I bought this car as an unfinished project and therefore have not driven it.
Bled bakes. Tried turning wheels by hand. Rear brakes appeared to be working fine. Fronts however - none of the pistons moved and wheels turned freely. Thought the the pistoins in the calipers were seized. Phone a mechanic who suggested pumping compressed air into the calipers to see if the piston moved. Tried this. Brakes seemed to work . ie I could not turn the wheels with the compressed air pumping into the calipers. So I assume my calipers are fine. So is the problem in the master cylinder? ABS? proportionng valve? All the above? Any help apprieciated. thanks in advance. Also brake pedal almost bottoms out and there is no loss of brake fluid.

 

I'm not familiar with the ABS system on the FD but it really does sound like a bad master cylinder. If the pedal bottoms out, fluid is bypassing within the cylinder. Easy and cheap to swap anyway.

 

The master cyl can still bypass without it leaking ( with the reservoir top off push very slow on the brake pedal if you see a wash of fluid circulating inside the reservoir compartment then the master cyl need's to be done. CAUTION do not stick your face to close to the top of the master cyl and take somekind of precaution to keep from getting any fluid on the paint . It will act much the same as if the system is full of air.. As far as abs goes I cant help you ..

 

just for ***** and giggles....make sure the calipers are on the right sides....remember, the bleeder goes on top

 

Could be the master or the calipers.

Try the Factory Service Manual which you can download from the 3rd gen FAQ. It has the troubleshooting procedures you want to follow.