mot and brakes

[trevorbayliss]

My peugeot partner van has failed the mot on the brakes.

one side on the rear is recording little braking. In october i had new shoes put on my brakes and a new cylinder was fitted to one side of the brakes.

I need to go back to this garage but wanted to know what has gone wrong with the repair because it is connected.

 

[Burnerman]

Was that the side that had the new wheel cylinder, Trevor?
Chances are that it wasn't but it needs one now, assuming that it was the foot brake that failed rather than the handbrake.
These vans are notorious for the rear self adjusters not doing their stuff too, and I always adjust them manually - this gives a much higher pedal.
John

 

[trevorbayliss]

It is the nearside which has a problem, but i think they changed the cylinder on the rear left wheel. Not sure if that is near or offside.

This is a footbrake issue and not handbrake.

So do i just need a new cylinder ?

 

[Burnerman]

The rear left is the near side.
This shouldn't be difficult to sort ......basically the rear brake drums are taken off and cleaned, likewise the shoes which are now exposed. If wear is excessive, new shoes are needed.
The brake shoes can be gently tapped in towards the wheel cylinder, one at a time. If the cylinder pistons move, it's a fair bet that it is ok.
The shoes should self adjust to be in close proximity to the brake drum - as I said earlier, it's a good move to help them a bit by turning them manually until the shoes just start rubbing the drum.
As a new wheel cylinder has been fitted, it's worth bleeding the brakes in case any air remains......difficult if the cylinders are old because the nipple snaps off.
If this work is done on both sides, the brake performance should be equal and good. An unlikely cause is ballooning of the flexible brake pipes, if they are really old, and likewise wear on the drums themselves.
John

 

[trevorbayliss]

Thanks John.

So do you think i should ask the garage to do all this work again because it looks like when they changed the shoes and put a new cylinder on they didnt do it right.

 

[Burnerman]

I don't think there's much to gain by playing hell Trevor but by all means remind them that they did do the job in the first place, so ask them to get it MOT worthy again.....just in case the problem is elsewhere.
John