...replace the front lines going to the front calipers, one is blocked or restricted. will cause all sorts of problems from braking pull to sticking caliper to warped rotors. just a thought.
also on a side note, suspension will not cause brake pull, alignment or worn parts will.

craaaazzy

iTrader: (9)

Thanks for the suggestions guys. I re-bled the system yet again with no luck. Had the wife slowly step on the brakes to check that the front calipers were applying even pressure and they were. Did the same with the rears and they were even from side to side but it seems the rears grab before the fronts for some reason (rear are disks also). Anyway, in my search I found someone mentioning about properly bedding new rotors and pads. I assumed the previous owner had done this before I bought the car but I went ahead and performed this again today. After 4 rounds of 60-20mph, I noticed the pulling stopped! Hopefully this helps anyone who runs into the similar issue.

NCross

iTrader: (18)

Brazing? Or whatever its called.

craaaazzy

iTrader: (9)

Hazing maybe...I just call it PIA since it took me this long to figure out. I went through every troubleshooting step I could think of.

t_g_farrell

iTrader: (1)

Yep, its always something simple. Bedding brakes in seems to be a lost art for some reason.

Sometimes over time the pads/rotors can get glazed and rebedding will fix that as well.

DivinDriver

iTrader: (15)

I think the word you guys were looking for was "glazing." Rotors and pads glazing from improper bedding or abuse can really inhibit brake function.

Bedding new brakes properly is almost as important to a successful brake job as having flat rotor faces, but few people seem to bother.

I had a brake change on my Z that I glossed over the bedding process on due to a lack of time (had to get to work), and braking performance went completely to hell.

I had to pull everything down, re-scuff all the surfaces, and bed them in proper, after which things were back to original eyeball-sucking perfection.